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Simulated Contact and Attitudes Toward Autistic Adults: Effects of Gender of the Autistic Adult and Mediation by Intergroup Anxiety.

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Title: Simulated Contact and Attitudes Toward Autistic Adults: Effects of Gender of the Autistic Adult and Mediation by Intergroup Anxiety.
Authors: Bierce, Lydia F. (AUTHOR), Dickter, Cheryl L. (AUTHOR), Burk, Joshua A. (AUTHOR)
Source: Journal of Autism & Developmental Disorders. Nov2025, Vol. 55 Issue 11, p4153-4159. 7p.
Subjects: Statistical correlation, Statistical power analysis, Scale analysis (Psychology), Pearson correlation (Statistics), Stereotypes, Gender identity, Affinity groups, Autism, Sex distribution, Masculinity, Statistical sampling, Questionnaires, Anxiety, Analysis of covariance, Descriptive statistics, Social perception, Research, Social skills, Psychology of college students, Student attitudes, Asperger's syndrome, Interpersonal relations, Factor analysis, Data analysis software, Imagination
Geographic Terms: Southern States
Abstract: Purpose: Neurotypical peers tend to have negative attitudes toward autistic peers, which may contribute to negative outcomes for autistic individuals. The present study was designed to build upon previous findings by testing whether simulating contact with an individual labeled as autistic and exhibiting stereotypical autistic behaviors, which has been shown to improve neurotypical individuals' attitudes toward autistic peers, depended on the gender of the imagined person. We also examined whether intergroup anxiety mediated the effects of simulated contact on these attitudes. Methods: Neurotypical undergraduate participants (n = 194) were assigned to simulated contact scenarios in which the person in the imagined contact situation was labeled as autistic or not, exhibited stereotypical autistic behaviors or not and was given a female-identifying or male-identifying name. Participants completed questionnaires that assessed their attitudes toward autism, their previous contact with autistic individuals and their intergroup anxiety with future interactions with autistic people. Results: As expected, after imagining contact with a person exhibiting stereotypical autistic behaviors, attitudes toward autistic individuals were more positive following interactions with male- but not female-identifying autistic partners. Intergroup anxiety was found to be a mediator of the effects of imagined contact on attitudes toward autistic individuals. Conclusion: These findings lend further support for imagined contact as a method to improve attitudes toward autistic individuals, identify intergroup anxiety as a mediator and begin to demonstrate some situations, such as imagining a female-identifying autistic individual, where imagined contact may not be effective in changing attitudes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Journal of Autism & Developmental Disorders is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
Database: Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection
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  Data: Simulated Contact and Attitudes Toward Autistic Adults: Effects of Gender of the Autistic Adult and Mediation by Intergroup Anxiety.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Journal+of+Autism+%26+Developmental+Disorders%22">Journal of Autism & Developmental Disorders</searchLink>. Nov2025, Vol. 55 Issue 11, p4153-4159. 7p.
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  Data: Purpose: Neurotypical peers tend to have negative attitudes toward autistic peers, which may contribute to negative outcomes for autistic individuals. The present study was designed to build upon previous findings by testing whether simulating contact with an individual labeled as autistic and exhibiting stereotypical autistic behaviors, which has been shown to improve neurotypical individuals' attitudes toward autistic peers, depended on the gender of the imagined person. We also examined whether intergroup anxiety mediated the effects of simulated contact on these attitudes. Methods: Neurotypical undergraduate participants (n = 194) were assigned to simulated contact scenarios in which the person in the imagined contact situation was labeled as autistic or not, exhibited stereotypical autistic behaviors or not and was given a female-identifying or male-identifying name. Participants completed questionnaires that assessed their attitudes toward autism, their previous contact with autistic individuals and their intergroup anxiety with future interactions with autistic people. Results: As expected, after imagining contact with a person exhibiting stereotypical autistic behaviors, attitudes toward autistic individuals were more positive following interactions with male- but not female-identifying autistic partners. Intergroup anxiety was found to be a mediator of the effects of imagined contact on attitudes toward autistic individuals. Conclusion: These findings lend further support for imagined contact as a method to improve attitudes toward autistic individuals, identify intergroup anxiety as a mediator and begin to demonstrate some situations, such as imagining a female-identifying autistic individual, where imagined contact may not be effective in changing attitudes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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  Data: <i>Copyright of Journal of Autism & Developmental Disorders is the property of Springer Nature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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        Value: 10.1007/s10803-023-06220-2
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        Text: English
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      – SubjectFull: Statistical correlation
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Statistical power analysis
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      – SubjectFull: Scale analysis (Psychology)
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      – TitleFull: Simulated Contact and Attitudes Toward Autistic Adults: Effects of Gender of the Autistic Adult and Mediation by Intergroup Anxiety.
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              Text: Nov2025
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