Differentiation of social phobia from high-functioning autism spectrum disorder

摘要

The patient is a 10-year-old boy who was brought to the clinic by his mother, who believes he is suffering from social phobia. The mother's concern for her son stems from his poor eye contact, his preference to play alone, and his lack of peer friendships. According to the mother, her son spends most of his free time by himself on the computer, usually searching the Internet for superhero-related information. She interprets this behavior as his way of decompressing once he is away from the anxiety of being surrounded by people all day at school.