6 Supporting Students on the Autism Spectrum What Does This Mean for Libraries? Since the library tends to be a very social place centered around service and communication, students with ASD may find it difficult to initially communicate with librarians and staff. Also, service and research help loca- tions in the library may be difficult for students with autism to approach and converse with to meet a need. Some tips on this will be provided in Chapter 3 on research help. Chapter 4 on instruction will provide guidance for librarians doing any type of face-to-face instruction. Chapter 5 on employment will focus on how to communicate with student workers with ASD. Chapter 6 will discuss training of staff and outreach to students with ASD or campus autism support programs. In general, being aware of and trained on best communication practices with students with ASD is essen- tial to successful student interactions. Positive Social-Emotional Traits Just as there are positive cognitive traits in those with ASD, there are also positive social-emotional character traits. In a 2016 study by Kirch- ner, Ruch, and Dziobek, results found that the top three interpersonal strengths in individuals with ASD are kindness, teamwork, and fairness, and the top three emotional strengths are zest, hope, and bravery (2016). The study found that individuals with ASD have fewer social stereotypes and do not feel pressure to abide by social rules or neurotypical standards of reputation. Persons with ASD are fair and lawful, often basing decisions and judgments on rules. These results are further supported by an earlier study that found the five highest strengths of individuals with ASD were open-mindedness, love of learning, fairness, curiosity, and authenticity (Samson and Antonelli 2013). So while it may be difficult to initially com- municate with a person with ASD, some of the most admirable traits of individuals are found in this group, making it worth taking the extra time to communicate with and get to know these students. MOTOR SKILLS AND REPETITIVE BEHAVIORS Although the DSM-5 does not note specific deficits with motor skills, individuals with ASD find they experience difficulty with certain physi- cal movements. One area of difficulty is in writing skills (Anderson,
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