Talk:Body language
We allistic types also have to put a lot of effort into learning body language. The only reliable difference I've seen between us all is when we do it.
I learned a few things about body language while I was so young that I don't recall doing it. I know I did, though, because a lot of it was about danger detection and threats of violence. Kids learn these things for good reason.
I learned quite a bit more about body language when I hit puberty and I remember a conscious intent on my part to learn it. I didn't "think" about it, though. I watched and imitated and then asked myself "what am I feeling when I do that?" Imitation and self-questioning were part of the technique, but they were never expressed internally as words that could be written down. "How do I feel?" was a simple internal desire with no words.
My personal suspicion is we all learn body language roughly the same way, but not at the same rate. Those of us who can imitate quickly can cycle through several tests of possible meanings quickly and might get started so young that we don't remember getting started.
I suspect this is also true for picking up "tone of voice" content in spoken communication. I've heard my autistic son cycle through the same phrase with several different inflections. He says them outloud... which isn't all that different from what I did when I was his age.
