Individuals with autism show impairments in social skills, especially in
building relationships with others. They may prefer to be alone, have an aloof manner and demonstrate
difficulty mixing with others. As an infant, they may not want to cuddle or be touched. They may
make little to no eye contact with others. They may display emotions such as laughing or crying at
seemingly inappropriate times, and show distress for reasons that are not apparent to others. One theory
explains that the reason for this is that persons with autism cannot communicate or express feelings
normally because they do not fully understand that others have thoughts, desires, interest, and intentions.
They may be very insistent, rigid on sameness, and resistant to changes in the environment or schedule.
In some cases, aggressive and/or self-injurious behavior may be present. They might hit, or bite
themselves and/or others and have temper tantrums for no apparentreason.