Does gender matter? A one year follow-up of autistic, attention and anxiety symptoms in high-functioning children with autism spectrum disorder.

Tamara and her team tracked 76 high-functioning autistic kids for one year.

Half were girls, half were boys, .

Parents and teachers filled out the same three checklists at the start and again one year later.

The forms measured autism traits, ADHD symptoms, and anxiety levels.

Core autism signs stayed the same for both sexes over the year.

Boys showed more hyperactivity and impulsivity than girls at both time points.

Girls reported higher social anxiety than boys, even though their autism traits looked alike.

In plain words: the girls were just as autistic, but they moved less and worried more.

Eussen et al. (2016) followed older autistic teens and found girls had more depression than boys.

This extends Tamara’s finding that girls carry heavier internalizing loads as they age.

Harrop et al. (2018) used eye-tracking and showed autistic girls still looked at faces like typical girls, while autistic boys did not.

That lab result helps explain why teachers may miss girls: their social attention looks “normal,” even when anxiety is high.

Pielech et al. (2016) scanned adult brains and found only autistic males showed atypical social-circuit activity.

Together, these studies build a clear line: biology and behavior both show sex-different autism tracks.

Day et al. (2021) added that girls who hide their traits suffer more depression and stress.

This gives a reason for Tamara’s higher anxiety scores: camouflaging may cost girls extra emotional energy.

If you assess a quiet, well-behaved autistic girl, do not assume she is “less affected.”

Ask about social worry and check for camouflaging.

Screen girls for anxiety and depression even when hyperactivity is low.

Adjust your treatment plan: teach coping skills, not just social skills.