Sprecial interests and related areas
In the literature about AS it is usual saying things like "the special interest usually don't extend to similar, related areas", with examples like the boy who knows everything about camera models but nothing more about photography, or the girl obsessed with the queen Marie Antoinette, but with no interest in the rest of French history.
Is this your case?
Because, with me, I think it is the opposite - my interests usually "grow" to close areas; I remember perfectly the history of my special interests in childhood - 1º birds of prey; 2º birds; 3º animals; 4º natural world; 5º sciences; even today, my main interest is politics, but I am also interested in economics and history (again, related areas).
Yeah, I would say I fit the description. Many of my interests tend to be related to one another in some way, but they are still very specialized. I don't think I have ever been interested in a generality. For example, I've never been remotely interested in "poetry" as in poetry in general or all poetry, but I have been obsessively interested in the poetry and life of Emily Dickinson. Same goes for other areas of interest. Whereas it is my understanding that most people who were very interested in Emily Dickinson's poetry would be interested in other writers' poetry, also.
No, that is not my case - at least, not completely.
My obsession about Russia emerged from my obsession about the last Romanov family. It then grew to the Russian Revolution (both February and October) and then to the country in general. But that's the only one that grew like that. My interest in Rome is still vast - but I can tell you the most about the gladiators (Spartacus is a vivid interest, but there's not much about him) and Julius Caesar. Yet my interest in Rome didn't spread from those two, they're just my favorite topics of Rome.
My interests always seem to lead to broader interests.
When I was a child, my interest in the animated movie Balto led to an interest in wolves, as the main character was a wolf-dog hybrid. My interest in Pokemon led to an interest in anime and in Japanese culture.
More recently, my interest in Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland has led to me watching other movies starring the actors that were involved with it.
Last edited by IdahoRose on 05 Oct 2010, 6:15 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Yes, it's pretty true with me. Here are some examples:
1. My biggest special interest is I Love Lucy, but I have no interest in Lucille Ball's shows after I Love Lucy (including the Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour, which, contrary to popular belief, is NOT I Love Lucy), nor do I care about the "B" movies she was in prior to I Love Lucy. The only Lucille Ball information I care about is basic information about her life (birthdate, date of death, etc.) and her relationship with Desi Arnaz.
2. Another special interest of mine is A Beautiful Mind. However, I only care about the movie. I have no interest in learning about the real John Nash.
3. I love roller coasters, but my special interest is pretty much limited to Cedar Point. I like learning about how coasters work in general, but I have no interest in memorizing coaster stats for any non-Cedar Point coasters.
4. I have very limited interests within the field of neuroscience. I relish learning about neuropsychiatric disorders, particuarly abnormal neurotransmission and neuroimaging related to the brains of those with neuropsych disorders. But while all of neuroscience is fascinating, I really couldn't care less about neuro subjects that don't fit in these categories.
-OddDuckNash99-
_________________
Helinger: Now, what do you see, John?
Nash: Recognition...
Helinger: Well, try seeing accomplishment!
Nash: Is there a difference?
Is this your case?
Because, with me, I think it is the opposite - my interests usually "grow" to close areas; I remember perfectly the history of my special interests in childhood - 1º birds of prey; 2º birds; 3º animals; 4º natural world; 5º sciences; even today, my main interest is politics, but I am also interested in economics and history (again, related areas).
Mine tend to "branch out" in the same way. When I was a young girl, it was Switzerland (my first country of interest), then Ireland, then Great Britain, and some time later Germany, and then Scandinavia, and then all of them randomly popping up and receding over the years, sometimes "triggered" by something engrossing going on in the outside world that has to do with a particular country.
Lion King. I was intrested in Lion King, but not other disney movies or animation. Meerkats...JUST meerkats. Not other moongoose species. JUST meerkats. Animals aways were my main special intrests but if I became obsessed with meerkats before that, I doubt I would become intrested in other animals as a "side effect". My meerkat special intrest was a "side effect" of the Lion King one. Lizards and reptiles became a special intrest after Titan A.E. became a special intrest. There is a character in Titan A.E. who is an anthropromorphic lizard creature. It is voiced by the same dude who voiced the meerkat in The Lion King. I finnaly was able to convince my parents to let me have a lizard of my own and after I finnaly got her I haven't watched Titan A.E. since because I've been too busy playing with my lizard. Bearded dragons have become a special intrest but speficaly MY bearded dragon, Pippin. I specifally wanted a bearded dragon because when I first asked for a lizard my parents would protest and claim they were not friendly. I specically researched friendly lizards and bearded dragons kept coming up. My parents eventualy gave in and I have Pippin. My parents think it was a good dicision and Pippin has really helped me warm up to other people and not panic around them. It's rather funny how my special intrests develop. You think I would have developed a special intrest in space afer watching Titan A.E. or other sci movies but nope.
_________________
I'm not weird, you're just too normal.
I tend to have specific areas of interest in the same general field of study without any interest in how they are connected. For instance, I'm interested in Tudor history/genealogy and also John of Gaunt and his third wife Katherine Swynford, but I have a positive aversion to learning anything about the War of the Roses, which connects their respective eras.
i don't fit the description either. mine grow because at some point , when i feel i know enough and can't find anything to learn about it anymore, i extend it to the next layer. for instance round 10 i got obsessed with learning english, just for the sake of it. but once i felt i mastered it enough to communicate, i extended this to english people, the way they behave and their sense of humour. then this extended to other countries...that's just one field of interest because i had many more but it seems to be a recurrent pattern with me. i could never extend drawing to painting though, sounds weird but i actively tried and failed multiple times.
Similar Topics | |
---|---|
self-harm or suicide-related posts |
15 May 2024, 5:02 am |
Unlocking the Secrets Behind Age-Related Memory Loss |
01 Apr 2024, 5:08 pm |
Did anyone else grow out of having special interests? |
18 Apr 2024, 6:35 am |