ABSTRACT
Current understandings of self support a multidimensional account, that is, an experiential self that experiences the world as a stream of consciousness underpinning a more reflective narratorial self that makes sense of life experience temporally, and an interpersonal self that is constructed through social interaction. Personal accounts by autistic writers often testify to the dominance of an experiential self, that is, one more engaged with sensory and non-social aspects of experience. For an autistic child, the idea of a ‘social self’ may feel less natural and less descriptive of ‘me.’ Social and emotional experiences are far from straightforward, but mapping situations, relationships and feelings can help children to begin to understand these things and develop their ability to manage the social world. In working on emotions and bodily feelings, it is vitally important to be aware of the sensory sensitivities that children may experience in relation to different types of input, such as, touch or taste.
