Hull, L;
Petrides, KV;
Mandy, W;
(2021)
Cognitive Predictors of Self-Reported Camouflaging in Autistic Adolescents.
Autism Research
, 14
(3)
pp. 523-532.
10.1002/aur.2407.
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Abstract
Camouflaging involves masking and/or compensating for autistic characteristics and has been identified in autistic individuals through a variety of different methods. Individual variation in the extent, processes and outcomes of camouflaging has been reported in autistic adults, and there has been some investigation of camouflaging by autistic adolescents. This study was conducted to better understand how some of these individual differences emerge, by examining potential mechanisms (theory of mind, executive function, intelligence quotient and age) involved in camouflaging by 58 autistic adolescents aged 13-18 years (29 females, 29 males). Fewer executive function difficulties predicted greater use of total camouflaging strategies and the compensation subscale, but not the masking or assimilation subscales; no other predictors reached statistical significance. These findings suggest that individual differences in executive function ability may underlie variation in the use of camouflaging by adolescents. The total variance explained in the model was small, suggesting the need to examine other factors which may underpin camouflaging. The implications of this finding for the relationship between camouflaging and well-being are discussed, along with the distinction between attempts to camouflage and the efficacy of those attempts. LAY SUMMARY: Camouflaging involves hiding your autism or finding ways around difficulties in order to fit in during social situations. This study found that autistic teenagers with good executive function abilities camouflage their autism more than those who struggle with executive function (which includes planning, goal-direction and memory). This may have implications for teenagers' mental health and their social functioning.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Cognitive Predictors of Self-Reported Camouflaging in Autistic Adolescents |
| Location: | United States |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1002/aur.2407 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.2407 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | © 2020 The Authors. Autism Research published by International Society for Autism Research and Wiley Periodicals LLC. This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). |
| Keywords: | adolescence, camouflaging, compensation, executive function, masking |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > Div of Psychology and Lang Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > Div of Psychology and Lang Sciences > Clinical, Edu and Hlth Psychology |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10112708 |
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