Revisiting the Relationship between Cybercrime, Autistic Traits, and Autism

J Autism Dev Disord. 2021 Jul 27. doi: 10.1007/s10803-021-05207-1. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTReports of cybercrime being committed by people on the autism spectrum often imply that autism may be more prevalent among cybercriminals than the general population, although this remains unproven. In an online survey of 302 participants, we found that autistic individuals (n = 25) were more likely to report engagement in cybercrime than non-autistic individuals, but this relationship was not mediated by advanced digital skills or deficits in theory of mind. Furthermore, independent of autism diagnosis, autistic traits were not significantly associated with self-reported cyber-criminality. We propose that there may be additional factors moderating the relationship between autism, autistic traits, and cybercrime, such as specific autistic characteristics, understanding of cybercrime, and willingness to disclose criminal activity.PMID:34318433 | DOI:10.1007/s10803-021-05207-1

Source: Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders - July 28, 2021 Category: Psychiatry Authors: Alliyza Lim Neil Brewer Robyn L Young Source Type: research