Discovering autism: The art of masking
What is Autism or ASD?
Autism is a neurodevelopmental condition that is characterised by difficulties in social communication and restricted respective and stereotyped patterns of behaviour, interests, and activities.
Autistic people are at risk of developing a range of emotional, behavioural, social, and occupational difficulties. Therefore, diagnosis is important to help autistic people so they can have access to support and also understand their own struggles. Most autistic people mask to some extent, and this can hinder the diagnosing and screening process.
What is masking?
Masking in autism is the act of hiding autism related behaviour and instead showing more socially expected behaviours to fit in and connect with others. Another way people have described it is ‘by manually applying social skills rather than intuitively’. It is seen across the gender spectrum but is often seen more in individuals identifying as women.
Autistic people may mask for many reasons, such as avoiding mistreatment, stigma, making social connections, engaging in romantic relationships, or succeeding at work.
Examples of masking behaviours may be:
Mimicking other's emotional features
Forcing eye contact or faking it during conversations with others
Imitating facial expressions
Scripting conversations with others
Rehearsing responses to potential questions.
To be able to mask and try to pose as neurotypical, a person with autism might:
Observe social interactions around them
Monitor their own body language or facial expression.
Learn to adjust their vocal patterns to match others
Practice how to show their emotions
What are the long-term effects of masking?
While masking has some benefits, mental health costs can be high. Research has shown that it can lead to exhaustion, due to requiring significant energy. It can lead to a loss of identity as autistic people may mask their identity, traits, and interests and no longer have a clear picture of who they are. Additionally, it can delay diagnosis, which can mean they cannot get the support they need. It can lead to autistic burnout because they are behaving in ways that do not feel authentic. This may result in periods of withdrawal to recovery.
Note: This post uses identity-first language
References
American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.books.9780890425596
Cage, E., & Troxell-Whitman, Z. (2019). Understanding the Reasons, Contexts and Costs of Camouflaging for Autistic Adults. Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 49(5), 1899–1911. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-018-03878-x
Bargiela S, Steward R, Mandy W. The Experiences of Late-diagnosed Women with Autism Spectrum Conditions: An Investigation of the Female Autism Phenotype. J Autism Dev Disord. 2016 Oct;46(10):3281-94. doi: 10.1007/s10803-016-2872-8. PMID: 27457364; PMCID: PMC5040731.
Hull, L., Lai, M. C., Baron-Cohen, S., Allison, C., Smith, P., Petrides, K. V., & Mandy, W. (2020). Gender differences in self-reported camouflaging in autistic and non-autistic adults. Autism: the international journal of research and practice, 24(2), 352–363. https://doi.org/10.1177/1362361319864804
Hull L, Petrides KV, Allison C, Smith P, Baron-Cohen S, Lai MC, Mandy W. “Putting on my best normal”: Social camouflaging in adults with autism spectrum conditions. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. 2017;47(8):2519–2534.
Language choices around autism and individuals on the autism spectrum. (2020). Autism CRC. https://www.autismcrc.com.au/language-choice
Written By: Sienna Hinton