Malicious acts?

Hans Asperger described children engaging in seemingly "malicious acts" that we now know actually have a fucntion for children with ASD. I am usually pretty good at diving the function of behavior, but have been presented with a new one. A child who has not previously been aggressive has begun poking people with a pencil (always a pencil). Only one time was this done in retaliation. The other times he seemed to be seeking entertainment by soliciting a reaction from his "victims". What do you think?

Hi adelarosa, and welcome to IAN.

I fear I am not a behavior expert, and you likely know more on this topic than I do.

I do know that sometimes a behavior serves a function, and sometimes it is just a result of "the straw that broke the camel's back." In other words, a child with ASD can become so stressed by a pile-up of events that they had coped with one at a time...and then one tips them over. (Maybe their favorite shirt wasn't clean and they couldn't wear it, and they coped; and then there was a substitute teacher, and they coped; and then there was a fire drill, and they coped; and then somebody did some innocuous thing that bugged them...and they had a meltdown which had little to do with that last event and more to do with all the preceding ones.) Of course, just like any children, children with ASD can also experience stressors that change their behavior - things like a divorce, a new sibling, moving to a new house, etc.

I would also wonder if the child is able to provide any insight if asked about this. For example, has he come to see the pencil as a lightsaber from Star Wars that he's wielding? Does he mistakenly think it's funny when the other kids yell "ow"? I have no idea what the actual case may be, but wonder if the child, his peers, or others close to him may have some insight.

I hope our readers will share their ideas!