What is autism (ASD)?

The brains of people with autism work differently. They process information in a different way. That often leads to unexpected and unusual reactions.

On the outside, meaning in their behaviour, people with autism may show differences in:

• connecting with other people and understanding social situations;
• the way they communicate with other people;
• the ability to adjust behavior or interests;
• movements.

On the inside, at the level of the brain, people with autism tend to process information in greater detail. This can come at the expense of seeing the bigger picture. As a result, people with autism may have difficulty with:

• filtering important and less important information.
• processing information (takes more time).
• processing and applying new information (having greater difficulty adapting).

What these problems look like differs depending on the person, age and environment.

Read further:

• From what age is autism visible?
• Is autism different in girls than in boys?