Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2021 Nov;14(11):2342-2354.
doi: 10.1002/aur.2604. Epub 2021 Sep 18.

The sexual health, orientation, and activity of autistic adolescents and adults

Elizabeth Weir  1 , Carrie Allison  1 , Simon Baron-Cohen  1
Affiliations

The sexual health, orientation, and activity of autistic adolescents and adults

Elizabeth Weir et al. Autism Res. 2021 Nov.

Erratum in

  • Corrigendum.
    [No authors listed] [No authors listed] Autism Res. 2022 Apr;15(4):771. doi: 10.1002/aur.2706. Epub 2022 Mar 10. Autism Res. 2022. PMID: 35274482 No abstract available.

Abstract

Small studies suggest significant differences between autistic and nonautistic individuals regarding sexual orientation and behavior. We administered an anonymized, online survey to n = 2386 adults (n = 1183 autistic) aged 16-90 years to describe sexual activity, risk of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), and sexual orientation. Autistic individuals are less likely to report sexually activity or heterosexuality compared to nonautistic individuals, but more likely to self-report asexuality or an 'other' sexuality. Overall, autistic, and nonautistic groups did not differ in age of sexual activity onset or contraction of STIs. When evaluating sex differences, autistic males are uniquely more likely to be bisexual (compared to nonautistic males); conversely, autistic females are uniquely more likely to be homosexual (compared to nonautistic females). Thus, both autistic males and females may express a wider range of sexual orientations in different sex-specific patterns than general population peers. When comparing autistic males and females directly, females are more likely to have diverse sexual orientations (except for homosexuality) and engage in sexual activity, are less likely to identify as heterosexual, and have a lower mean age at which they first begin engaging in sexual activity. This is the largest study of sexual orientation of autistic adults. Sexual education and sexual health screenings of all children, adolescents, and adults (including autistic individuals) must remain priorities; healthcare professionals should use language that affirms a diversity of sexual orientations and supports autistic individuals who may have increased risks (affecting mental health, physical health, and healthcare quality) due to stress and discrimination from this intersectionality. LAY SUMMARY: This is the largest study on the sexual activity, orientation, and health of autistic adults. This study reaffirms that the majority of autistic adults are interested in sexual relationships and engage in sexual activity. Sexual education and sexual health screenings must remain a priority for all individuals, including those with autism; healthcare professionals should be aware that autistic patients may be more likely to identify as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Queer, Asexual, and other identities not listed here (LGBTQA+) which may put them at greater risk of mental and physical health difficulties due to discrimination.

Keywords: adolescents; adults; sexual activity; sexual health; sexual orientation.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

REFERENCES

    1. Allison, C., Auyeung, B., & Baron-Cohen, S. (2012). Toward brief “red flags” for autism screening: The short autism Spectrum quotient and the short quantitative checklist in 1,000 cases and 3,000 controls. Journal of the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, 51(2), 202-212.e7. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaac.2011.11.003
    1. American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). Virginia: American Psychiatric Association.
    1. Azur, M. J., Stuart, E. A., Frangakis, C., & Leaf, P. J. (2011). Multiple imputation by chained equations: What is it and how does it work? International Journal of Methods in Psychiatric Research, 20(1), 40-49. https://doi.org/10.1002/mpr.329
    1. Bejerot, S., & Eriksson, J. M. (2014). Sexuality and gender role in autism Spectrum disorder: A case control study. PLoS One, 9(1), e87961. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0087961
    1. Benjamini, Y., & Hochberg, Y. (1995). Controlling the false discovery rate: A practical and powerful approach to multiple testing. Journal of the Royal Statistical Society. Series B (Methodological), 57(1), 289-300.

Publication types