Diagnostic
Criteria for Neurotypical Disorder
A. Persistent dependence on social communication and social
interaction across multiple contexts, as manifested by the following,
currently or by history (examples are illustrative, not exhaustive):
1. Heavy reliance on nonverbal communicative behaviors in social
interaction, ranging, for example, from automatically fixating on
another's eyes; to use of facial expressions, body language, and
gestures in place of words or phrases.
2. Dependence on developing and maintaining relationships, ranging,
for example, from altering behavior according to various social
situations; to absence of interest in solitary activities.
3.
Visible
distress when social-emotional reciprocity, ranging, for example,
from social approach and normal back-and-forth conversation; to
sharing of interests, emotions, or affect, is not given.
B.
Mindless,
routine patterns of behavior, interests, or activities, as manifested
by at least two of the following, currently or by history (examples
are illustrative, not exhaustive):
1. Specified or vague motor movements, use of objects, or speech
(e.g., linguistic gestures, pretending a block is a car or a stick is
a gun, metaphoric phrases, expectation that others will understand
the meaning).
2.
Lack
of awareness of differences, mindless adherence to routines, or
ritualized patterns of verbal or nonverbal behavior (e.g.,
obliviousness to small changes, scripted greeting rituals, taking the
same route when going somewhere else).
3.
Shallow,
unfocused interests (e.g., little attachment to or preoccupation with
unusual objects, lack of in-depth knowledge into recent interests).
4. Hyper- or hyporeactivity to sensory input or lack of interest in
sensory aspects of the environment (e.g., adverse response to
pain/temperature, apparent indifference to specific sounds or
textures, little smelling or touching objects, no interest toward
lights or movement).
C.
Symptoms must be present in the early developmental period (but may
not be fully apparent until
social situations allow full manifestation, or may be masked in
non-social situations).
D. Symptoms cause significant impairment in logical reasoning,
interactions with inanimate objects, and other non-social areas of
functioning.
E. These disturbances are not better explained by stalking behaviors.
Stalking behaviors and neurotypical disorder frequently co-occur; to
make comorbid diagnosis of neurotypical disorder and stalking
behaviors, normal social behavior should be at expected developmental
level.
Early Development:
Though diagnosis is usually not possible so early, research suggests
that an early marker of neurotypical disorder may be strange and
repetitive babbling during infanthood. This usually transitions into
words and complete sentences during the child's second year.
Children with neurotypical disorder
often gravitate toward other children
with a similar condition. Groups
of children with neurotypical disorder will often mimic characters or
event they have seen in entertainment, such as acting like
superheroes or behaving as if they are in space. Some will attempt to
convince adults that they are animals, such as dogs or dinosaurs.
Many children with neurotypical disorder will specifically exclude
children from play who are not suitably similar to them, sometimes to
the point of bullying. A child may have no explanation for this
behavior, other than “he's weird” or “she's gross.”
In the absence of a suitable
companion, many children with neurotypical disorder will create a
friend out of thin air. They will play with this “friend” as
though he or she were there, and often introduce the “friend” to
parents. Most will grow out
of this behavior by adolescent years.
Adulthood:
Adults with neurotypical disorder are often more willing to engage in
non-social activities, as required. They are still highly dependent
on social interactions. Most show a preference to spending free time
in public with friends, instead of, for example, staying home with a
jigsaw puzzle.
An adult with neurotypical disorder
will often take intense interest in the private lives of celebrities.
Many, especially males, will
exhibit screaming and yelling behaviors while observing sporting
events. Much importance appears to be placed on the outcome of such
events, though they appear to have little impact on the individuals'
lives.
Many adults with neurotypical disorder seem to be more accepting than
children of non-neurotypical individuals. Most, however, will still
consider behaviors that they do not understand to be wrong, and will
usually attempt to correct them.
Causes:
The primary factor in the development of neurotypical disorder
appears to be genetic, though it may be possible that this works in
conjunction with environmental triggers or the lack thereof.
Treatments:
Neurotypical disorder appears to be a lifelong condition, though some
individuals appear to grow out of it, often by acquiring a different diagnosis.
This is not common.
There is no known cure for neurotypical disorder. No medications have
shown conclusive results. Research suggests that being in a group
composed mainly of people without neurotypical disorder can relieve
some symptoms.
Some adults attempt to self-medicate using alcohol, cannabis, or
other substances. This is not recommended, as many can have sometimes
unpredictable side effects, or even exaggerate symptoms.
Prevalence:
Current estimates place the prevalence of neurotypical disorder at 67
in 68. This has declined from 87 in 88 in the year 2008. Scientists
are currently attempting to discover the cause of the decline in
rates.
