Asperger’s syndrome is now diagnosed as autism spectrum disorder, or ASD. The American Psychiatric Association folded Asperger’s into this broader category in 2013 when it published the fifth edition of its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM-5). What was once called Asperger’s most closely aligns with what clinicians now call Level 1 ASD, meaning autism that requires some support but not substantial or constant assistance.
The change wasn’t just a relabeling. It reflected a fundamental shift in how professionals understand autism: not as a collection of separate conditions, but as a single spectrum with varying degrees of support needs.
Why the Name Changed
Before 2013, the DSM listed several separate diagnoses: autistic disorder, Asperger’s disorder, and pervasive developmental disorder not otherwise specified (PDD-NOS). In practice, the boundaries between these categories were blurry. Two clinicians could evaluate the same person and arrive at different diagnoses depending on how they interpreted subtle differences in language development or social behavior. The DSM-5 merged all three into one umbrella diagnosis, autism spectrum disorder, to improve consistency.
The World Health Organization followed a similar path. Its International Classification of Diseases, 11th edition (ICD-11), published in 2019, also retired Asperger syndrome as a standalone diagnosis and folded it into ASD. The ICD-11 specifically noted that people with normal-range verbal intelligence who don’t have delayed language development, the group historically diagnosed with Asperger’s, are now part of the broader ASD category. Both major diagnostic systems in the world now use the same framework.
The Hans Asperger Controversy
There is also an ethical dimension to dropping the name. For decades, Hans Asperger was portrayed as a physician who protected neurodivergent children during World War II. Research published in 2018 overturned that narrative. Historian Herwig Czech, drawing on previously unexamined records, found that Asperger accommodated himself to the Nazi regime, publicly supported forced sterilization policies, and on several occasions actively cooperated with the child “euthanasia” program. His clinical language describing patients was often remarkably harsh, even compared with staff at Vienna’s notorious Spiegelgrund institution where disabled children were killed. While the diagnostic reclassification was driven by clinical reasoning, these findings gave many in the autism community an additional reason to move away from the term.
How ASD Levels Work
Instead of separate diagnoses, the DSM-5 uses a three-level system based on how much support a person needs in daily life. Each level is rated across two areas: social communication and restricted or repetitive behaviors.
- Level 1 (“Requiring support”): Without supports in place, social communication difficulties cause noticeable problems. The person can speak in full sentences and wants to connect with others, but back-and-forth conversation often breaks down and attempts to make friends may come across as unusual or unsuccessful. Repetitive behaviors or rigid routines cause significant interference in at least one area of life.
- Level 2 (“Requiring substantial support”): Social difficulties are apparent even with supports in place. The person initiates fewer social interactions and responds in limited or atypical ways. Repetitive behaviors are obvious to a casual observer and cause distress when interrupted.
- Level 3 (“Requiring very substantial support”): Severe difficulties in both verbal and nonverbal communication lead to very limited social interaction. Repetitive behaviors or fixed routines interfere with functioning across all areas of life and are very difficult to redirect.
Most people who previously received an Asperger’s diagnosis would now fall under Level 1 ASD. The DSM-5 explicitly states that anyone with a well-established prior diagnosis of Asperger’s disorder should be given the diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder going forward.
A Related but Separate Diagnosis: SPCD
The DSM-5 also introduced a new diagnosis called social pragmatic communication disorder, or SPCD. This applies to people who have persistent difficulty with social uses of language, like reading between the lines in conversation, adjusting their tone for different situations, or following the unspoken rules of back-and-forth dialogue. The key difference from ASD is that SPCD does not include restricted or repetitive behaviors. If someone has social communication challenges but no strong fixed interests, repetitive routines, or sensory sensitivities, SPCD may be the more accurate fit. Some people who might once have been considered borderline Asperger’s cases could receive this diagnosis instead.
Masking and Late Diagnosis
One reason many people search for this term is that they’re exploring a possible diagnosis later in life. Many adults with Level 1 ASD, particularly women, went undiagnosed for years because they learned to camouflage their autistic traits. This masking involves a set of deliberate strategies: copying other people’s social behavior through careful observation, scripting conversations in advance, constantly monitoring your own eye contact and facial expressions, and forcing yourself to interact even when it feels unnatural.
Masking can be effective enough that autism traits aren’t obvious to others, which is one reason so many people slipped through the diagnostic net in childhood. But it comes at a cost. Research consistently links sustained camouflaging to higher rates of depression, anxiety, and autistic burnout, a state of physical and emotional exhaustion from the constant effort of appearing neurotypical. If you’ve spent years feeling like social interaction requires a level of effort other people don’t seem to need, that experience is well documented in the clinical literature and worth exploring with a professional who understands autism in adults.
Language the Autism Community Prefers
You’ll still hear people refer to themselves as having Asperger’s, especially those diagnosed before 2013 who built their identity around that term. Neither usage is wrong in casual conversation, but the clinical term is now autism spectrum disorder.
There’s also an ongoing conversation about whether to say “autistic person” or “person with autism.” Survey data from a large US sample found a clear split: autistic adults overwhelmingly preferred identity-first language (“autistic person”), while professionals working in the autism field were more likely to use person-first language (“person with autism”). The preference among autistic people themselves has been shifting toward identity-first language for years, treating autism as an inherent part of who they are rather than something separate they carry.