Masking (behavior)

Masking has existed since antiquity, with authors like Shakespeare referencing it in fiction long before masking was formally defined and studied within psychology. In the influential book The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life (1956), Erving Goffman emphasized the link between social life and performance. Reviews of camouflaging literature suggest that Goffman's theory of social performance is still key for explaining how masking helps people shape others' perceptions and handle stigma. Frantz Fanon is credited with defining masking in his 1957 Black Skin, White Masks, which describes masking behavior in race relations within the stratified post-war United States. The term masking was used to describe the act of concealing disgust by Paul Ekman (1972) and Wallace V Friesen (1969). They thought of it as a learned behavior. Lorna Wing proposed that females' higher levels of masking than males led to their underdiagnosing of having autism in 1981. The Camouflaging Autistic Traits Questionnaire (CAT-Q), which measures autistic masking, was published by Laura Hull, Simon Baron-Cohen and others in March 2019. Recent validity testing suggests that while the CAT-Q demonstrates measurement stability across age groups, further research is needed to investigate how cultural and age-related differences may impact its ability to properly measure populations in different countries. == Causes ==

The social drivers of masking include social discrimination, cultural dominance, and violence. Elizabeth Radulski argues that masking is a cultural performance within Judith Butler's concept of performativity that helps individuals bypass cultural and structural barriers. Situational contexts The causes of masking are highly contextual and situational. Masking may disguise emotions considered socially inappropriate within a situational context, such as anger, jealousy, or rage. Individuals may mask in certain social situations, such as job interviews or dates, or around people of different cultures, identities, or ethnicities. Contextual factors including relationships with one's conversation partner, social capital (class) differences, location, and social setting are all reasons why an individual would express, suppress, or mask an emotion. == Consequences ==

In the workplace, masking leads to feelings of dissonance, insincerity, job dissatisfaction, emotional and physical exhaustion, and self-reported health problems. Some have also reported experiencing somatic symptoms and harmful physiological and cognitive effects as a consequence. Though there are many disadvantages to masking for individuals, many report the benefits masking has brought for them. Such reports stated that individuals felt as though it became easier to socialize, to uphold careers, build relationships, and even at times, were able to protect themselves. == Gender differences ==

There is a gendered disparity in masking behavior; studies show women mask negative emotions to a greater extent than men. According to psychologist Teresa Davis, this may be due to the greater social expectation for conformity placed on female gender roles, causing women to develop the skill to a greater extent than men during childhood socialization. This causes autism in females to be underdiagnosed relative to males. In turn, females with unrecognised autism do not receive social allowances for this condition, increasing their motivation to mask. Additionally, reviews indicate that Patient Access Network (PAN) research mainly involves white, adult females without intellectual disabilities, pointing to the importance of including more demographically diverse participants to broaden findings. == Cultural impacts on masking ==

Research suggests that the prevalence of masking behaviors is not unique to individuals with autism but also exists in other underrepresented or marginalized groups (like immigrants, ethnic minorities, and LGBTQ people). Though these behaviors may vary, they are all utilized for similar reasons. Navigating sociocultural expectations and preventing rejection, discrimination, and exclusion are common reasons for social camouflaging in these contexts. As briefly mentioned in the "Causes" section above, recent research compares autistic masking and cultural adaptation strategies such as code-switching or frame-switching used by immigrants or individuals of cultural minorities. In these cases, a person may alter their communication style, emotional expressions, or behavior to be in compliance with the majority culture's rules at the expense of their own culture. These modifications can be made unconsciously or consciously and are usually motivated by factors of safety or pressures of professional, academic or social acceptability. This suggests that the process of masking (and its psychological impact) is not just an individual consideration but also based on overall cultural norms and public opinion. These findings emphasize the importance of realizing that social camouflaging is shaped by local values surrounding identity, difference, and belonging. Therefore, cultural practices and beliefs can directly impact the relationship between levels of masking and their psychological effects, rather than it being directly linear. For those with autism, the ways people engage in masking behaviors can be different depending on cultural context. In collectivist cultures, social cohesion and conformity are more valued. These pressures may compel people with autism to suppress non-conformity behaviors even when they do not explicitly recognize such behaviors as being linked to their neurodivergence. In contrast, more individualist cultures of Western countries may foster varying reasons for camouflaging, such as one's desire to "fit in" with a group. Both circumstances may suppress identity, but differ slightly in the motivations and thought processes behind them. Social stigmatization of autism also varies across cultures and can strongly influence the amount of pressure on people to camouflage characteristics. In places where acceptance and understanding of autism are low, there can be more pressure to appear "normal" that creates more harmful or more intense masking. == Autistic masking ==

Autistic masking is masking applied to autistic behaviors, with the aim of suppressing them (and appearing less autistic). Typical examples of autistic masking include the suppression of stimming and meltdowns, a common reaction to sensory overload. To compensate difficulties in social interaction with non-autistic peers, autistic people might maintain eye contact despite discomfort, use rehearsed conversational scripts, or mirror the body language and tone of others. This masking often requires an exceptional effort. It is linked with adverse mental health outcomes such as stress, autistic burnout, Some studies find that compensation strategies are seen as contributing to leading a successful and satisfactory life. However, experts caution that promoting camouflaging without addressing its psychological impacts could unintentionally cause negative mental health outcomes. A 2021 study found masking experiences between autistic and non-autistic groups were similar, but only autistic people masked autism-specific symptoms. Masking has been linked to confusion about personal identity among these individuals, who can start to have trouble distinguishing their authentic qualities from the personas they have adopted to conform. == See also ==