Gender Differences in Masking: The Perception of Speech-Language Pathologists

Date of Submission

Spring 2024

Document Type

Closed Research Project

Degree Name

Master of Science in Speech-Language Pathology

Department

Speech-Language Pathology

First Advisor

Beatriz Barragan, PhD

Abstract

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) affects about 1% of the world’s population (Maenner et al., 2021; WHO, 2022). Masking behavior consists of individuals with ASD mimicking the social behaviors of others and appearing from an observer’s perspective to hide their social difficulties, producing repetitive behaviors, and showing restricted interests (Dean et al., 2017). Thirty-three participants consisting of ASHA certified speech language pathologists, speech language pathologist assistants, general education teachers, and special education teachers completed the survey for this study. According to the data, masking behaviors were observed among females with ASD, but in some instances, these behaviors were also observed in males with ASD. In Solomon et al. (2011) study, it was concluded that females with ASD were more likely to internalize their repetitive and restricted behaviors, resulting in the behaviors of masking in order to blend in with their same age peers. This study supported the idea that females with ASD are observed to demonstrate internalizing behaviors among the academic setting as opposed to males.

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