Aligning Perspectives: Autism Identity, Independence, Participation, and Quality of Life in Autistic Adolescents Through Self and Parental Reports.
Help autistic teens build a positive autism identity—acceptance boosts autonomy and quality of life, while feeling overwhelmed by the diagnosis undermines them.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Lamash et al. (2025) asked autistic teens and their parents to fill out surveys. They wanted to see how the teen felt about being autistic and how that feeling linked to daily freedom, joining in activities, and overall life satisfaction.
The team compared the teen's own answers with what parents said. They looked for patterns between autism identity and real-life outcomes.
What they found
Teens who accepted their autism identity also said they had more autonomy, joined more activities, and enjoyed life more. Teens who felt swallowed up by the label reported poorer outcomes on every measure.
Parents mostly saw the same links, but the teen's own voice was the strongest predictor.
How this fits with other research
Schaaf et al. (2015) interviewed autistic youth who already viewed their current selves more positively than their past selves. Liron's numbers now back up that earlier story with survey data.
Costa et al. (2020) tracked autistic people from adolescence into adulthood and found mental-health and sleep problems shaped quality of life. Liron adds a new youth-specific piece: identity acceptance itself is a lever you can target.
Garrison et al. (2025) also compared teen and parent reports, but focused on anxiety in teens with intellectual disability. Both 2025 studies show you can trust self-report when you choose the right tool and sample.
Why it matters
You can boost autonomy and participation by helping teens accept, not fight, their autism label. Use short discussions, role models, or peer groups that frame autism as one part of self, not the whole story. Check in with both teen and parent, but weight the teen's voice a bit more when goals are set.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
This study examines the alignment between self-reports and parental reports on adolescents' autism identity, functional autonomy, social participation, and quality of life (QoL), providing insights into the relationships between these factors. Thirty dyads comprising adolescents aged 13 to 18 years and one of their parents participated in the study. Participants completed the Autism Identity Questionnaire, Daily Routine and Autonomy questionnaire, Child and Adolescent Scale of Participation-Youth, and the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory. The findings indicated moderate agreement between self-reports and parental reports regarding autism identity, functional autonomy, and QoL. Fair agreement was found regarding social participation. Adolescents who reported higher levels of acceptance regarding their autism identity demonstrated greater autonomy and participation, which correlated with a higher QoL. Conversely, those with higher engulfment scores (feeling overwhelmed by the diagnosis) exhibited lower levels of independence, social participation, and emotional and social QoL. These findings suggest that fostering a positive autism identity may enhance autonomy and social participation while addressing feelings of engulfment could improve emotional and social outcomes.
Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 2025 · doi:10.1037/0022-006X.70.3.828