Awkwardness in people with Autism Spectrum Disorder

2016 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 26590248
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Exploratory Research
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Special needs education
• Research Institution: Kyushu University
• Principal Investigator: TANAKA MARI 九州大学, 基幹教育院, 教授 (70274412)
• Project Period (FY): 2014-04-01 – 2017-03-31
• Keywords: 発達障害 / 気まずさ

Outline of Final Research Achievements

This study analyzed how people with typical development (TD) perceive awkwardness during different stages of life and contrast these perceptions with cognitions about people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Participants (ns = 214 people with TD, 111 people with ASD, ages 9-60) were asked when they felt awkward. Their responses were grouped into 12 categories and analyzed. The results showed that elementary school-aged TD participants felt awkward when another person’s opinions or feelings opposed their own. High school students felt awkward in interpersonal relationships. ASD participants were especially less perceptive of awkwardness in the contexts of conversations and facial or non-verbal cues. However, they tended to feel awkward when they could not handle an issue on their own. The discussion concerned the characteristics and development of cognitions of awkwardness that people with ASD perceive in comparison to people with TD.

Free Research Field

発達障害学