“Peas in a pod”: oral history reflections on autistic identity in family and community by late‑diagnosed adults

Rozanna Lilley; Wenn Lawson; Gabrielle Hall; Joanne Mahony; Hayley Clapham; Melanie Heyworth; Samuel Arnold; Julian N. Trollor; Michael Yudell; Liz Pellicano

doi:10.1007/s10803-022-05667-z

“Peas in a pod”: oral history reflections on autistic identity in family and community by late‑diagnosed adults

Rozanna Lilley^*, Wenn Lawson, Gabrielle Hall, Joanne Mahony, Hayley Clapham, Melanie Heyworth, Samuel Arnold, Julian N. Trollor, Michael Yudell, Liz Pellicano

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

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Abstract

In this paper, we report on a participatory oral history study documenting the lives of late-diagnosed autistic adults in Australia. We interviewed 26 autistic adults about their life history and the impact of late diagnosis. All were diagnosed after the age of 35, growing up in an era when autism was not well known. Using reflexive thematic analysis, we uncovered a rich body of reflections on shared Autistic identity and identified three major themes within that data set: ‘conceptualising the Autistic family’, ‘creating Autistic community’, and ‘contesting Autistic identity’. Overall, the study provides insights into the active creation of shared Autistic identity and the importance of Autistic community to these late-diagnosed autistic adults.

Original language	English
Pages (from-to)	1146–1161
Number of pages	16
Journal	Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders
Volume	53
Issue number	3
Early online date	14 Jul 2022
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-022-05667-z
Publication status	Published - Mar 2023

Bibliographical note

Copyright the Author(s) 2022. Version archived for private and non-commercial use with the permission of the author/s and according to publisher conditions. For further rights please contact the publisher.

Keywords

autism
late-diagnosed adults
participatory research
identity
family
community

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10.1007/s10803-022-05667-zLicence: CC BY

Publisher version (open access)Final published version, 770 KBLicence: CC BY

Cite this

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AU - Heyworth, Melanie

AU - Arnold, Samuel

AU - Trollor, Julian N.

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“Peas in a pod”: oral history reflections on autistic identity in family and community by late‑diagnosed adults

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