Abstract
Camouflaging is a process through which individuals mask autistic traits. Studies suggest autistic females may camouflage more than autistic males. However, research has focused on adults and includes few comparisons between autistic and neurotypical individuals. This study compared levels of camouflaging by sex and diagnosis in autistic and neurotypical adolescents. Females reported higher overall levels of camouflaging when not accounting for age. When accounting for age, an age by diagnosis interaction effect emerged. This possible effect of age on camouflaging has implications for understanding how camouflaging behaviors develop and warrants further exploration. Differences also emerged on behaviors labeled as masking and assimilation, subcomponents of camouflaging, with females appearing more similar to their neurotypical peers on behaviors related to social awareness.
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Acknowledgments
We are grateful to all of the families in SPARK, the SPARK clinical sites and SPARK staff. Special thanks to the participants without whom this study would not be possible. This study was supported in part by a grant through the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) of the U.S. Department of Education (H325D110012). The views expressed herein do not necessarily represent the positions or policies of the U.S. Department of Education. No official endorsement by the U.S. Department of Education of any product, commodity, or enterprise mentioned in this document is intended or should be inferred.
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CJ participated in the study conception, design, and data collection, conducted statistical analyses, and drafted the manuscript. TJ participated in the study conception and design. CR conducted statistical analyses. SK participated in the study conception and design and statistical analyses. All authors contributed to manuscript preparation and read and approved the final manuscript.
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Jorgenson, C., Lewis, T., Rose, C. et al. Social Camouflaging in Autistic and Neurotypical Adolescents: A Pilot Study of Differences by Sex and Diagnosis. J Autism Dev Disord 50, 4344–4355 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-020-04491-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-020-04491-7