Experts from the University of Edinburgh have challenged deeply ingrained stereotypes that people with autism can’t communicate as well as their neurotypical peers.
The study, which was published just yesterday (Wednesday 14th May) in the online journal Nature Human Behaviour, involved 311 participants who were divided into three different groups including autistic, neurotypical and a group of mixed individuals.
In their groups, people were tasked with a storytelling activity to assess how well they could share the information they had just read.
Overall, the researchers found there were no significant differences in the effectiveness of communication between the groups.
‘Autism has often been associated with social impairments, both colloquially and in clinical criteria,’ Catherine Crompton, Chancellor’s Fellow at the University of Edinburgh’s Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, said. ‘Researchers have spent a lot of time trying to ‘fix’ autistic communication, but this study shows that despite autistic and non-autistic people communicating differently it is just as successful.
‘With opportunities for autistic people often limited by misconceptions and misunderstandings, this new research could lead the way to bridging the communication gap and create more inclusive spaces for all.’
On the subject of misunderstandings, the latest statistics from Autism Alliance UK show 91% of autistic people feel society doesn’t accept them or does so only sometimes.
Following the storytelling task, individuals were asked to rate their enjoyment of interacting with one another. Researchers noted that non-autistic participants preferred interactions with fellow non-autistic individuals, while autistic participants favoured interactions with other autistic people.
While it was noted that there were no significant differences in how well autistic people communicate, researchers found social difficulties could lead people to believe the opposite. As well as doing the storytelling task, individuals involved in the research were asked to rate their enjoyment of interacting with one another. It was revealed autistic people preferred to speak with others similar to them rather than neurotypical people.
This research isn’t the first time the team have been involved with projects looking to break the negative stereotypes associated with autism. The research bolsters previous findings from a smaller study and experts have ultimately concluded that any differences shown in autistic communication should be considered just that, not a deficiency.
The study, which can be found in full here, was funded by the Templeton World Charity Foundation and co-authored by researchers from the University of Texas at Dallas, the University of Nottingham and the University of Glasgow.
Photo by Peter Burdon via UnSplash
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