Autism and Gender Identity: What does the research say?

Are there links between autism and differences in gender identity or expression? What does the research say?

NOTE: Since the filming of this video, controversy related to this issue has been raised about autism and other diagnoses as reasons to deny gender affirming care. Stay tuned for a future video on autism, autonomy, and consent.

Further Reading:
Kinnaird, E., Stewart, C., & Tchanturia, K. (2019). Investigating alexithymia in autism: A systematic review and meta-analysis. European Psychiatry, 55, 80-89. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eurpsy.2018...

Kourti, M., & MacLeod, A. (2019). “I don't feel like a gender, I feel like myself”: Autistic individuals raised as girls exploring gender identity. Autism in Adulthood, 1(1), 52-59.https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/abs/10...

Yafai, A. F., Verrier, D., & Reidy, L. (2014). Social conformity and autism spectrum disorder: A child-friendly take on a classic study. Autism, 18(8), 1007-1013. https://doi.org/10.1177/1362361313508023

Fortunato, A., Giovanardi, G., Innocenzi, E., Mirabella, M., Caviglia, G., Lingiardi, V., & Speranza, A. M. (2022). Is it autism? A critical commentary on the co-occurrence of gender dysphoria and autism spectrum disorder. Journal of Homosexuality, 69(7), 1204-1221. https://doi.org/10.1080/00918369.2021...

Kallitsounaki, A., & Williams, D. M. (2022). Autism spectrum disorder and gender dysphoria/incongruence. A systematic literature review and meta-analysis. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 1-15. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-022-05...

Brown, A. (2022). About 5% of young adults in the US say their gender is different from their sex assigned at birth. Pew Research Center: Washington, DC, USA. https://www.pewresearch.org/short-rea...