Greater Social Interest Between Autistic and Non-autistic Conversation Partners Following Autism Acceptance Training for Non-autistic People

Bi-directional differences in social communication and behavior can contribute to poor interactions between autistic and non-autistic (NA) people, which in turn may reduce social opportunities for autistic adults and contribute to poor outcomes. Historically, interventions to improve social interaction in autism have focused on altering the behaviors of autistic people and have ignored the role of NA people. Recent efforts to improve autism understanding among NA adults via training have resulted in more favorable views toward autistic people, yet it remains unknown whether these benefits extend to real-world interactions between autistic and NA people. The current study explores whether a brief autism acceptance training (AAT) program can improve social interactions between autistic and NA adults. Thirty-nine NA males were randomly assigned to complete AAT or a no-training control condition, then participated in a 5-min unstructured conversation with an unfamiliar autistic male (n = 39). Following the conversation, participants rated their perceptions of interaction quality, first impressions of their partner, and their interest in future interactions with their partner. In dyads where the NA individual completed AAT, both the autistic and NA person endorsed greater future interest in hanging out with their partner relative to dyads in which the NA adult did not complete AAT. However, other social interaction outcomes, including ratings of interaction quality and first impressions of autistic partners, largely did not differ between training and no-training conditions, and assessments of the interaction were largely unrelated for autistic and NA partners within dyads. Results also indicated that NA participants, but not autistic participants, demonstrated substantial correspondence between evaluations of their partner and the interaction, suggesting that autistic adults may place less weight on trait judgments when assessing the quality of an interaction. These findings suggest that the brief AAT for NA adults used in this study may increase mutual social interest in real-world interactions between NA and autistic adults, but more systematic changes are likely needed to bridge divides between these individuals. Future work with larger, more diverse samples is recommended to further explore whether interventions targeting NA adults are beneficial for improving autistic experiences within NA social environments.

Download Full-text

Social Cognition, Social Skill, and Social Motivation Minimally Predict Social Interaction Outcomes for Autistic and Non-Autistic Adults

Frontiers in Psychology ◽

10.3389/fpsyg.2020.591100 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 11 ◽

Author(s):

Kerrianne E. Morrison ◽

Kilee M. DeBrabander ◽

Desiree R. Jones ◽

Robert A. Ackerman ◽

Noah J. Sasson

Keyword(s):

Social Cognition ◽

Social Interaction ◽

Real World ◽

Social Skill ◽

Social Motivation ◽

Standardized Measures ◽

Autistic People ◽

Social Abilities ◽

Social Domains ◽

Autistic Adults

Social cognition, social skill, and social motivation have been extensively researched and characterized as atypical in autistic people, with the assumption that each mechanistically contributes to the broader social interaction difficulties that diagnostically define the condition. Despite this assumption, research has not directly assessed whether or how these three social domains contribute to actual real-world social interaction outcomes for autistic people. The current study administered standardized measures of social cognition, social skill, and social motivation to 67 autistic and 58 non-autistic (NA) adults and assessed whether performance on these measures, both individually and relationally between dyadic partners, predicted outcomes for autistic and NA adults interacting with unfamiliar autistic and NA partners in a 5 minute unstructured “get to know you” conversation. Consistent with previous research, autistic adults scored lower than NA adults on the three social domains and were evaluated less favorably by their conversation partners. However, links between autistic adults' performance on the three social domains and their social interaction outcomes were minimal and, contrary to prediction, only the social abilities of NA adults predicted some interaction outcomes within mixed diagnostic dyads. Collectively, results suggest that reduced performance by autistic adults on standardized measures of social cognition, social skill, and social motivation do not correspond in clear and predictable ways with their real-world social interaction outcomes. They also highlight the need for the development and validation of more ecological assessments of autistic social abilities and the consideration of relational dynamics, not just individual characteristics, when assessing social disability in autism.

Download Full-text

Outcomes of real-world social interaction for autistic adults paired with autistic compared to typically developing partners

Autism ◽

10.1177/1362361319892701 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 24 (5) ◽

pp. 1067-1080 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Kerrianne E Morrison ◽

Kilee M DeBrabander ◽

Desiree R Jones ◽

Daniel J Faso ◽

Robert A Ackerman ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Social Interaction ◽

Real World ◽

Social Communication ◽

Blind Spot ◽

Autism Spectrum ◽

Typically Developing ◽

Interaction Styles ◽

Autistic People ◽

Autistic Adults

Differences in social communication and interaction styles between autistic and typically developing have been studied in isolation and not in the context of real-world social interaction. The current study addresses this “blind spot” by examining whether real-world social interaction quality for autistic adults differs when interacting with typically developing relative to autistic partners. Participants (67 autism spectrum disorder, 58 typically developing) were assigned to one of three dyadic partnerships (autism–autism: n = 22; typically developing–typically developing: n = 23; autism–typically developing: n = 25; 55 complete dyads, 15 partial dyads) in which they completed a 5-min unstructured conversation with an unfamiliar person and then assessed the quality of the interaction and their impressions of their partner. Although autistic adults were rated as more awkward, less attractive, and less socially warm than typically developing adults by both typically developing and autistic partners, only typically developing adults expressed greater interest in future interactions with typically developing relative to autistic partners. In contrast, autistic participants trended toward an interaction preference for other autistic adults and reported disclosing more about themselves to autistic compared to typically developing partners. These results suggest that social affiliation may increase for autistic adults when partnered with other autistic people, and support reframing social interaction difficulties in autism as a relational rather than an individual impairment.

Download Full-text

‘I never realised everybody felt as happy as I do when I am around autistic people’: A thematic analysis of autistic adults’ relationships with autistic and neurotypical friends and family

Autism ◽

10.1177/1362361320908976 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 24 (6) ◽

pp. 1438-1448 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Catherine J Crompton ◽

Sonny Hallett ◽

Danielle Ropar ◽

Emma Flynn ◽

Sue Fletcher-Watson

Keyword(s):

Social Relationships ◽

Thematic Analysis ◽

Social Life ◽

Minority Status ◽

Structured Interviews ◽

Social Time ◽

Autistic People ◽

Social Opportunities ◽

Autistic Adults ◽

Close Family

Many autistic people are motivated to have friends, relationships and close family bonds, despite the clinical characterisation of autism as a condition negatively affecting social interaction. Many first-hand accounts of autistic people describe feelings of comfort and ease specifically with other autistic people. This qualitative research explored and contrasted autistic experiences of spending social time with neurotypical and autistic friends and family. In total, 12 autistic adults (10 females, aged 21–51) completed semi-structured interviews focused on time spent with friends and family; positive and negative aspects of time spent with neurotypical and autistic friends and family; and feelings during and after spending time together. Three themes were identified: cross-neurotype understanding, minority status and belonging. Investigation of these themes reveals the benefits of autistic people creating and maintaining social relationships with other autistic people, in a more systematic way than previous individual reports. They highlight the need for autistic-led social opportunities and indicate benefits of informal peer support for autistic adults. Lay abstract Although autistic people may struggle to interact with others, many autistic people have said they find interacting with other autistic people more comfortable. To find out whether this was a common experience, we did hour-long interviews with 12 autistic adults. We asked them questions about how it feels when spending time with their friends and family, and whether it felt different depending on whether the friends and family were autistic or neurotypical. We analysed the interviews and found three common themes in what our participants said. First, they found spending with other autistic people easier and more comfortable than spending time with neurotypical people, and felt they were better understood by other autistic people. Second, autistic people often felt they were in a social minority, and in order to spend time with neurotypical friends and family, they had to conform with what the neurotypical people wanted and were used to. Third, autistic people felt like they belonged with other autistic people and that they could be themselves around them. These findings show that having time with autistic friends and family can be very beneficial for autistic people and played an important role in a happy social life.

Download Full-text

Virtual social environments as a tool for psychological assessment: Dynamics of interaction with a virtual spouse

10.31219/osf.io/2rh6f ◽

2016 ◽

Author(s):

Felix D. Schönbrodt ◽

Jens B. Asendorpf

Keyword(s):

Relationship Satisfaction ◽

Real World ◽

Psychological Assessment ◽

Computer Games ◽

Virtual World ◽

Process Analysis ◽

Real Life ◽

Social Environments ◽

The Real ◽

Interaction Quality

Computer games are advocated as a promising tool bridging the gap between the controllability of a lab experiment and the mundane realism of a field experiment. At the same time, many authors stress the importance of observing real behavior instead of asking participants about possible or intended behaviors. In this article we introduce an online virtual social environment, which is inhabited by autonomous agents including the virtual spouse of the participant. Participants can freely explore the virtual world and interact with any other inhabitant, allowing the expression of spontaneous and unprompted behavior. We investigated the usefulness of this game for the assessment of interactions with a virtual spouse and their relations to intimacy and autonomy motivation as well as relationship satisfaction with the real life partner. Both the intimacy motive and the satisfaction with the real world relationship showed significant correlations with aggregated in-game behavior, which shows that some sort of transference between the real world and the virtual world took place. In addition, a process analysis of interaction quality revealed that relationship satisfaction and intimacy motive had different effects on the initial status and the time Course of the interaction quality. Implications for psychological assessment using virtual social environments are discussed.

Download Full-text

“I never realised everybody felt as happy as I do when I am around autistic people”: a thematic analysis of autistic adults’ relationships with autistic and neurotypical friends and family.

10.31219/osf.io/46b87 ◽

2019 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Catherine J Crompton ◽

Sue Fletcher-Watson ◽

Danielle Ropar

Keyword(s):

Qualitative Research ◽

Social Relationships ◽

Thematic Analysis ◽

Minority Status ◽

Structured Interviews ◽

Social Time ◽

Autistic People ◽

Social Opportunities ◽

Autistic Adults ◽

Close Family

Please note, this paper has been peer-reviewed and published. You can find the published version at https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1362361320908976 and it can be cited asCrompton, C. J., Hallett, S., Ropar, D., Flynn, E., & Fletcher-Watson, S. (2020). ‘I never realised everybody felt as happy as I do when I am around autistic people’: A thematic analysis of autistic adults’ relationships with autistic and neurotypical friends and family. Autism. https://doi.org/10.1177/1362361320908976 Please do not cite this preprint. Many autistic people are motivated to have friends and relationships, and close family bonds, despite the fact that autism is clinically characterised as a condition negatively affecting social interaction. Many first-hand accounts of autistic people describe feelings of comfort and ease specifically with other autistic people. This qualitative research explored and contrasted autistic experiences of spending social time with neurotypical and autistic friends and family. 12 autistic adults (10F, aged 21-51) completed semi-structured interviews focused on time spent with friends and family; positive and negative aspects of time spent with neurotypical and autistic friends and family; and feelings during and after spending time together. Three themes were identified: cross-neurotype understanding, minority status, and belonging. Investigation of these themes reveals the benefits of autistic people creating and maintaining social relationships with other autistic people more systematically than previous individual reports. They highlight the need for autistic-led social opportunities and indicate benefits of informal peer support for autistic adults.

Download Full-text

Camouflaging Behaviours Used by Autistic Adults During Everyday Social Interactions

10.21203/rs.3.rs-96362/v1 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Julia Cook ◽

Laura Crane ◽

Laura Hull ◽

Laura Bourne ◽

William Mandy

Keyword(s):

Social Interactions ◽

Qualitative Content Analysis ◽

Social Situation ◽

Interpersonal Process ◽

Social Environments ◽

Self Presentation ◽

Interpersonal Process Recall ◽

Autistic People ◽

Social Landscape ◽

Autistic Adults

Abstract Background Autistic people may modify their innate autistic social behaviours in order to adapt to, cope within, and/or influence the predominately neurotypical social landscape. We term such modified or changed behaviour “camouflaging behaviour.” Conceptualisations and definitions of camouflaging behaviours are in their infancy. Existing qualitative research examining camouflaging behaviours relies solely on retrospective accounts of camouflaging experiences. Methods Using Interpersonal Process Recall methodology (Kegan, 1969), 17 autistic adults (8 women, 6 men, and 3 agender/gender neutral) participated in a brief social task designed to replicate a common day-to-day social situation. Participants then watched a video of their interaction with a researcher, actively identifying and describing camouflaging behaviours. Interview transcripts were analysed using qualitative content analysis. Results Detailed descriptions of 37 camouflaging behaviours were generated. These behaviours were grouped into four categories: masking (hide particular behaviours and/or aspects of one’s identity); innocuous engagement (facilitate passive, conservative, and superficial engagement in social interactions); neurotypical communication (involve communicating in line with non-autistic norms and preferences); and active self-presentation (facilitate active, open, and reciprocal participation in social interactions). Limitations Given the IPR methodology utilised in the study, the results may not generalise to all social environments or autistic individuals. Conclusions This study extends the current understanding of camouflaging by generating novel, specific, and detailed information about camouflaging behaviours. These camouflaging behaviours are discussed with reference to literature concerning interpersonal research and theory within and outside the field of autism.

Download Full-text

Camouflaging in non-autistic adults is associated with poorer mental health

10.31234/osf.io/myp4g ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Mark Somerville ◽

Sarah E. MacPherson ◽

Sue Fletcher-Watson

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Executive Function ◽

Autistic Traits ◽

Self Report ◽

Linear Regression Models ◽

Mental Health Symptoms ◽

Health Symptoms ◽

Autistic People ◽

Autistic Adults ◽

The Relationship

Camouflaging is a frequently reported behaviour in autistic people, which entails the use of strategies to compensate for and mask autistic traits in social situations. Camouflaging is associated with poor mental health in autistic people. This study examined the manifestation of camouflaging in a non-autistic sample, examining the relationship between autistic traits, camouflaging, and mental health. In addition, the role of executive functions as a mechanism underpinning camouflaging was explored. Sixty-three non-autistic adults completed standardised self-report questionnaires which measured: autistic traits, mental health symptoms, and camouflaging behaviours. In addition, a subset (n=51) completed three tests of executive function measuring inhibition, working memory, and set-shifting. Multiple linear regression models were used to analyse data. Results indicated that autistic traits are not associated with mental health symptoms when controlling for camouflaging, and camouflaging predicted increased mental health symptoms. Camouflaging did not correlate with any measure of executive function. These findings have implications for understanding the relationship between autistic traits and mental health in non-autistic people and add to the growing development of theory and knowledge about the mechanism and effects of camouflaging.

Download Full-text

Mandatory First Impressions: Happy Expressions Increase Trustworthiness Ratings of Subsequent Neutral Images

Perception ◽

10.1177/0301006620987205 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 50 (2) ◽

pp. 103-115

Author(s):

S. M. Thierry ◽

A. C. Twele ◽

C. J. Mondloch

Keyword(s):

Multilevel Modeling ◽

Facial Expressions ◽

Real World ◽

Face Processing ◽

First Impressions ◽

Automatic Process ◽

Behavioral Consequences

First impressions of traits are formed rapidly and nonconsciously, suggesting an automatic process. We examined whether first impressions of trustworthiness are mandatory, another component of automaticity in face processing. In Experiment 1a, participants rated faces displaying subtle happy, subtle angry, and neutral expressions on trustworthiness. Happy faces were rated as more trustworthy than neutral faces; angry faces were rated as less trustworthy. In Experiment 1b, participants learned eight identities, half showing subtle happy and half showing subtle angry expressions. They then rated neutral images of these same identities (plus four novel neutral faces) on trustworthiness. Multilevel modeling analyses showed that identities previously shown with subtle expressions of happiness were rated as more trustworthy than novel identities. There was no effect of previously seen subtle angry expressions on ratings of trustworthiness. Mandatory first impressions based on subtle facial expressions were also reflected in two ratings designed to assess real-world outcomes. Participants indicated that they were more likely to vote for identities that had posed happy expressions and more likely to loan them money. These findings demonstrate that first impressions of trustworthiness based on previously seen subtle happy, but not angry, expressions are mandatory and are likely to have behavioral consequences.

Download Full-text

Is social camouflaging associated with anxiety and depression in autistic adults?

Molecular Autism ◽

10.1186/s13229-021-00421-1 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Laura Hull ◽

Lily Levy ◽

Meng-Chuan Lai ◽

K. V. Petrides ◽

Simon Baron-Cohen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Intellectual Disability ◽

Social Anxiety ◽

Online Survey ◽

Mental Health Problems ◽

Autistic Traits ◽

Health Problems ◽

Autistic People ◽

Autistic Adults ◽

Anxiety Depression

Abstract Background There is inconsistent evidence for a clear pattern of association between ‘camouflaging’ (strategies used to mask and/or compensate for autism characteristics during social interactions) and mental health. Methods This study explored the relationship between self-reported camouflaging and generalised anxiety, depression, and social anxiety in a large sample of autistic adults and, for the first time, explored the moderating effect of gender, in an online survey. Results Overall, camouflaging was associated with greater symptoms of generalised anxiety, depression, and social anxiety, although only to a small extent beyond the contribution of autistic traits and age. Camouflaging more strongly predicted generalised and social anxiety than depression. No interaction between camouflaging and gender was found. Limitations These results cannot be generalised to autistic people with intellectual disability, or autistic children and young people. The sample did not include sufficient numbers of non-binary people to run separate analyses; therefore, it is possible that camouflaging impacts mental health differently in this population. Conclusions The findings suggest that camouflaging is a risk factor for mental health problems in autistic adults without intellectual disability, regardless of gender. We also identified levels of camouflaging at which risk of mental health problems is highest, suggesting clinicians should be particularly aware of mental health problems in those who score at or above these levels.

Download Full-text