TY - JOUR
T1 - Online safety experiences of autistic young people: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis
AU - Macmillan, Kirsty
AU - Berg, Tessa
AU - Just, Mike
AU - Stewart, Mary Elizabeth
N1 - Funding Information:
We would like to thank all the autistic young people who took part in our interviews, without whom this research would not exist. A massive thanks to organisations including the National Autistic Society, Scottish Autism, Autism Initiatives Scotland and the Lothian Autistic Society for sharing our study. The project was supported by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC)., The authors declare that they have no financial or other conflicts of interest.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 Elsevier Ltd
PY - 2022/8
Y1 - 2022/8
N2 - Background: Many autistic young people use online devices for social connection and to share interests. However, there is limited research regarding autistic online safety behaviours. Compared with non-autistic children, parental surveys have indicated that autistic young people are less likely to block people and/or online sites. To date, no research has explored autistic young people's perceptions of their online safety experiences. This qualitative research explored autistic young people's experiences of communicating with others online, as well as their online safety experiences. Method: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 14 autistic young people aged 11–17 years (M = 14.0, SD = 2.2), including 8 males (M = 13.9, SD = 2.1) and 6 females (M = 14.5, SD = 2.5). These were conducted face to face (n = 1), phone call (n = 2), or via Skype (n = 8) or live web chat (n = 3). Questions explored factors relating to autistic young people's online safety experiences. Results: Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis was used to analyse the data. In line with previous studies, autistic young people reported being victims of cyberbullying. Young autistic females reported being subject to online sexual harassment. While participants’ online experiences varied, there were commonalities, including a desire for more support to block online comments and/or individuals. Conclusions: Our results support previous findings that autistic young people are subject to online harassment and are not confident blocking unwanted contact from others online. Future interventions will be more readily accepted and ecologically valid if they address the unique needs of autistic young people.
AB - Background: Many autistic young people use online devices for social connection and to share interests. However, there is limited research regarding autistic online safety behaviours. Compared with non-autistic children, parental surveys have indicated that autistic young people are less likely to block people and/or online sites. To date, no research has explored autistic young people's perceptions of their online safety experiences. This qualitative research explored autistic young people's experiences of communicating with others online, as well as their online safety experiences. Method: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 14 autistic young people aged 11–17 years (M = 14.0, SD = 2.2), including 8 males (M = 13.9, SD = 2.1) and 6 females (M = 14.5, SD = 2.5). These were conducted face to face (n = 1), phone call (n = 2), or via Skype (n = 8) or live web chat (n = 3). Questions explored factors relating to autistic young people's online safety experiences. Results: Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis was used to analyse the data. In line with previous studies, autistic young people reported being victims of cyberbullying. Young autistic females reported being subject to online sexual harassment. While participants’ online experiences varied, there were commonalities, including a desire for more support to block online comments and/or individuals. Conclusions: Our results support previous findings that autistic young people are subject to online harassment and are not confident blocking unwanted contact from others online. Future interventions will be more readily accepted and ecologically valid if they address the unique needs of autistic young people.
KW - Autism
KW - IPA
KW - Online safety
KW - Qualitative research
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85131931761&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.rasd.2022.101995
DO - 10.1016/j.rasd.2022.101995
M3 - Article
SN - 1750-9467
VL - 96
JO - Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders
JF - Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders
M1 - 101995
ER -