Masking and Camouflaging in Autism; A Review of Recent Studies

Autism masking, masking, or camouflaging are terms used to describe the (conscious or unconscious) efforts of autistic individuals to hide their unique traits or behaviors in social environments. These efforts can be highly harmful and can cause numerous difficulties for autistic people.

In this blogpost, we will examine the concept, causes, and effects.

Masking and Camouflaging in Autism

The terms masking and camouflaging generally refer to the idea that autistic people, in order to fit in with society and those around them, consciously and actively (or, in most cases, unconsciously and passively) suppress their behaviors or behavioral patterns. This concept may be known by different names within different frameworks. Masking, mask, or masking behavior are the best-known terms, but specialists such as Van Lawsen have proposed the term adaptive morphing.

Researchers in this field describe autistic masking as a social-behavioral strategy consisting of two main elements:

Continually adapting behavior and speech according to the expectations or preferences of others.

Strictly controlling self-expression, including needs, preferences, opinions, interests, personality traits, behavior, and physical characteristics, based on others’ reactions or expectations.

Researchers emphasize that autistic people infer these expectations and preferences not only from things that are directly expressed, but also from other people's facial features, body language, indirect cues, and so on.

Autism masking is also not always conscious or active; that is, an autistic person does not necessarily consciously think about these things. Instead, they unconsciously construct an image of other people's expectations and behave accordingly.

How Is Autism Masking Performed?

In general, research on autism masking is very difficult. People who have a high ability to mask may never receive an official diagnosis, while people who have received an autism diagnosis and engage in masking are not necessarily fully aware of their adaptive behaviors.

Nevertheless, some information about autism masking is available. For example, the early stages of masking may begin with the suppression of self-stimulatory behaviors. Autistic individuals may use self-stimulatory behaviors to regulate their sensory balance because of difficulties filtering sensory information or processing it. To people unfamiliar with autism, these behaviors may appear strange or abnormal.

Over time, by observing these reactions, autistic individuals may begin masking by suppressing their self-stimulatory behaviors. Another aspect of masking is eye contact. Autistic people may prefer not to make eye contact with others. Avoiding eye contact may appear offensive or unusual to some people in society, and autistic people may therefore force themselves to make eye contact despite their psychological distress as part of masking.

Another major part of masking is imitating behaviors. Researchers in this field hypothesize that autistic individuals may closely observe the behaviors of those around them and store particular characteristics in their memory as instructions, so that they can reproduce these behaviors and characteristics when needed.

One of the most harmful aspects of autistic masking is hiding or refraining from talking about interests or preferences. Autistic people often have intense and complex interests in particular activities or objects. These complex interests may be difficult for neurotypical people to understand, and autistic people quickly become aware of this. Over time, refraining from talking about these interests may become part of their masking.

Why Do Autistic People Camouflage?

As mentioned, neurodivergent individuals have a different perspective on the world around them compared with neurotypical people. This different perspective, together with different needs, leads to particular behaviors and communication patterns that are considered unusual within the social framework. In general, various factors can motivate an autistic person to camouflage or mask.

Based on recent studies, these factors have been identified as follows:

General acceptance within society or particular social groups Avoiding stigma, labeling, bullying, and discrimination

Passing social filters (not appearing strange to others)

Meeting expectations and avoiding rejection

Hiding distress

Negative public attitudes toward autism or autism-related behavioral characteristics

Compensating for communication difficulties and differences

Coping with other people's negative reactions

Obtaining employment or educational opportunities

Maintaining relationships

Researchers emphasize that masking, camouflaging, or masking behavior in autistic people generally begins at a very young age. In particular, people who are on the "milder" end of the spectrum may have learned to mask even before acquiring language. This means that masking may be performed unconsciously, without the person themselves being aware of it.

Is Camouflaging and Masking Seen Only in Autism?

In general, behaviors recognized as camouflaging and masking exist, to some extent, in all of us. All of us may occasionally feel that making a slight change in our behavior would help us be more accepted within our social group. The main difference between camouflaging in the general population and among neurodivergent individuals is the extent of these changes and the pressure associated with them.

Neurodivergent individuals, particularly adults, may make substantial changes to their behavioral patterns and consequently struggle with feelings such as alienation from oneself or psychological loneliness. Of course, this severe form of camouflaging is not seen only in autistic people.

As mentioned, all neurodivergent individuals may adopt this social-communication strategy. Based on new information that has emerged about this phenomenon, two groups are at particularly serious risk as a result of camouflaging:

(1) Girls and women camouflage more than boys and men, and experience severe harms. Researchers hypothesize that this may be due to stricter social frameworks for girls and women, which make camouflaging compulsory for them.

(2) People who receive their first accurate diagnosis later in life, particularly in adulthood, are more likely to camouflage unconsciously. Receiving a clinical diagnosis provides an explanation for their differences and removes some of the pressure to conform to society. People who do not receive a diagnosis until adulthood may experience serious mental-health difficulties as a result of camouflaging.

Recent studies emphasize that knowledge about masking and camouflaging is still very preliminary and that more extensive and precise research is needed. However, various limitations may make obtaining such information difficult.

Over the past two decades, increased public and global awareness of autism has led to better and more accurate identification of autistic people, such that the official prevalence rate has increased from 0.3% to approximately 1.4%. Nevertheless, it is expected that with greater public awareness and more accurate diagnostic tools, identification will become easier.

This means that a large population of autistic and neurodivergent people may have used camouflaging strategies throughout their lives without knowing about their diagnosis.

Effects of Masking and Camouflaging

Given that the purpose of masking and camouflaging is to suppress and avoid ones typical behaviors, needs, desires, instincts, and preferences, its effects can be particularly serious and harmful in the long term. In many cases, a person becomes so involved in their masking strategy that it becomes difficult for them to think about or attend to what their actual needs or preferences are.

In addition, we have known for years that emotional difficulties are more common among neurodivergent individuals than in the general population; recent studies identify masking and camouflaging as one explanation for this.

In general, the following outcomes have been observed with long-term use of masking strategies:

General distress, including psychological breakdown or emotional numbness, which generally leads to a need to avoid social environments Mental and physical burnout Mental-health difficulties, including depression, anxiety, self-injurious behaviors, and suicide Desire for isolation, Vulnerability to emotional abuse. Loss of personal identity or a feeling of alienation from oneself, Reduced self-esteem and confidence

In addition to these difficulties, many autistic people face unique problems as a result of becoming immersed in and using camouflaging strategies over long periods: Even parents and other people close to them may sometimes refuse to accept that the person is actually autistic.

The person may receive various (inaccurate) clinical diagnoses (based on the masked persona). Personal feelings, emotions, or preferences may be ignored in intimate relationships.

We should also consider that masking and camouflaging strategies do not produce only negative outcomes. Like all mechanisms and strategies that we adopt, camouflaging can also have positive outcomes.

In clinical interviews, autistic people have identified the following as strengths of masking: Protection against stigma and mistreatment, Maintaining relationships and connections, Acceptance in social environments such as school or the workplace, Preventing unpleasant social interactions, and Building confidence.

Considering both the positive and negative aspects, many autistic people may consciously choose to camouflage. Particularly in communities or environments where people's knowledge about autism is limited, camouflaging eliminates the need for additional explanations or inappropriate reactions.

As public knowledge about autism increases, (we can hope that) the need for camouflaging will gradually decrease.

Supporting Autistic People and Removing the Mask

Given the harms associated with masking, helping autistic people remove their masks can be highly beneficial. People who consciously use camouflaging in particular situations to benefit from its positive aspects generally remove their masks when interacting with close friends or when trust has been established in the relationship.

Based on the available information, we can offer recommendations for people around autistic individuals:

First, establish honest communication by allowing the person to remove their mask, and then develop better communication after the mask has been removed.

In social interactions, especially in crowded environments, allow the person to interact according to their own preferences, rather than dictating social norms.

After social interactions, give them time to recover if needed in order to prevent burnout.

Learn about the person's specific patterns of camouflaging and ask them what kind of support they need in order to remove their mask.

To better manage sensory information filtration, allow the person to modify their environment.

We can alsi suggest alternative strategies to minimize the harms. (These approaches may not be suitable for all neurodivergent people and should preferably be used while taking the environment and circumstances into account):

Allow sufficient time and appropriate conditions for recovery after social interactions in order to avoid burnout.

Manage psychological energy in a way that distributes difficult activities throughout the day or week, preventing excessive psychological pressure from accumulating all at once.

Explain and educate friends and relatives about camouflaging and autistic characteristics in order to avoid masking as much as possible.

Create or find safe environments in which there is no perceived need to mask.

Attend to one's desires, needs, and preferences even when masking is necessary, in order to prevent feelings of psychological loneliness.

Conclusion

Masking, camouflaging, or masking behavior is a social strategy that helps autistic individuals become better accepted within society. In the long term, this strategy can create serious mental-health difficulties. Most people use this strategy unconsciously, and women and people who receive their first diagnosis in adulthood are at greater risk of experiencing its harmful effects.