Abstract
Background:
Given the high likelihood of Autistic individuals also being sexual and gender minorities, it is important to understand how Autistic-LGBTQ+ people understand prejudice events in the context of their intersectional identities.
Methods:
In this study, we used reflexive thematic analysis guided by an intersectional lens to explore experiences of heterosexism among 49 Autistic-LGBTQ+ adults. Specifically, we explored two issues as follows: (1) the nature of the heterosexist events they experienced and (2) the identities Autistic LGBTQ participants thought were related to a distressing heterosexist event they had experienced.
Results:
Heterosexist events were characterized by four themes, including rejection, harassment, invalidation, and discrimination. Participants often felt that several identities were salient when considering their heterosexist event. The four themes that described the experience of intersectional stressors for Autistic-LGBTQ+ participants are abbreviated here as follows: (1) assumptions about autism, (2) gender “as a bit of a double blow,” (3) queerness as “abhorrent,” and (4) “too young to know better.”
Conclusion:
We use intersectionality theory to frame stigma experiences for Autistic people who are also sexual and gender minorities, exploring clinical implications and future directions for research.
Community Brief
Why is this an important issue?
Autistic people are highly likely to identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer (LGBTQ+). Research has shown that Autistic-LGBTQ+ people experience higher stress and worse mental health concerns. This distress may be due to how they are treated by others and society, so we seek to learn about their experiences of being mistreated and how Autistic people make sense of these events.
What was the purpose of this study?
The purpose of this study was to explore the ways Autistic-LGBTQ+ people were mistreated by others because of their sexual orientation and what other identities were related to this mistreatment.
What did the researchers do?
Our data come from a more extensive online study focused on coping with sexual orientation-based stigma through writing. We asked 49 participants what social identities were important in understanding the event they chose to write about for this study.
What were the results of the study?
Autistic-LGBTQ+ people shared that several identities were very important to understand as part of their stigma event including autism/neurodivergence, gender, age, and religion. There were four types of stigma events that were described by participants as follows: rejection, invalidation, harassment, and discrimination. Participants spoke to the ways their multiple identities were important to understanding their stigma event. The themes were as follows: (1) If you’re Autistic, you can’t be queer: Assumptions about autism, (2) Gender as “a bit of a double blow,” (3) “Queerness as abhorrent”: Religiously influenced heterosexism, and (4) “Too young to know better”: The intersection of age and LGBTQ+ identities.
They also described different forms of mistreatment by others in their lives, such as the use of offensive language, others’ questioning their sexual or gender identities because of their autism, others saying they would not accept them, and refusing to let them in public spaces because of their sexual or gender identities.
What do these findings add to what was already known?
These findings extend what we know about the ways Autistic people experience mistreatment from others based on their Autistic identity, sexual orientation, gender identity, and the ways these identities together create a new type of stigma. We demonstrated that Autistic-LGBTQ people experience similar kinds of stigma events that have been studied among LGBTQ+ people. Participants also identified the ways that biases about autism and their younger age led to dismissing their LGBTQ+ identity, which highlights the ways that stereotypes can lead to mistreatment. These findings support the importance of other aspects of identity in developing supports and interventions for Autistic-LGBTQ+ people.
What are potential weaknesses in the study?
The sample was predominantly White, and our participants did not identify their race or ethnicity as being important in understanding their upsetting event. Hence, future research on the experiences of racial and ethnic minority Autistic-LGBTQ+ people is in order. Because our study examined archival data, we were not able to ask our participants follow-up questions.
How will these findings help Autistic adults now or in the future?
These findings can help us to understand external stressors that are harmful to Autistic-LGBTQ+ people. They can help Autistic people examine upsetting events through semi-structured prompts that focus on the influence of multiple social identities. In addition, they inform therapists who want to provide support, but do not know much about being both Autistic and LGBTQ+ and the stigma across these dual identities.
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