The Impact of Stigma, Autism Label and Wording on the Perceived Desirability of the Online Dating Profiles of Men on the Autism Spectrum.
M Brosnan, J Gavin
PMID 33459917WHAT IT FOUND
For men on the autism spectrum, an explicit autism label and positive wording in online dating profiles were associated with higher ratings for social and task attractiveness.
However, this label did not increase the desire to date, and the effect varied by the rater's level of stigmatising views.
Key findings
01An explicit autism label was associated with increased perceived social attractiveness, task attractiveness, and trustworthiness, but not with desire-to-date.
02Positive wording in the profile was associated with increased perceived social attractiveness, task attractiveness, and desire-to-date.
03Highly stigmatising views in raters were associated with decreased perceived social and task attractiveness.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
The study only included female participants seeking male partners, so results may not apply to other gender or sexual orientations. Participants were mostly university students in the UK, a group likely to have lower stigma and higher familiarity with autism than the general population. The study measured perceptions of hypothetical profiles, not real-world dating outcomes or relationships. Stigmatising views were split into high/low groups based on the mean, which can oversimplify continuous attitudes.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest. The study was part of a PhD project funded by the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC).
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that disclosing an autism diagnosis always makes a person more desirable for dating. The study found that while the label improved perceptions of trustworthiness and competence, it did not increase the general desire to date, and for people with high stigma, the label actually reduced desire to date when combined with positive wording.