Gender Trends in the Friend Preference and Social Acceptance of Girls and Boys with Autism

Background: Typically developing boys and girls prefer same-sex peer groups, however it is unclear if children with autism (ASD) follow the same trends. Results from previous studies indicated that children with ASD generally had fewer friends than typical classmates (Chamberlain, Kasari, & Rotherman-Fuller, 2007). Prior examinations of inclusion classrooms suggested that children with ASD tend to nominate same-sex friends (Rotherman-Fuller, 2010). However, since fewer girls were represented in research samples, less is known about their experiences. Therefore, this research sought to explore the influence of gender research on the social experiences of girls and boys with ASD.

Objectives: The purpose of this study is to examine the gender trends in the social lives of elementary boys and girls with ASD and to boys and girls without ASD.

Methods: The Friendships Survey (Cairns & Cairns, 1994) was used to examine the social relationships and friend preferences of children with ASD compared to their typical classmates. Peer nomination data was collected from 28 elementary school general education classrooms in Los Angeles. The children with ASD (n=30; Girls=15, Boys=15) had their diagnosis confirmed by the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS), had average or above average intelligence (IQ>70; confirmed by the Stanford Binet-5) and were educated in general education classroom for a minimum of 80 percent of the school day. Girls and boys with ASD were matched by IQ, age, and school district. The control sample consisted of 15 typical girls and 15 typical boys who were selected because they were same-gender classmates of a student with ASD. Gender (Girl/Boy) x Disability (with or without ASD) comparisons were used to identify gender trends in nomination and acceptance scores.  

Results: Girls and boys with and without ASD were significantly more likely to nominate same-sex classmates as friends, and to receive nominations from same-sex classmates. Both girls and boys with ASD received significantly fewer friend nominations than the same-gender control group F (1,56)= 10.01, p < .003, η_p²⁼.163, and were significantly less likely to be reported by their classmates as belonging to a group F (1, 46) = 8.12, p < .007, η_p² = .150. A gender x disability interaction effect indicated that classmates generally perceived boys with ASD to be more isolated than girls with ASD F (1,46) = 4.13, p < .048, η_p² = .082. There was a significant negative main effect of autism on “cluster centrality scores” F (1, 56)= 4.77, p < .033, η_p² = .078 suggesting that the friendship bonds were less salient in children with ASD than typical controls.

Conclusions:  Following the trends of typical populations, the children with ASD were significantly more likely nominate and receive nominations from same-gender classmates. However, typical girls generally have more friends than typical boys, and typical boys have more salient relationships. Both girls and boys with ASD received significantly fewer friend nominations, and had weaker bonds than typical control groups. Therefore, the sex-differences in the way typical boys and girls socialize (Macoby, 1998), make girls and boys with ASD face different social challenges.