# Big Bang theory: Does Sheldon have Asperger's? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 4, 2010, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-bang-theory-does-sheldon-have-aspergers/562966 "2010-12-04T21:51:21Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2010, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-bang-theory-does-sheldon-have-aspergers/562966/21 "2010-12-05T15:19:37Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > No, it’s just horribly overly diagnosed. There is no “somewhat Asperger’s.” You either have it or you don’t. It’s a quite specific manifestation of autism. > > My own impression is that Sheldon would technically fit the DSM IV requirements, but does so in a very atypical way. The people giving reasons he does not have Asperger’s are pointing out the more common manifestations. It’s not just a disorder of having social deficits. > > Sheldon doesn’t seem like someone who doesn’t have the ability to learn social skills, but someone who chooses not to, because, to him, it’s just not that important. And that this is not part of the DSM IV makes me not consider it very valid, since someone with a personality disorder could also fit the requirements given. > > Of course, a better answer is that the writers just cherry picked Asperger’s symptoms. It would make sense, since they are [on record](http://www.tvsquad.com/2009/08/14/come-up-with-a-new-theory-sheldon-does-not-have-aspergers/) as saying that Sheldon was not conceived to have the disorder. > > And asking someone with Asperger’s to identify someone else who has it is a losing proposition. There’s a reason why people with Asperger’s are not asked to fill out their own evaluations–they typically lack the insight to be able to do so. And they (and their loved ones) often try to shoehorn others into their condition. My daughter has a diagnosis of Asperger’s (though it’s often written as high-functioning autism, since many psychiatrists consider them not to be separate enough to merit a separate name) and it’s not easy to get here - it took 6 years of constant tests, psychiatrist visits, observations etc. I’m not talking about someone who self-diagnosed via a test on OKCupid or something - those do annoy me. Christ - when I say that my daughter has Asperger’s, some of you must think my daughter has no hope of ever having any friends, or adapting, or even having a wide range of _feelings,_ going on MarkXX’s post. This doesn’t upset me or anything - it’s not like I know you - but it’s really weird. You’re supposed to be intelligent people. Autism is a spectrum disorder, and it’s perfectly possible for someone at the higher end to do everything that a ‘neurotypical’ person does, just with more difficulty. Sheldon’s high intelligence and energy would help a lot with learning how to do things that come naturally to others. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2010, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-bang-theory-does-sheldon-have-aspergers/562966/22 "2010-12-05T16:28:47Z")
Oh, another bit that does not fit - Sheldon is currently being written as being asexual (I am not sure about Amy, as she did participate in that sexual research project stimulating the brain pleasure centers …). That is not a feature of Asperger Syndrome. The social dysfunction gets in the way of their having a sexual life sometimes, and the fairly common hypersensitivity to various sensory modalities, such as light touch, may make them uncomfortable during some aspects of sex, but in general they have drives about the same as the general population. ---
**Author:** ![Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mean_mr.mustard/32/3865_2.png) [@Mean\_Mr.Mustard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mean_Mr.Mustard)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2010, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-bang-theory-does-sheldon-have-aspergers/562966/23 "2010-12-05T16:49:26Z")
I never thought of Sheldon as having Asperger’s. Rather, I always considered him as having a social disorder with definite OCD tendencies. (knock, knock, knock, “Penny”, knock, knock, knock) mmm ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2010, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-bang-theory-does-sheldon-have-aspergers/562966/24 "2010-12-05T16:54:31Z")
> [@DSeid](#): > > Oh, another bit that does not fit - Sheldon is currently being written as being asexual (I am not sure about Amy, as she did participate in that sexual research project stimulating the brain pleasure centers …). That is not a feature of Asperger Syndrome. The social dysfunction gets in the way of their having a sexual life sometimes, and the fairly common hypersensitivity to various sensory modalities, such as light touch, may make them uncomfortable during some aspects of sex, but in general they have drives about the same as the general population. Yeah, but there can be autistic people who are asexual just as there are non-autistic people who are asexual. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2010, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-bang-theory-does-sheldon-have-aspergers/562966/25 "2010-12-05T18:25:22Z")
Remember the flashback show? Sheldon was unable to maintain a roommate relationship. Leonard moved in, and apparently learned to tolerate and even help Sheldon (his mother the shrink is very similar to Sheldon). He ws the one who befriend Raj and Howard and they toleratred bringing Sheldon into the circle. He also befriended Penny, and she tolerates having Sheldon around. ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2010, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-bang-theory-does-sheldon-have-aspergers/562966/26 "2010-12-05T18:35:12Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > Oh, and I can’t discuss football with anyone–because I think it’s a silly sport. Sheldon can, and at great length. He grew up in Texas. ---
**Author:** ![Swords\_to\_Plowshares](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b38774/32.png) [@Swords\_to\_Plowshares](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Swords_to_Plowshares)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2010, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-bang-theory-does-sheldon-have-aspergers/562966/27 "2010-12-05T19:02:11Z")
> [@fusoya](#): > > Now, the real question is - does Dwight Schrute have it? No. Dwight doesn’t interact well with people because he loathes them and looks down on them as objects to be manipulated. It’s not that he can’t, he just chooses not to. ---
**Author:** ![JoelUpchurch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f05b48/32.png) [@JoelUpchurch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JoelUpchurch)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2010, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-bang-theory-does-sheldon-have-aspergers/562966/28 "2010-12-05T22:37:59Z")
> [@fusoya](#): > > As someone who actually _has_ been diagnosed with Aspergers (and I seriously doubt I’m the only doper), I personally find message boards a comforting place, since I don’t have to process all the non-verbal cues that a regular conversation entails and I don’t have to process other social cues immediately. I often compare processing social cues to trying to trying to catch a baseball by calculating a trajectory for it. It can be done, but it hard to do in real-time. ---
**Author:** ![Electric\_Warrior](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ee7513/32.png) [@Electric\_Warrior](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Electric_Warrior)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2010, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-bang-theory-does-sheldon-have-aspergers/562966/29 "2010-12-05T23:12:11Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > And asking someone with Asperger’s to identify someone else who has it is a losing proposition. There’s a reason why people with Asperger’s are not asked to fill out their own evaluations–they typically lack the insight to be able to do so. And they (and their loved ones) often try to shoehorn others into their condition. I know this is a bit off-topic I am amused by the paradox here that wrongly diagnosing oneself with Asperger’s is…a symptom of Asperger’s? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2010, 5:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-bang-theory-does-sheldon-have-aspergers/562966/30 "2010-12-06T05:38:52Z")
There is nothing wrong with Sheldon. His mother had him tested. ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2010, 8:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-bang-theory-does-sheldon-have-aspergers/562966/31 "2010-12-06T08:24:10Z")
> [@The\_Second\_Stone](#): > > There is nothing wrong with Sheldon. His mother had him tested. Tested? Was it a skin-test or a blood-test? Autism isn’t the sort of thing you can diagnose or rule out with a ‘test.’ ---
**Author:** ![Khadaji](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/9e8a1a/32.png) [@Khadaji](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Khadaji)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2010, 11:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-bang-theory-does-sheldon-have-aspergers/562966/32 "2010-12-06T11:41:21Z")
> [@scifisam2009](#): > > Tested? Was it a skin-test or a blood-test? > > Autism isn’t the sort of thing you can diagnose or rule out with a ‘test.’ It was just a joke. It is a quote from Sheldon from the show. ---
**Author:** ![Double\_Foolscap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/85e7bf/32.png) [@Double\_Foolscap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Double_Foolscap)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2010, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-bang-theory-does-sheldon-have-aspergers/562966/33 "2010-12-06T11:49:40Z")
My dad teaches maths to special needs students, and he says that Sheldon is, in his (non-medical but experienced) opinion, somewhere on the autistic spectrum. ---
**Author:** ![GoodOmens](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/d26b3c/32.png) [@GoodOmens](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GoodOmens)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2010, 11:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-bang-theory-does-sheldon-have-aspergers/562966/34 "2010-12-06T11:52:41Z")
> [@Swords\_to\_Plowshares](#): > > No. Dwight doesn’t interact well with people because he loathes them and looks down on them as objects to be manipulated. It’s not that he can’t, he just chooses not to. Exactly. Dwight is Neutral Evil. Sheldon has Hollywood Asperger’s. ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2010, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-bang-theory-does-sheldon-have-aspergers/562966/35 "2010-12-06T13:10:46Z")
> [@Khadaji](#): > > It was just a joke. It is a quote from Sheldon from the show. Ah, OK. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2010, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-bang-theory-does-sheldon-have-aspergers/562966/36 "2010-12-06T15:19:01Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > Oh, and I can’t discuss football with anyone–because I think it’s a silly sport. > [@EllisDee](#): > > Sheldon can, and at great length. He grew up in Texas. [Quote=Sheldon Cooper] I grew up in Texas. Football is ubiquitous in Texas: pro football, college football, high school football, pee-wee football. In fact, every form of football except the original, European football, which most Texans believe to be a Commie plot. [/quote] This quote made TV Guide magazine’s best quote of the week. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Second\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bbe5ce/32.png) [@The\_Second\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Second_Stone)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2010, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-bang-theory-does-sheldon-have-aspergers/562966/37 "2010-12-06T19:22:14Z")
> [@scifisam2009](#): > > Ah, OK. 🙂 Bazinga!! ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [December 6, 2010, 11:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-bang-theory-does-sheldon-have-aspergers/562966/38 "2010-12-06T23:07:16Z")
> [@appleciders](#): > > _Big Band Theory_ (Big) band name. ---
**Author:** ![fusoya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecccb3/32.png) [@fusoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fusoya)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2010, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-bang-theory-does-sheldon-have-aspergers/562966/39 "2010-12-07T17:20:07Z")
I finally watched the flashback episode of Big Bang. I think Sheldon’s AS can be summed up by the line “I’m still not comfortable…oh of course, there’s too many people here” Agreed, it’s really more of a comedic exaggeration than a scientific portrayal of AS, but then again, isn’t that the point of sitcoms? Minor nitpick - Howard’s room has a PS2 on top of his tv, but those are clearly Xbox games under the TV. ---
**Author:** ![fusoya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecccb3/32.png) [@fusoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fusoya)\ **Post date:** [December 7, 2010, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-bang-theory-does-sheldon-have-aspergers/562966/40 "2010-12-07T17:30:18Z")
> [@JoelUpchurch](#): > > I personally find message boards a comforting place, since I don’t have to process all the non-verbal cues that a regular conversation entails and I don’t have to process other social cues immediately. Maybe not, but you still have to always be prepared to be wooshed. Testing for Asperger’s is actually a pretty long process. Taking a test on okcupid or doing Myers-Briggs is not a diagnosis, although getting ISTJ is what first gave my career counselor the hint that this may be something to look into. There are about 100 different tests, some written, some verbal, some hands-on, done under the proctor of a psychologist and then the conclusion is made not by a test score, but by human analysis of the trends. Since I was tested as an adult, it was probably a lot more simpler than trying to diagnose a child. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-bang-theory-does-sheldon-have-aspergers/562966.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/big-bang-theory-does-sheldon-have-aspergers/562966.md?page=3)