Exploring sex differences in the clinical cognitive and behavioural profiles of adolescents and adults with autism spectrum disorder (ASD)

Abstract

Autistic females are often diagnosed later than males and present with higher rates of internalising conditions like anxiety and depression. Current diagnostic criteria for autism spectrum disorder (ASD) tend to be focused on the ‘male’ presentation of the condition derived from the earliest descriptions of the condition. There is growing recognition, however, that ASD may present differently in males and females. Emotion regulation (ER) has been proposed as a potential mechanism underpinning differences in the clinical profiles of autistic males and females. Six studies examined sex differences in ER and its relationship with alexithymia, internalising issues and camouflaging within the ASD population. The results were compared to typically developing individuals to determine if the differences observed were gender or diagnosis-specific. While no major significant sex differences were found in the presentation of autistic traits in adolescent and adult samples, there were differences found in the cognitive and behavioural profiles of ER and in its relation to internalising issues, alexithymia and camouflaging. Therefore, it is concluded within this thesis that differences in emotion regulation between males and females should be considered during diagnostic procedures, as well as when referrals for such diagnoses are considered.