Asperger Syndrome and Social Relationships: Adults Speak Out about Asperger Syndrome

by Genevieve Edmonds (Editor), Luke Beardon (Series_editor)

This book is essential reading to understand the social abilities of adults with Asperger's syndrome. The contributors each have different personalities and experiences, but together they provide a range of strategies to encourage people with Asperger's syndrome to achieve the social relationships they desire'. - Professor Tony Attwood Social interaction among neurotypical people is complex and in many ways illogical. To the person with Asperger Syndrome (AS) it is also woefully unintuitive. In this book, adults with AS discuss social relationships, offer advice and support for others with AS and provide necessary insights into AS perspectives for those working and interacting with them. The contributors evaluate a range of social contexts and relationship aspects, * online relationships - a worldwide social network based on non-verbal communication, * the unwritten rules of neurotypical socialising, * the need for mutual understanding between those with AS and neurotypicals, * the effects of struggling socially on one's self-esteem and frame of mind, and * the opportunities provided by social skills workshops or interest groups. This is essential reading for adults with AS, their family and friends, as well as service providers and other professionals providing support for people with AS in adult life.

Genres: Nonfiction, Autistic Spectrum Disorder

176 pages, Paperback

First published March 15, 2008

Reviews

[Alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

Each chapter covers social relationships from a different author based on a slightly different topic. The book is now old so some of the websites and links are outdated, however, it helped me accept the way I am and the way I think, reading from others who have thought about social relationships similarly. In this way it has helped me see that although I see things differently to most ‘neurotypical’ people, this doesn’t necessarily mean it’s just because I’m naïve, unsure of myself, or that I have trouble fitting in to mainstream society – it’s a separate point of view, an individual’s point of view, I mean, which many on the autism spectrum relate with.

The book has helped me think on strategies to read people better, to be more cautious when giving out personal details online, and to remember that in thinking everybody is the same as us, even people on the autism spectrum are guilty. I assume everybody is honest, genuine, with no ill intentions, and this can make people like us vulnerable to others who think different because we have weakened theory of mind.

I do believe it has been exceedingly valuable reading the perspectives of the authors. It turns out that if you put a lot of heads together that are on a similar wavelength, you can learn things through relatable experiences.

[DW Rowlands · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was a bit surprised the degree to which this book just...didn't interest me. It's hard to pinpoint exactly what the issue was, but I think that some of it is that it was very clearly targeted to neurotypical readers.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

Worthwhile read, definitely.