The characteristics of women on the autism spectrum are often different from those of men. Differences can be seen in the areas of social interactions, repetitive behaviour patterns, interests and activities as well as sensory perception. Co-morbidities are also often present, which can mask the characteristics of the autism spectrum and make timely recognition and appropriate support even more difficult. As a result, women with autism are more likely to be misdiagnosed or diagnosed late. One of the main reasons for the lower recognition of the autism spectrum in women is the phenomenon of social camouflaging, where individuals consciously conform to social norms in an environment that often lacks sufficient understanding and acceptance of diversity. Although social camouflaging can enable women to integrate more easily into social environments, it is often associated with significant negative consequences, such as feelings of exhaustion, loss of authenticity and increased susceptibility to anxiety and depression. In Slovenia, the phenomenon of social camouflaging is still little known and insufficiently researched.
In the empirical part of this study, we investigated the phenomenon of social camouflaging of autistic traits in women on the autism spectrum. The aim of the research was to investigate how intensively and in which social situations women on the spectrum camouflage their traits, as well as the reasons for such behaviour. We were also interested in the strategies they use, the consequences of camouflaging and how they learn these behaviours. Particular attention was paid to the question of how they personally experience their camouflaging of autistic traits. The study was based on a descriptive pedagogical research method that combines both qualitative and quantitative approaches. In the first part, the Camouflaging Autistic Traits Questionnaire (CAT-Q) was used to determine the frequency and forms of camouflaging behaviour. In the second part, we conducted semi-structured interviews, the design of which was adapted from Laura Hull's research.
The results showed that participants use a wide range of camouflaging strategies related to compensation, masking and assimilation and that they experience the use of these strategies differently depending on their degree of automatisation. They rated the frequency of using camouflaging strategies in social situations very differently, with the frequency depending on the social environment in which they found themselves. Respondents emphasised the situational dependency of camouflaging behaviour and cited reasons and strategies that contribute to them using it less frequently. They described several factors that lead them to engage in camouflaging behaviour, with experiences of non-acceptance of difference in society and social settings taking centre stage. Participants highlighted more negative than positive consequences of camouflaging behaviour and described different ways in which they had learned the strategies, as well as the skills they considered necessary for successful camouflaging of autistic traits. Most described camouflaging as a challenging and demanding behaviour, while at the same time rating their success in it as very high. The necessity of camouflaging behaviour was rated in different ways, again confirming the diversity of their experiences. In our sample, we found no correlation between the intensity of autistic traits and the frequency of camouflaging behaviours used.
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