The Extent and Nature of Autistic People's Violence Experiences During Adulthood: A Cross-sectional Study of Victimisation.
Vicki Gibbs, Jennie Hudson, Elizabeth Pellicano
PMID 35821545WHAT IT FOUND
Autistic adults reported higher rates of sexual harassment, stalking, sexual violence and physical violence than non-autistic adults.
Most autistic participants experienced more than one type of violence, and repeated incidents of the same type.
Key findings
01A significantly higher proportion of autistic adults reported experiencing each form of violence compared to non-autistic adults.
02Approximately three quarters of Autistic adults reported multiple types of violence compared to approximately half of the non-autistic group.
03A significantly higher proportion of autistic adults indicated that they had experienced repeated instances of at least one form of violence compared to non-autistic adults.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The autistic group was predominantly well-educated (63.6% completed university), which may not represent the broader autistic population. Diagnosis was self-reported or based on a screening tool (AQ-S) for some participants, without independent verification. Sample sizes for men and TGNC adults were small, limiting statistical power for gender comparisons. Data were retrospective, which introduces potential recall bias. The study did not measure other forms of violence such as emotional abuse or workplace bullying.
Declared interests
The study received funding from Macquarie University. An advisory group of three autistic adults provided input on the research questions and questionnaire design.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that the lack of significant difference in stalking and physical violence rates between autistic and non-autistic men means men are safe. The sample size for men was small (25 in each group), and rates of sexual harassment and sexual violence were high for autistic men but could not be statistically compared due to low numbers in the non-autistic male group. The overall pattern shows elevated risk across all violence types for autistic adults.