EMAIL FROM MY MUM::::
Perception is supposed to be affected in ASD (autistic spectrum disorder) - People with ASD are likely to focus on details, poss not noticeable to others and can miss the 'big picture' eg will hear buzzing of fluorescent lights and this will override listening to someone talking. there are a series of posters issued to try and illustrate this and show eg a picture of something drammatic but the person with asd may only see a tiny speck of dust on the poster and miss the rest.
also, cannot put info together to make a whole picture eg can see all the individual pieces of the jigsaw but not see the complete picture. facial expression and body language can 'blow their mind' because here are so many signals all coming in at a rapid rate alongside speech and they cannot interpret them or put them together to make a whole picture of communication. Some will look away to block out these visual signals that can be so confusing. Tone of voice can also just create huge confusion.
also may see,hear,touch,taste things differently and more intensly. therefore can be scared of new sensations eg people with asd only eat mac donalds burgers because they are the only ones that are totally uniform. will have rituals such as flicking or twirling to cut out the millions of sensations around them.
I could go on and on. Ring me and we could talk about it. Sounds a really exciting project.
I have simple psychology books here i think with visual perceptual info in (typically developed people) People who do not see squares, people who wear goggles to make them see things differently and when they get used to them have trouble when they are taken off etc.
