Vol.:(0123456789) 1 3 Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-020-04491-7 ORIGINAL PAPER Social Camouflaging in Autistic and Neurotypical Adolescents: A Pilot Study of Differences by Sex and Diagnosis Courtney Jorgenson 1  · Timothy Lewis 2  · Chad Rose 2  · Stephen Kanne 3 © Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2020 Abstract Camouflaging is a process through which individuals mask autistic traits. Studies suggest autistic females may camouflage more than autistic males. However, research has focused on adults and includes few comparisons between autistic and neurotypical individuals. This study compared levels of camouflaging by sex and diagnosis in autistic and neurotypical ado- lescents. Females reported higher overall levels of camouflaging when not accounting for age. When accounting for age, an age by diagnosis interaction effect emerged. This possible effect of age on camouflaging has implications for understanding how camouflaging behaviors develop and warrants further exploration. Differences also emerged on behaviors labeled as masking and assimilation, subcomponents of camouflaging, with females appearing more similar to their neurotypical peers on behaviors related to social awareness. Keywords Autism · ASD · Camouflaging · Compensation · Sex differences Introduction Camouflaging is a process through which individuals work to mask or hide their autistic traits, first discussed in relation- ship to the sex ratios in young autistic children as females masking autistic traits (Wing 1981). Autistic individuals describe many strategies involved in camouflaging, with main goals being to appear more “normal” and to “pass” as neurotypical (Hull et al. 2017; Livingston et al. 2019). Important components of camouflaging include learning rules for social interactions and hiding more obvious autis- tic traits, such as ‘stimming’ and responses to sensory over- stimulation (Baldwin and Costley 2016; Hull et al. 2017). Camouflaging can also include verbal and nonverbal strate- gies to compensate for autistic traits. For example, autistic women have described more intentional eye contact or look- ing as close to the eyes of others as possible while interact- ing with them, focusing on displaying context-appropriate facial expressions and gestures, and intentionally nodding in agreement while others are talking to show interest in the conversation (Hull et al. 2017; Livingston et al. 2019; Rynkiewicz et al. 2016). Specific verbal strategies include asking questions of others, minimizing the amount of time spent talking about oneself or one’s interests, and preparing topics for conversation in advance (Hull et al. 2017; Living- ston et al. 2019). Consequences of Camouflaging for Autistic Individuals Camouflaging can lead to benefits for individuals, including improved connections with others, an increased ability to fit in with others, and greater ease of maintaining employ- ment (Head et al. 2014; Hull et al. 2017). However, it has also been reported to have detrimental effects. Camouflag- ing requires heightened, constant monitoring of social situ- ations, as well as significant effort to respond appropriately in those situations. It has been described by autistic indi- viduals as mentally, physically, and emotionally draining (Baldwin and Costley 2016; Hull et al. 2017; Livingston et al. 2019). Recent research with autistic adults found that * Courtney Jorgenson jorgensoncd@health.missouri.edu 1 Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Missouri, 103 McAlester Hall, Columbia, MO 65202, USA 2 Department of Special Education, University of Missouri, Columbia, USA 3 Department of Health Psychology and Thompson Center for Autism and Neurodevelopmental Disorders, University of Missouri, Columbia, USA