Overview of Asperser’s Syndrome
Asperser’s syndrome is a neurological and biological disorder that affects the brain of an individual. Asperser’s or Asperger’s syndrome as it is popularly known is named after Hans Asperger, a Vienna scientist who did the initial research on the syndrome and published his findings in 1944 (Wing, p. 516). Asperger researched a group of young boys. These boys had ordinary development in language and intellectual ability. However, they also showed traits that were somehow autistic, had many severe shortcomings in self-expression and socialization skills.
Asperger’s Syndrome or AS can be diagnosed medically though there are people who have lived without getting any medical attention or diagnosis. This is because AS can show a range of traits some of which are mild while others are severe. Individuals who have AS have exhibited shortcomings in socialization areas due to the lack of social skills. They also have a problem in changing routines for the reason why they prefer things being the same and any slight change affects them. They are obsessive especially about routines and have certain areas of concern. In terms of communication, they have a problem in reading body language and resolving proper body space. Individuals with AS see the world from a different perspective since they can hear the slightest sounds, see lights that none will hear, get unique tastes and smells that are very faint to the normal person.
Why Asperser’s individuals are stigmatized
Asperser’s disorder is categorized under pervasive developmental disorders or PDD’s. Speech of children with AS starts to develop when they are aged two. This lag in development often persists even into adulthood. Because individuals with Asperger’s are socially confused, they are often castigated in society by other normal beings. Adolescents are the most vulnerable group because stigmatization or seclusion by society often affects what they become in the future. Stigma makes social confusion worse and it leads to the development of low self-esteem and self-concept (Weissman, p. 261). Stigma also affects the mental health of an individual and the psychological well-being of a person. Stigma also affects life satisfaction among individuals because they tend to understand themselves as different. This shows that there should be universal ways or methods that persons with Asperser’s syndrome can use to overcome the stigma or how society should avoid subjecting those individuals with Asperser’s syndrome to stigma.
Review of Current Research
Current research is being done in many fields and the first one is the diagnostic approach. Through diagnosis, researchers can know how AS manifest itself from childhood to adulthood, the problems that these people face in society especially in terms of communication and socialization.
Diagnostic Approach
Under the diagnostic approach, there is the use of the DSM IV perspective, IQ Profiling, and Grouping of Social and psychiatric disorders in the Family members of and individual with AS.
The DSM IV Perspective
DSM IV means Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. This is used by American Psychiatric Association, and under it, AS is currently being studied according to its cluster of symptoms. These clusters include qualitative deficiencies in communication, social interaction, intelligence, and actions that are repetitive and confined and often take a pattern. This is set to help in the diagnosis of AS and what can be done to help those that have the syndrome. Under this study, there is the differentiation between AS and autism from the time of detection.
In the diagnostic approach, the psychiatrists often look at the speech delays as a unit about cognitive development. In this approach, researchers divide children into groups. These groups involve those with the problem in socialization but have a normal cognitive growth curve. These are the children that did or did not utter even a single word up to the age of two years. If a child falls under this group then the child has AS and not autism.
IQ Profiles
The other method is the use of Intelligent Quotient or IQ profiles. This is where researchers study the shortfall of the significance in learning and education management of people with AS. In this category, their Nonverbal Learning Disability (NLD) is studied in terms of shortfalls and assets of verbal skills (Landa 128). Verbal skills assets include vocabulary use, verbal memory, and output and knowledge. The shortfalls in verbal skills include visual-spatial solving of difficulties and motor coordination. If these can be studied and possible solutions got, then those with AS can be helped to learn with other individuals who do not have the syndrome.
Grouping of Social and psychiatric disorders in the Family members of and individual with AS
This research will look into the occurrence of AS in the family members of the individual with the syndrome. This involves the study of the genetic composition of an individual and researching any conditions that may occur in the family that is related to AS. Recent studies have shown that there is a form of consistency in the elevated rates of social difficulties in the family members of persons with AS.
Autism Research Centre Programs
At the Autism Research Centre, scientists in conjunction with Cambridge University are looking into the biomedical causes of AS. In so doing, they are trying to study and build-up up a novel and authenticated ways of intervening and treating AS. The Autism Research Centre has constituted six programs which are focused on Intervention, Neuroscience, Genetics and Proteomics, Screening and Diagnosis, Perception and Cognition, and lastly Hormones.
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) Research
The NINDS deals with research in the biomedical cause of AS in the nervous and brain system. This institute is funded by the Federal Government of the United States. Studies at this institute use functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) to reveal how disabilities in the brain can be the basis of symptoms of AS. The other method is the study of children who have been diagnosed with AS. This involves the comparison of neurophysiology and psychiatric assessments of children who have been diagnosed with AS. They also study and analyze DNA collected from children with AS and their respective family members. This is done with the aim of gene identification and how they interact with each other in those people who have AS. Comprehending the genetic foundations serves as the gateway to getting more chances of having accurate diagnosis and healing.
How to overcome Stigma
An individual needs to accept that they are different and acknowledge that it is their right to be here just like the birds and the mountains (Gottlieb 12). The first way of dealing with stigma is to avoid building up negative feelings and emotions. It is important that AS persons talk to friends, family, and aid centers that are dedicated to helping people with the syndrome. Seeing a family therapist or counselor can help beat stigma. A person who is discriminated against writes about it and in so doing it should help others who have been discriminated against. Talking and sharing experiences of stigmatization will get those bad feelings out and in so doing one feels accepted by society. Help to champion your rights and never feel ashamed. Through this one can raise self-esteem and acceptance of their shortcomings by society.
Every individual has a right to be what they are since none dictated how they should be born and therefore society should appreciate and must accept the differences of every individual. People with AS should not let people’s judgment hold back their ambition in life. They should learn to remove the burden of shame from themselves and let those who judge them take the shame. Truth should be taken as truth and nothing less because it will set all souls free. There is nothing that can be changed about variety and uniqueness, just accepting it as unique and taking it as natural. According to Gottlieb, humanity is taking life the way in simplicity and understanding it as it is (p. 32).
Sources of Additional Information
After looking at the way society looks at autism, one which is being stigmatized needs to read the book Dan Gottlieb, a paralyzed Philadelphia radio host has written to his grandson Sam who is autistic. The book titled Letters to Sam has accounts of how society looks at a different person, the standards that society passes as ordinary, and the denial of variety, uniqueness, and truth. Dan Gottlieb hosts a Family Talk show where he counsels millions of families and gives advice that helps people to live irrespective of the stigma.
Other resources can be found at AANE: The Asperger’s Association of New England, Asperger’s Syndrome Resources, University Students With Autism And Asperger’s Syndrome, and The National Autistic Society among others.
Works Cited
- Gottlieb, Daniel. Letters to Sam: A Grandfather’s Lessons on Love, Loss, and the Gifts of Life. Philadelphia:Sterling. 2006. Web.
- Landa, Resiper. Social language use in Asperger syndrome and high-functioning autism. In A. Klin, F.R. Volkmar, & S.S. Sparrow (Eds.), Asperger syndrome (pp.125–155). New York, NY: Guilford Press. 2000. Print.
- Weissman, Myrna. “Stigma.” Journal of the American Medical Association. 285. (2001): 261. Print.
- Wing, Lorna. “Clarification on Asperger’s Syndrome (Letters to the Editor)”. Journal of Autism Development Disorder 16. (2006): 513– 515. Web.