"I'm Proud to be a Little Bit Different": The Effects of Autistic Individuals' Perceptions of Autism and Autism Social Identity on Their Collective Self-esteem.

Participants were recruited through autism community channels, so they may already feel strongly connected to autism. Some survey participants were self-identified rather than diagnosed, although the diagnosed and self-identified groups did not differ on the main measures. The survey and focus group data were collected at one time point, so it cannot show that positive views cause stronger identity or self-esteem. The focus groups included only 15 people from a university transition programme and a community group, so they may not represent all autistic adults. The findings describe experiences and associations, not the effects of a therapy or intervention. The average age of autism diagnosis was 29.19 years, so later-diagnosed adults may differ from people diagnosed in childhood.

The funder named was the Research Trainees Coordinating Centre. The supplied article text does not state author conflict-of-interest disclosures.

Do not conclude that focusing on strengths will improve autistic adults' collective self-esteem. The study observed associations at one time point and did not test an intervention.