People with autism often struggle with social skills like interpreting non-verbal cues (facial expressions, body language), initiating and maintaining conversations (especially small talk), understanding others' perspectives (Theory of Mind), and using or understanding indirect communication, leading to challenges in forming connections, though these difficulties stem from different communication styles, not a lack of desire to connect. Key areas include joint attention (sharing interest), turn-taking, eye contact, personal space, and understanding social rules.
Nonverbal communication plays a crucial role in social interactions, but individuals with autism often face challenges in this area. They may struggle to interpret and use nonverbal cues such as facial expressions, body language, gestures, and eye contact.
Impairment in social functioning is a central feature of ASD. Typical social skill deficits include: initiating interactions, responding to the initiations of others, maintaining eye contact, sharing enjoyment, reading the non-verbal cues of others, and taking another person's perspective.
With autism, social skills are impaired because of communication; the individual does not know the right things to say. It causes challenges with interpreting social cues, facial expressions, and tone of voice. They might not understand personal space and stand too close or talk too loud.
Common signs of autism in adults include:
Some research suggests that up to 80% of those with autism suffer from executive function disorder, leading to difficulties managing time, completing tasks, and making what might be thought of as simple tasks – like cleaning your room – very complicated or seemingly impossible.
Around 90% of autism cases are attributed to genetic factors, meaning autism is highly heritable, with many different genes contributing, rather than a single cause, often interacting with environmental influences during early brain development, though specific environmental factors don't cause it but can increase risk. Twin studies show strong genetic links, with concordance rates between 60-90% in identical twins, and research points to complex interactions of many genes and prenatal/perinatal factors.
How Autism Shapes Social Cue Recognition
Chinning is a form of repetitive self-stimulatory behavior (stimming) that you may notice in children or adults with autism. It involves pressing, rubbing, or holding the chin against objects, surfaces, or even hands to gain sensory input or comfort.
The "6-second rule" for autism is a communication strategy where a speaker pauses for about six seconds after asking a question or giving information, giving the autistic person extra time to process it without feeling rushed, which helps reduce anxiety and allows for a more thoughtful response, reducing frustration for both parties. Instead of repeating or rephrasing, which can be confusing, you wait, and if needed, repeat the exact same words after the pause.
If you are wondering whether you have bad social skills, here are nine signs to look out for.
These disorders are characterized by three core deficits: impaired communication, impaired reciprocal social interaction and restricted, repetitive and stereotyped patterns of behaviors or interests.
Examples of literal thinking in autism
Common colloquial phrases are sometimes taken literally by autistic individuals, who may misunderstand the meaning. For example, if someone says, “Break a leg” or “Hit the books,” a literal thinker might take it as actually breaking a leg or physically striking their books.
When someone is in a state of high anxiety or flooded with sensory input the brain can become overwhelmed and demand a fight, flight, or freeze response from the body. In autistic people this can result in a meltdown (the equivalent of the 'fight' response) which is often mistaken for a temper tantrum.
Slow Down. Another thing that's important to do when you experience conflict is slow down and take deep breaths. Fights happen so fast and can easily trigger intense emotional responses that make conflict worse. It actually can be helpful to even ask for some time to process how you are feeling.
They may be very sensitive to other people's thoughts. They may also find it hard to understand the stages of friendships, which can lead to confused emotions. They may struggle to cope with anxiety that could be linked to them not knowing what to say in conversations.
Babies with Autism Do Smile – Just Not Always How You Would Expect. A common misconception about autism is that babies with autism don't smile. They do — but their smiles may appear less frequently, come at unexpected moments, or not seem directly tied to social interaction.
Common Obsessions in Autism
Penguin Pebbling is a term used to describe the act of autistic individuals giving small, spontaneous gifts as a way to show affection and build connections. This unique form of communication is considered a neurodivergent love language, often involving meaningful objects like smooth pebbles, flowers, or shared photos.
Children with autism may exhibit rigidity, inflexibility and certain types of repetitive behavior such as: Insistence on following a specific routine. Having difficulty accepting changes in the schedule. A strong preoccupation with a particular interest.
"Looping" in autism refers to getting "stuck" in repetitive mental cycles, replaying thoughts, questions, worries, or phrases endlessly, often triggered by stress, sensory overload, or uncertainty, and linked to challenges with executive function and attention. It's a non-clinical term for perseveration or rumination, where an autistic individual's brain struggles to shift focus from an internal loop, which can be mentally exhausting but sometimes also comforting.
With less emotional expression, autistic people may appear to have a limited range of emotion – as they present a flat tone of voice or are unresponsive to emotional stimuli. These are distinct characteristics, as they are seen as “atypical” by societal standards.
Changes in the diagnostic criteria and increased screening at wellness visits seem to be the main contributors.
Donald Triplett, autism's 'Case 1,' dies at 89. Triplett gained media attention for his autism later in life, and he became the face of the effort to research the lives of older adults with autism.
Understanding the 6 stages of an autism meltdown can help parents, caregivers, and educators respond with empathy and support.