Untangling Sex and Gender Differences in Impression Management and Associated Autism Features in French Autistic Adults

AI Summary

Impression management is multi-faceted and includes camouflaging; two facets identified: intentional use and self-efficacy.
Intentional impression management use was greater in autistic women and gender-diverse adults than in men.
Greater self-efficacy related to communion traits and, in assigned-males, to reduced adulthood social communication autistic features.

Autism Res. 2026 May 14:e70271. doi: 10.1002/aur.70271. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Some autistic individuals camouflage their behavioral differences, a phenomenon that overlaps with general impression management (IM). Few studies have examined IM in autistic people, particularly outside English-speaking countries. This study delineated the shared facets of camouflaging and IM, and used this conceptual clarification to address two knowledge gaps: (1) the respective roles of assigned-sex, gender identity, and gender role expression in explaining IM facet differences, and (2) how these facets relate to autism features across life stages. French autistic adults (N = 291) completed self-report measures of camouflaging, concern for appropriateness, self-monitoring, and gender role expression. The Autism Diagnostic Interview-Revised (ADI-R) and the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule Second Edition (ADOS-2) measured childhood and adulthood autism features, respectively. Joint exploratory factor analysis extracted latent facets of camouflaging and IM measures. Hierarchical and elastic-net regressions examined how IM facets were associated with assigned-sex, gender identity, and gender role expression. Multiple regressions tested whether IM facets moderated the relationship between childhood and adulthood autism profiles. The results highlighted the multi-faceted nature of IM (as inclusive of camouflaging) and unveiled nuances beyond previously documented sex/gender differences in autistic camouflaging. We found two IM facets: “intentional use” (purposeful IM use) and “self-efficacy” (self-perceived IM capability). IM intentional use was greater in autistic women and gender-diverse adults than men. Greater IM self-efficacy was most strongly associated with higher communion traits (i.e., qualities of being caring and cooperative). In autistic assigned-males, greater IM self-efficacy was linked with lower adulthood autistic social communication features. The findings confer new insights into sex-related, gender-related, and potential developmental links between IM and autism profiles.

PMID:42135209 | DOI:10.1002/aur.70271

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