Скачать или смотреть Driving and Asperger’s Syndrome and High Functioning Autism

Individuals with AS/HFA typically have a normal to gifted IQ and tend to be perfectionists. The tendency towards
perfection can be anxiety-provoking. Autism is considered a spectrum condition and therefore the degree of severity
varies. Individuals on the spectrum should consider a driving evaluation before learning to drive.
Warning signs:
• Information processing – These difficulties can cause the individual to have impaired reactions to changes in the
driving environment. This becomes more challenging as the individual advances into more complex traffic.
• Individuals with AS/HFA tend to take in too much information.
• They consider all information to be of equal importance and therefore have difficulty prioritizing
the information that they see.
• Individuals with AS/HFA can have difficulty shifting attention quickly around the driving environment.
• Motor skills – This can make it initially difficult to learn to operate the steering, acceleration, and braking to
effectively control the vehicle through turns, hills, and curves. As the individual advances in driving, it can impact
the ability to carry out the visual and physical steps to make a lane change.
• Individuals with AS/HFA have eye–hand coordination difficulties.
• Executive function – These issues can lead to difficulty managing a roadside emergency, a routine police stop, a
detour, or a significant change in weather.
• They have difficulty planning, organizing, and sequencing the steps to solve a problem.
• They have difficulty with flexibility of thought.
• Social skills – Driver’s don’t tend to follow the rules all of the time. Therefore drivers need to rely on
their ability to anticipate actions of other drivers. Individuals with AS/HFA often have difficulty anticipating
actions of other drivers.
• Individuals with AS/HFA have difficulty interpreting verbal and nonverbal information.
• Individuals with AS/HFA tend to be extremely literal.

A driver rehabilitation evaluation
will examine these skills as they
relate to driving. The goal is to be
independent, safe drivers. Many of
these challenges can be addressed
through driver rehabilitation intervention if the individual has the
skills necessary to begin learning
to drive.
This assessment should include:
• A review of medical history
and medication
• Functional ability
• Vision
• Perception
• Assessment of life skills
• Activities that assess visual and
cognitive processing skills
for driving
• Behind-the-wheel evaluation

If you or someone you know has Asperger’s Syndrome or
high functioning autism and is having diffi culty driving
or obtaining a driver’s license, a driver evaluation may be
indicated. A driver rehabilitation specialist can provide a
compressive evaluation and create a customized training
program to address issues with driving.