Romantic Relationships and Relationship Satisfaction Among Adults With Asperger Syndrome and High-Functioning Autism Sandra Strunz, 1 Constanze Schermuck, 1 Sarah Ballerstein, 1 Christoph J. Ahlers, 2 Isabel Dziobek, 1,3 and Stefan Roepke 1,3 1 Charit´ e-Universit¨ atsmedizin Berlin 2 Institute for Sexual Psychology Berlin 3 Freie Universit¨ at Berlin Objective: Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often experience difficulties in maintain- ing romantic relationships. In this study high-functioning adults with ASD were examined concerning their romantic relationship interest and experience. Method: Participants, 31 recruited via an outpa- tient clinic and 198 via an online survey, were asked to answer a number of self-report questionnaires. The total sample comprised 229 high-functioning adults with ASD (40% males, average age: 35 years). Results: Of the total sample, 73% indicated romantic relationship experience and only 7% had no desire to be in a romantic relationship. ASD individuals whose partner was also on the autism spectrum were significantly more satisfied with their relationship than those with neurotypical partners. Severity of autism, schizoid symptoms, empathy skills, and need for social support were not correlated with re- lationship status. Conclusion: Our findings indicate that the vast majority of high-functioning adults with ASD are interested in romantic relationships. C  2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Clin. Psychol. 00:1–13, 2016. Keywords: autism spectrum disorder; Asperger syndrome; romantic relationship; partnership, sexuality Romantic relationship experience among high-functioning adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a relevant yet understudied area of research. Because social interaction and commu- nication skills and the ability to take the perspective of others are important for initiating and maintaining intimate relationships (Byers, Nichols, & Voyer, 2013), ASD individuals, who may have deficits in these abilities, often experience difficulties in developing and understanding romantic relationships. Specifically, adults with ASD without accompanying intellectual im- pairments often achieve lower levels of socially adaptive functioning than would be expected from their cognitive and language skills (Renty & Roeyers, 2007; Howlin, 2000). The failure to interpret nonverbal cues such as eye contact or facial expressions together with difficulties in theory of mind skills make social judgments difficult for ASD individuals. In addition, limited experiences with friendship due to lack of contact with peers prevent those with ASD from learning important relationship skills (Prendeville, Prelock, & Unwin, 2006). Difficulties in decision making, lack of flexibility, self-absorption, emotional dysregula- tion, and sensory sensitivities further impede ASD individuals’ attempts to establish romantic relationships (Urbano, Hartmann, Deutsch, Bondi Polychronopoulos, & Dorbin, 2013). Given the above-mentioned impairments, social relationships are nevertheless seen as an essential do- main of quality of life for people with as well as without disabilities (Verdugo, Navas, G´ omez, & Schalock, 2012), and social participation is seen as an important aspect of quality of life for ASD individuals (Orsmond et al., 2013). Isabel Dziobekand Stefan Roepke contributed equally. Isabel Dziobek is now at Berlin School of Mind and Brain, Humboldt Universit¨ at Berlin, Berlin, Germany. Please address correspondence to: Sandra Strunz, Department of Psychiatry, Charit´ e-Universit¨ atsmedizin Berlin, Campus Benjamin Franklin, Hindenburgdamm 30, 12203 Berlin, Germany. E-mail: sandra.strunz@charite.de JOURNAL OF CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY, Vol. 00(0), 1–13 (2016) C  2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Published online in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/jclp). DOI: 10.1002/jclp.22319