![]() ![]() This is a huge gap, especially considering the higher likelihood of members of the autistic community being gender diverse.Īutistic women and girls may, as mentioned, be better at ‘camouflaging’ or ‘masking’ their symptoms, while displaying subtler characteristic behavioral presentation than men and boys (1). *This particular study did not consider non-binary or gender diverse people. This is likely one of the reasons that women or girls tend to be underdiagnosed they may ‘fly under the radar’ due to the insufficient knowledge of gendered behavioral characteristics of autism. by staying in close proximity to peers and weaving in and out of activities) to a greater extent on the playground than boys, and therefore are less likely to be identified as struggling socially” (2). ![]() “Behavioural observations suggest that girls camouflage their social difficulties (e.g. Recent research suggests that women on the autistic spectrum have a higher likelihood of subtler behavioral presentation than their male counterparts. Academic research on autism has predominantly been carried out with male participants thus making the behavior and characteristics of autism gender stereotypical with a male-based behavioural characterization of autism. One of which may be biological sex differences, but another reason that is strongly supported by current research, may be due to under- or mis-recognition of autism in women. ![]() This diagnostic imbalance likely has a variety of causes. Over the years, the reported ratio of those who have received an autism diagnosis is 1 woman or girl to every 4-5 boys or men* (3). Under-diagnosed or misrecognized autism in women The short- and long-term consequences of masking include exhaustion, negative mental health effects, and a deterioration of one’s sense of self (5, 2, 7). In short, masking involves suppressing certain parts of oneself and performing other behaviors. Masking itself consists of a combination of camouflaging and compensation techniques where a person works to control impulses, act ‘neurotypical’, rehearse answers to questions or conversations, and mimic others. The motivations for masking autistic traits are largely socially motivated - including avoiding negative social consequences like bullying, as well as increasing connections with others, success at work, and success in relationships. What is masking? Masking or camouflaging is artificially performing social behavior that is deemed to be more socially acceptable (by neurotypical standards) or hiding behavior that might be viewed as socially unacceptable (1). ![]()
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