Cross-cultural variation in experiences of acceptance, camouflaging and mental health difficulties in autism: A registered report

by Connor Tom Keating, Lydia Hickman, Philippine Geelhand, Toru Takahashi, Joan Leung, Ruth Monk, Bianca Schuster, Alicia Rybicki, Teresa Marie Girolamo, Elise Clin, Fanny Papastamou, Marie Belenger, Inge-Marie Eigsti, Jennifer Louise Cook, Hirotaka Kosaka, Rieko Osu, Yuko Okamoto, Sophie Sowden-Carvalho Recent findings suggest that stigma and camouflaging contribute to mental health difficulties for autistic individuals, however, this evidence is largely based on UK samples. While studies have shown cross-cultural differences in levels of autism-related stigma, it is unclear whether camouflaging and mental health difficulties vary across cultures. Hence, the current study had two aims: (1) to determine whether significant relationships between autism acceptance, camouflaging, and mental health difficulties replicate in a cross-cultural sample of autistic adults, and (2) to compare these var iables across cultures. To fulfil these aims, 306 autistic adults from eight countries (Australia, Belgium, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, South Africa, the United Kingdom, and the United States) completed a series of online questionnaires. We found that external acceptance and personal acceptance were associated with lower levels of depression but not camouflaging or stress. Higher camouflaging was associated with elevated levels of depression, anxiety, and stress. Significant differences were found across countries in external acceptance, personal acceptance, depression, anxiety, and stre...
Source: PLoS One - Category: Biomedical Science Authors: Source Type: research