Pathological Demand Avoidance (PDA)

A learning difficulty that describes those whose main characteristic is to avoid everyday demands and expectations to an extreme extent.

Students typically have difficulties with:

• following ordinary demands

• appearing sociable on the surface but lacking depth of understanding

•  excessive mood swings, often changing suddenly

•  language delay, seemingly as a result of passivity, but often with a good degree of ‘catch-up’

•  obsessive behaviour - often focused on people, rather than things.