Systematic Review Maps Social Camouflaging in Autistic Youth and Adults
This systematic review (following PRISMA guidelines) synthesizes quantitative and qualitative studies on 'social camouflaging'—behaviors like compensation, masking, and assimilation that autistic people use to fit into their social environment. The authors find that camouflaging is motivated by self-protection and desire for social connection, is more common among female individuals, and shows similar patterns across youth and adults, while also being linked to negative mental health outcomes, though the direction of that relationship remains unclear. The review integrates findings on predictors, phenotypes, and consequences of camouflaging to inform theory and highlight gaps, such as the roles of stigma and gender identity, that need further empirical study. Twitter discussion (from a Japanese medical/health account) highlighted the review as a useful synthesis of camouflaging across ages, emphasizing that while camouflaging helps autistic people build connections and protect themselves, it is also associated with burdens on mental health such as anxiety and depression.
Discussion: 1 tweets from 1 authors · @NCGM_CCCMH