A gap in the literature that I have discovered is the research on autism, transgender identity and masking/camouflaging. 

Masking/camouflaging describes the process of an autistic person hiding autistic traits in order to appear more neurotypical 

There could be more research done on the intersection of these three things. It would be interesting to see if transgender people are more likely to mask autistic traits than cisgender people. 

Grand Valley State University

Research has shown a high correlation between autism and transgender identity. While research in this area remains ongoing, some conclusions have been made about the co-occurrence of the two identites.

The current research pulls from a systematic review on autism and trans identity (Bouzy, 2023).

Some conclusions of this research are that

-There is a high co-occurrence of gender dysphoria (GD) and trans identity

 -A significant proportion of autistic people with trans identity have a non-binary identity 

-People with a trans identity may have a later age of diagnosis of ASD

 -Individuals with an overlap of both gender dysphoria and ASD have more psychiatric co-occurrences

-Gender-affirming treatments are less accessible to autistic transgender people

Autism & Transgender Identity 

Autism, transgender identity & masking autistic traits

There has been relatively little research done on how non-binary and transgender autistic people experience gender. This is the first study that investigates how non-binary people experience gender. This study used a qualitative methodology, conducing interviews with 5 non-binary autistic adults in the UK.

The study found that gender was referred to as a multifaceted variable, being both an internal feeling and something that needs to be communicated to other people. Participants voiced that rejecting the gender binary made it difficult for them to feel a sense of belonging in their communities, and that they often felt misunderstood. They discussed having to mask both autistic traits and their gender identity from others, having to hide who they are because of stigma. Some participants voiced that being autistic led to a questioning of social norms, which led to non-binary identity. 

An essential part of participants experiences was connecting with a community, and participants reflected that connecting with the neuroqueer (neurodivergent queer community) community was very helpful for them and was vital for validating their identities. Participants also voiced feeling safe in LGBTQ+ spaces. 

This study provides a solid starting point for understanding gender in non-binary autistic people, but more research needs to be done to understand the nuances of gender identity and the variation of experiences of gender identity in this population. Some limitations of this study were that it included a small sample size of only 5 people and all of the participants were white. 

Exploring how nonbinary autistic adults experience gender 

Very little research exists on the experiences of autistic transgender and gender nonconforming (TGNC) college students regarding suicide risk. The research that does exist highlights the high rates of suicide risk among autistic TGNC populations. 

Mournet et al. (2024) use data from the American College Health Association- National College Health Assessment, which surveyed undergraduate and graduate students to understand the association between autism and TGNC identity in college students. This research finds that there is a significant interaction effect between gender identity and autism for suicide attempts. Autistic TGNC individuals were found to have the highest rate of suicide attempts. 
Knopf (2024) provides an analysis of Mournet et al.’s (2024) research. They make the suggestion that there should be more tailored interventions for autistic TGNC students to reduce suicide risk. They highlight the lack of mental health services for autistic college students and the stressors for TGNC students that lead to suicide risk.

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