Social Interaction:
- Social interaction can often be awkward, inappropriate, and unsuccessful.
- Although a person may want social interaction, unusual verbal and nonverbal communication can be a cause for limited and difficult relationships with others.
- Nonverbal cues and nuanced social situations may confound a person with limited social understanding and communication strategies.
- Eye gaze, facial expressions, body language, gestures, and tone of voice may not be noticed, understood, or used in an acceptable manner.
- Lack of reciprocity, being unresponsive and showing lack of interest in a social situation, can stall an interaction.
- Imaginative play with others may be copied, rigid and repetitive.
- Peer groups may be unaccepting of subtle differences and "quirkiness".
- Social partners may be put off by communication that dwells on a limited number of favorite topics.
- Dating may present many unexpected and challenging situations.
- Understanding the intentions of others may be difficult.
- Understanding how an action or response might be received by others may be limited.
- Mastering the unwritten social rules of a peer group may be very difficult.
- A person may tend to be brutally honest in all situations and unaware or unconcerned about how the comment may be received.
- Social executive function is required to process and respond in a timely fashion in conversation.
      - One must consider and adjust to the thoughts and emotions of oneself and a social partner.
      - One must consider and compare the beliefs of oneself and a social partner.
      - One must consider the prior knowledge and experience of a social partner and adjust one's message.
      - One must consider and adjust to the motives and intentions of oneself and a social partner.
- Social interaction is related in various ways to other features of autism. Please see the Perseveration Feature and the Perspective Feature in this web site.
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