Running head: BEHAVIOR CHARACTERISTICS 1

Behavior Characteristics of Individuals With ASD

Yadira Adame-Lopez

Brandman University: EDUU-575

March 27, 2020

BEHAVIOR CHARACTERISTICS 2

Behavior Characteristics of Individuals With ASD

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder that impacts 1 in 54

individuals, and 4.3 prevalence among boys as compare to girls (Maenner, Shaw, Baio, et al.

2020). Based on recent studies there is an increase in children diagnosed with ASD. This disorder

affects social communication, speech/language and behavior abilities of the individual. A global

characteristic that exists among individuals with ASD in regards to behavior is restrictive

repetitive and stereotyped patterns of behavior, interests, and activities (Pratt, Hopf, & Larriba-

Quest, 2017). Learning and understanding how these behaviors look can help parents, health

professionals, service providers, and educators identify if a child might have ASD.

First, children with ASD display repetitive movements like hand flapping, rocking back

and forth, hand wringing, flicking fingers in front of eyes, and pacing. Some students will use

objects/toys to spin or line them up. Many typical children can exhibit repetitive movements but

children on the spectrum will do it over and over. According to Sarris the repetitive movements

are unusual and they appear to be non-functional (Sarris, 2013). Some individuals with

functioning ASD will have self-injurious behaviours (SIB). The physical harm can be head

banging, self-biting, self-cutting, self-choking, self-scratching, and hair pulling (Minshawi, et al.

2014). Students with lower functioning autism are at greater risk of developing more severe SIB

(Gulsrud et al., 2018).

Secondly, students with ASD have a need for sameness/routines in their daily schedule.

The student will have unnecessary adherence to routines such as eating their lunch in the same

order, or going to the restroom before recess. Children might have a need for sameness such as

playing the same game/toy every day. It can be challenging for educators working with students
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on the spectrum to implement changes in the classroom because students with ASD dislike

changes in their routines. These changes can create behavior challenges for some students.

Another behavior characteristic of ASD is focused of interests. Most people have a

special interest, the difference with ASD individuals is that their interests are high restricted and

fixated with an abnormal intensity and focus (Pratt, Hopf, & Larriba-Quest, 2017). Children can

spend hours talking repeatedly about certain topics or memorizing facts about their topic of

interest. Some common topics that students may develop an interest in are schedules, a particular

video game, trains, maps, and dinosaurs.

Lastly, there are sensory issues, which are responses that an individual can have to

different sensory inputs. Sensory inputs can be visual, auditory, tactile, and taste/smell. Some

students can be very sensitive to sensory experiences and that is known as hypersensitivity

(Steinbrenner, et al. 2019). Examples of things that can trigger an overreaction are fluorescent

lights, loud noises, soft humming noises, smells and food textures. Others may be less sensitive

to sensory experiences and that is hyposensitivity. Students with hyposensitivity will have

difficulty focusing to people talking to them. They would not notice if they get hurt because they

have high tolerance to pain. Others will not be impacted by sensory experiences in weather.

There are many behavior characteristics that can be seen in individuals with ASD.

Knowing these characteristics can assist families, service providers, and educators in identifying

children with ASD. Learning some of the common causes for behaviors can help to identify why

the individual is exhibiting the behavior and providing intervention. Early intervention can help

individuals to modify, replace, or get rid of restrictive repetitive and stereotyped patterns of

behavior, interests, and activities. Which can help students be more successful in academics and

social interactions.
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References

Gulsrud, A., Lin, C. E., Park, M. N., Hellemann, G., & McCracken, J. (2018). Self‐injurious

behaviours in children and adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Journal of

Intellectual Disability Research, 62(12), 1030–1042. https://doi-

org.libproxy.chapman.edu/10.1111/jir.12490

Maenner, M.J., Shaw, K.A., Baio, J., et al. (2020). Prevalence and Characteristics of Autism

Spectrum Disorder Among Children Aged 8 Years - Autism and Developmental

Disabilities Monitoring Network, 11 Sites, United States, 2016. MMWR- Surveill Summ

2020, 69, 1-12. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.ss6904a1

Pratt, C., Hopf, R., & Larriba-Quest, K. (2017). Characteristics of individuals with an autism

spectrum disorder (ASD). The Reporter, 21(17). Retrieved

from https://www.iidc.indiana.edu/irca/articles/characteristics-of-individuals-with-an-asd

Sarris, M. (2013). Behaviors that Puzzle: Repetitive Motions and Obsessive Interests in Autism.

Retrieved March 27, 2020, from

https://iancommunity.org/cs/challenging_behaviors/repetitive_motions_and_obsessions

Steinbrenner, J., Sam, A., Chin, J., Morgan, W., & AFIRM for Paras Team. (2019). Introduction

to ASD. FPG Child Development Institute, University of North Carolina. Retrieved

from https://afirm.fpg.unc.edu/introduction-asd

Minshawi, N., Hurwitz, S., Fodstad, J., et al. (2014). The ssociation between self-injurious

behaviors and autism spectrum disorders. Psychology Research and Behavior

Management, 7,125-136. doi:https://doi.org/10.2147/PRBM.S44635