The Association Between Self-Reported Camouflaging of Autistic Traits and Social Competence in Nonautistic Young Adults

Scheerer, Nichole E.; Aime, Hilary; Boucher, Troy; Iarocci, Grace

doi:10.1089/aut.2019.0062

Cited by 13 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 27 publications

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“…These results replicate previous findings that non-autistic people engage in camouflaging 4,14,17 and that camouflaging in non-autistic people is related to social competence 15 . Further, these results are consistent with previous studies indicating that camouflaging is associated with internalizing behaviours among autistic and non-autistic adolescents 17 and autistic adults 18 .…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

“…Finally, though the relationship between camouflaging and internalizing behaviour is complex and bidirectional, it is possible that this relationship is simply a by-product of other variables, such as social competence. Consistent with this explanation, poor social competence has been associated with both internalizing behaviours 29 and camouflaging 15 . It is unclear what additional role camouflaging may play in the internalizing behaviours of people with poor social competence, who may already be experiencing psychological consequences as a result of their social difficulties.…”

Section: Camouflaging and Internalizing Problemsmentioning

confidence: 68%

“…Hull and colleagues 10 found that camouflaging was strongly positively correlated to autistic traits in both autistic and non-autistic samples. Furthermore, Scheerer and colleagues 15 found that non-autistic adults' camouflaging was strongly associated with social competence, suggesting that camouflaging is a response that both autistic and non-autistic people may use when they perceive themselves to lack the necessary social competencies expected within a given social context.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Aime¹,

Scheerer²,

Boucher³

et al. 2021

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Background: Camouflaging, defined as the use of strategies to compensate for or hide autistic traits, is associated with internalizing behaviour (i.e., anxiety and depression) in both autistic and non-autistic people. Non-autistic adults who have poorer social competence tend to engage in more camouflaging, thus it’s unclear whether the increase in internalizing behaviour associated with camouflaging may be explained by poor social competence, rather than camouflaging itself. The purpose of this study was to extend previous research on camouflaging and internalizing behaviour among non-autistic people through examination of the role of social competence. Methods: In this study, 315 non-autistic young adults completed the Multidimensional Social Competence Scale (MSCS) to assess their social competence, the Camouflaging of Autistic Traits Questionnaire (CAT-Q) to assess their use of camouflaging strategies, and the Behaviour Assessment Scale for Children 2 – Self-Report of Personality, College Version (BASC-2 SRP-COL) to assess their internalizing behaviour. Results: We found that camouflaging predicted internalizing behaviour among non-autistic young adults after controlling for social competence, autistic traits, age, IQ, and gender. Camouflaging partially mediated the relationship between social competence and internalizing behaviours. Conclusions: These results suggest that the use of camouflaging strategies is uniquely associated with internalizing behaviour over and above social competence and may, in part, contribute to the increased internalizing behaviours observed in individuals with poorer social competence.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

Section: Camouflaging and Internalizing Problemsmentioning

confidence: 68%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Aime¹,

Scheerer²,

Boucher³

et al. 2021

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“…A three‐step procedure was used whereby the first step contained the independent variables of age, sex, and IQ in order to control for their potential influence on social competence. Given social competence has been shown to vary with autistic traits (Scheerer et al, 2020), the second step contained AQ scores to parse out the variance in social competence accounted for by autistic traits. The third step contained CAM scores to determine how much additional variance in the dependent variable, MSCS scores, could be accounted for by alexithymia traits.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Alexithymia is related to poor social competence in autistic and nonautistic children

2021

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Alexithymia is characterized by difficulties identifying and describing one's own emotions and the emotions of others. These challenges with understanding emotions in people with alexithymia may give rise to difficulties with social interactions. Given that alexithymia frequently co‐occurs with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), and that both populations have difficulties with social interactions, it is of interest to determine whether alexithymia can help to parse some of the heterogeneity in social competence in autistic and nonautistic individuals. The caregivers of 241 children (6–14 years old), including 120 autistic, and 121 nonautistic, rated their child's social competence using the Multidimensional Social Competence Scale (MSCS), autism traits using the Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ), and alexithymia traits using the Children's Alexithymia Measure (CAM). Regression analyses indicated that age, IQ, sex, AQ, and CAM scores accounted for 40.2% of the variance in autistic children's, and 68.2% of the variance in nonautistic children's, parent‐reported social competence. Importantly, after controlling for age, IQ, sex, and AQ scores, CAM scores alone accounted for an additional 16.2% of the variance in autistic children's, and 17.4% of the variance in nonautistic children's social competence. These results indicate that higher alexithymia traits predict lower levels of social competence, suggesting that increased difficulty in identifying and describing one's own emotions and the emotions of others is associated with poorer social competence. Furthermore, CAM scores were found to partially mediate the relationship between autistic traits and social competence, suggesting that comorbid alexithymia traits may be partially responsible for poor social competence in individuals with high autistic traits. This research contributes to the understanding of the factors associated with the development of social competence and highlights alexithymia as a potential target for identification and intervention to improve social competence. Lay Summary Alexithymia is a condition where people find it hard to think and talk about their (and others') feelings. About 50% of autistic people have alexithymia. This might be why they have social and emotional difficulties. Parents answered questions about alexithymia and social difficulties their children have. Children with more alexithymia problems had poorer social skills. Thus, alexithymia may be related to social problems faced by autistic and nonautistic children.

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“…In addition to measuring the social competency of individuals, this scale can be used to assess the transactional and relational aspects of social competence in real-world tasks that involve interactions with other children and adults (Trevisan, Enns, Birmingham, & Iarocci, 2020) as well as with parents (Gurm & Iarocci, 2019). Following from Ed's emphasis on social competence and personality, Grace and her colleagues have begun examining the role of camouflaging – a social strategy similar to Ed's notion of outer-directedness – that individuals with and without ASD employ in social situations to compensate for their social difficulties (Scheerer, Aime, Boucher, & Iarocci, 2020). Like outer-directedness, this social strategy may be useful in the short term, but it may also have costs in terms of mental health and the development of self-identity over time.…”

Section: Ed's Influence On Our Group's Work In Developmental Psychopathology: Examples From Research With Persons With Asd and Indigenousmentioning

confidence: 99%

The science of humanity and the humanity of science: Perspectives on Ed Zigler's contributions to developmental psychopathology and the study of all children

et al. 2021

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We present this article as a testament to Ed Zigler's commitment to science in the service of humanity and to policy based on conceptually compelling theory and methodologically rigorous science. In doing so, we highlight ways that Ed's universal and inclusive developmental world view, early training as a behaviorist, exacting scientific standards, concern for others, and appreciation of his own roots and upbringing all transformed the way that many different groups of people of all ages and backgrounds are studied, viewed, and intervened with by researchers, policy makers, and society at large. Ed's narrative of development rather than defect, universality rather than difference, and holistic rather than reductionist continues to compel us in the quest for a kinder, more inclusive, and enabling society. Conversely, Ed's behaviorist training as a graduate student also influenced him throughout his career and was essential to his career-long commitment to systemic action in the service of improving the lives of others. We cite the lessons that we, as his descendants, learned from Ed and apply them to our own areas of research with populations that Ed did not study, but had considerable interest in – persons with autism spectrum disorder and Indigenous youth.

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The Association Between Self-Reported Camouflaging of Autistic Traits and Social Competence in Nonautistic Young Adults

Cited by 13 publications

References 27 publications

CAT-Q MSCS BASC2 Pre-Print

CAT-Q MSCS BASC2 Pre-Print

Alexithymia is related to poor social competence in autistic and nonautistic children

The science of humanity and the humanity of science: Perspectives on Ed Zigler's contributions to developmental psychopathology and the study of all children

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