r/science • u/mvea Professor | Medicine • 5d ago

Neuroscience New study finds online self-reports may not accurately reflect clinical autism diagnoses. Adults who report high levels of autistic traits through online surveys may not reflect the same social behaviors or clinical profiles as those who have been formally diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder.

https://www.psypost.org/new-study-finds-online-self-reports-may-not-accurately-reflect-clinical-autism-diagnoses/
7.8k Upvotes

94% Upvoted

892 comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

28

u/Brossentia 5d ago

Screening tests should be a tool to motivate you to get the help you need. Mind you, some people are in situations where they CAN'T get that help, and trying to understand yourself is part of the human experience; I don't blame anyone for that.

But I'm autistic. When I was a kid in the 80s, the doctors in rural Utah had no idea what was going on, so they said I was just weird. Wasn't until about a year ago I got a diagnosis. My husband feels he may be the same way - I really want him to get diagnosed, but it costs so much that we can't afford it. I personally don't think he is, but that could be incorrect; he knows his lived experience better than I.

With that said, I'm sorta stuck with diagnosed disabilities and with a husband who claims to be disabled but can't go to a doctor. I'm the only one really working while I'm trying to apply for help, and we're just sinking deeper into debt. I just wish he could see a doctor so we actually knew for sure what to do to deal with his problems.

6

u/Larry-Man 5d ago

Doctors where I am also LOATHE doing tests or referrals for autism. They keep making me do ADHD tests (which is often comorbid but I definitely do not have) and getting formally diagnosed was a nightmare.

6

u/Brossentia 5d ago

Yeah, I had doctors give me the shrug and say, "Nah, I don't think so." But you know why? Because as a teen, I studied how to act human. I LITERALLY READ BOOKS TO UNDERSTAND HOW TO ACT NORMAL. My special interest happened to be humor, and I put in so much work understanding why certain things were considered funny.

Heck, I still use what I studied every day because I love to make people laugh. Turns out some therapists haven't seen many extroverted people on the spectrum...