Final answer:
A characteristic symptom of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is impaired social skills. Other symptoms include repetitive motor behaviors, preoccupation with specific subjects, strict adherence to rituals, and unusual language use. ASD is a spectrum disorder, so individuals may have varying levels of functionality and language skills.
Step-by-step explanation:
A characteristic symptom of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is impaired social skills. Children with autism may have difficulty making and maintaining eye contact and reading social cues. They also may have problems feeling empathy for others. Other symptoms of ASD include repetitive motor behaviors (such as rocking back and forth), preoccupation with specific subjects, strict adherence to certain rituals, and unusual language use. Up to 30 percent of patients with ASD develop epilepsy, and patients with some forms of the disorder (like Fragile X) also have intellectual disability. Because it is a spectrum disorder, other ASD patients are very functional and have good-to-excellent language skills. Many of these patients do not feel that they suffer from a disorder and instead think that their brains just process information differently.