Date of Award

8-2024

Document Type

Campus Access Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Department

Clinical Psychology

First Advisor

Abbey Eisenhower

Second Advisor

Hillary Hurst Bush

Third Advisor

Laurel Wainwright

Abstract

As autistic youths and young adults undergo a process of identity formation, they are met with various factors that support or disrupt the development of a positive autism identity. Interpersonal and systemic practices that autistic youth encounter in their everyday lives such as being in an inclusive environment, learning about stigma against autistic people, or experiencing discrimination and bullying can have a profound impact on their self-perception and, in turn, their mental health. In this dissertation study, I examined the experiences of autistic youths and young adults with understanding and navigating their autism identity, the overt and covert messages autistic youth receive about autism and their autism identity, and how autism identity relate to their mental health. Using an approach inspired by critical constructivist grounded theory, eleven autistic adolescents and young adults were interviewed, and their data were analyzed. Findings revealed that 1) participants understand their autism as having both strengths and challenges, 2) intersections between autism identity and other aspects of identity can impact self-perception and identity development, 3) current clinical categorizations of autism are simplistic and reductive and are related to poor psychological well-being among autistic people, 4) the pervasiveness of negative messages around autism could lead to internalized ableism, 5) participants across the age range face invalidation in social interactions as well as from systems, 6) autistic young adults begin to engage in creating “visibility” and celebrating their difference, 7) experiences with marginalization could transform into empowerment of others with disabilities, 8) participants maintain control of their disability by using a diagnosis disclosure as a tool, and 9) having support from an autistic and/or neurodivergent community promote self-acceptance. Implications of this study include enhancing support for identity development in mental health and school settings.

Comments

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