Aspies seem to fit into two main types of social group

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From interacting with many different Aspies all the time and observing the interaction between all the Aspies I know, it seems to me that there are really two main types of social group that Aspies fall into. And this is based simply on how far along the spectrum they are, and on their habits and abilities of socialising in groups of Aspies, and with an NT-majority world.

It's not as if the two groups are anywhere near mutually exclusive, but one's social ability makes the bulk of Aspies tend to gravitate towards one group or the other. And I have been wondering which group WrongPlanet members feel they would fit in to if interacting with them face to face, I shall describe as best I can below. I get a feeling with certain members which group they'd fit, but maybe I will get a few surprises.

Type 1 - More NT like. Socialisation and communication are closer to NT patterns; when interacting in a group with them I feel just like I'm interacting with a group of NT's, really e.g. they often go to pubs and even clubs together as well as other very social things. They have an ability to joke and banter perfectly well, and interests hold their own with NT patterns such as sport, celebrities, music etc. I know I've said elsewhere that "many Aspies are perfectly able to find and attract partners" and that there are "alpha male Aspies" and socially intuitive female Aspies and what not, but it's within this type that I see it happening.

Type 2 - More AS like. More classic AS traits in their communication and interaction. More special interests in a more monotropic way. More "active but odd" people, some of whom monologue a lot, as well as more people who are very quiet and passive in conversation. People in this group do interact and socialise, and regularly, but often preferring quiet cafes/bars, cultural pursuits or games like Scrabble rather than boisterous, spontaneous pub/club stuff. Banter and sarcasm are not a communication barrier, because they are generally not used. Mostly single men, probably due to less connectability with females due to uniqueness of personality and not being alpha males - I've seen very few females ever gravitate to this group, if any do they'd be a very unique AS personality.

Maybe much of the above is already obvious due to strength of AS, but these are my observations. I definitely know in which type I fit better and have made my closest friends, and it's Type 2, though I have a lot of Type 1 friends too. What are others' experiences, and/or you may answer the poll?

im like a 50/50 mix of both types >_>

I'm not sure why you would find a "group 2" female so unique. I'm very much like that with the exception of some of the conversational understanding and skill, which is not surprising because that's something that I 've really focused on working on (I'ts a great cover!). I'm sure you will hear from other women who feel the same way, I can think of several women who post here who strike me as belonging to that group.

I don't really fit into either

I am definitely more aspie type. In fact every single aspie I saw on this board is a lot more NT than me. I am the only one who writes long several-page essays, only talking about myself. And I am the only one with virtually NO friends, whereas other aspies on this forum DO have friends or at least acquitances, as evident by them discussing some SPECIFIC issues that come up. And finally I am the only one who is overprotected by my parents, whereas others are complaining how parents don't care about htem "enough". This is another evidence that I "look" a lot more disabled which causes my parents to treat me the way they do.

What pisses me off the most is that Brina Siegel said I am very mild -- milder than 99.5% of aspies. So if I am so mild, why do I come off as so severe in the real life? The only area where I am "mild" is the fact that I don't have any sensory issues while most other aspies do. That, plus also I am not scared of changes. So these would be the only possible explanations as to why Brina Siegel said what she did. But then again, that would only be a speculation on my part. Back at the time when she said I was mild, I was unaware of my problems so I didn't object. And now that I SEE that I am not mild, she probably doesn't remember me any more.

I read some articles a few years ago that lead me to think that Siegal has an extremely conservative view of ASD. IOW, that she would consider "Rainman" a mild-to-moderate case. In the articles she bragged about frequently un-diagnosing people. I suppose she's a reminder that psych. diagnoses are opinions, rather than objective facts. (Wish I had a Ph.D., so I could make up my own standards, too.)

I'm definitely more of a type 2 and I'm wondering where the autism is in type 1. Is it sensory issues? Repetitive behaviors? What is the significant difference between a type 1 and an NT? That is not a rhetorical question, btw.

I'm a 100% aspie-like aspie.

Most of my high school friends were either aspie-like or consumed by special interests even if they weren't. One of them I'm pretty sure was HFA - his way of socializing when he was overwhelmed was to imitate whatever someone else was doing.
My partner and I are friends with another couple, and while the boyfriend seems NT, the girlfriend seems very aspie to me. She has sensory issues, gets overwhelmed, is socially awkward in that she has a limited repertoire of responses, gets really upset if she's not in control of plans, and cannot be redirected in conversation. She and I have gotten along much better since I realized there might be an issue and decided to give her the benefit of the doubt (that is, that she might be aspie-like instead of high maintenance and controlling), just like I hope others give me the benefit of the doubt.

Hard to say - it's a spectrum disorder. I think of it as a fan (the unfolding type that ladies use to cool down). I f you break of the Asperger's section - it's still a spectum in it's self. Who knows where they truly are on that spectum?

I don't even know for SURE if I'm on it at all!

If we gave that Aspie section a rating of 1 to 10 - 1 being almost NT - 10 being almost Autistic - I think (if diagnosed) I would be around 4. And for some unknown reason I feel that's quite accurate!!

I'm autistic, but I would fit into Type 2 more than that. I would say I am even a bit more severe that Type 2 as well. And I'm female. *gasp*

|NT| <--- Type 1 (relatively more NT like) ------------------------------- Type 2 (relatively more AS like) ---> |AS|

Could it be ... is that why they call it a "Spectrum"?

Well, herp-dee-derp!

I don't think either of those fit me.....I mean I am not on the same level as most NTs so I am not even on the same scale of personality as they are, and I feel like I am very weird even for someone with AS so I don't know that I am an aspie like aspie for instance.