Perception of the Portrayal of Autism in Netflix's Atypical Within the Autism Community

This publication is included in the Autistic Autism Scholarship Project. one author of this publication is identified as autistic in the project.

About the autistic author marker

Metadata sources used for this reference

OpenAlex Crossref OpenCitations
Learn more about the sources used

Jones, S. C., Trott, E., Gordon, C. S., & Milne, L. (2022). Perception of the Portrayal of Autism in Netflix's Atypical Within the Autism Community. Autism in Adulthood, 5(1), 76-85. https://doi.org/10.1089/aut.2022.0013

Publication date: 8 Nov 2022 Added to AutiHub: 6 Jul 2026 Type: Article Article language: English
Publisher source (DOI) Full text OpenAlex source

This publication is integrated into AutiHub through:

Authors

Publication authors
4
Publication authors identified as autistic
1 / 4 (25.0%)
  1. Sandra C. Jones *
  2. Emma Trott
  3. Chloe S. Gordon
  4. Lisa Milne

Abstract

Background: Fictional portrayals of autism play a role in raising awareness, shaping knowledge, and influencing attitudes toward autism. However, the accuracy of these portrayals is a topic of debate. Limited research has been conducted with the autism community regarding their perceptions of fictional portrayals of autism. This study aimed to explore autistic people's perceptions of the accuracy, educational benefits, and impact of Atypical, a Netflix comedy drama series focused on the experiences of an autistic protagonist. Methods: Participants were 77 members of the autism community (autistic N = 65, parent/partner N = 12), recruited via social media. Participants completed a cross-sectional predominantly qualitative survey. We undertook descriptive statistical analyses on the quantitative data and used a reflexive thematic analysis approach to analyze the qualitative data. Results: The majority of participants described Sam's portrayal as accurate, emphasizing that it was accurate as one example of autism. Family members appeared more likely to perceive Atypical as having informative benefit and being likely to improve attitudes toward autism than were autistic people. The primary concerns identified were the stereotypical representation of a popular media image of autism, the lack of diversity, and the depiction of autism as a burden or challenge for the protagonist and his family. Conclusions: This study builds on previous research on the portrayal of autism in entertainment media by investigating the perception of the autism community regarding one such fictional portrayal. It identifies that for entertainment media to better represent the lived experience of autistic people and improve community understanding of autism, there is a need for increased diversity of portrayals and for the involvement of autistic people in the development and production process.

Bibliography cited by this reference

Cited references are imported from external metadata sources when they are available. The list may be partial.

Cited bibliography overview

These indicators describe the bibliography cited by this publication. An author name is counted each time it appears in one cited reference, so the same person can be counted more than once. Names not yet linked to an author already present in AutiHub are treated as unknown, not as non-autistic. Last computed: 2 Oct 2026 07:51.

Cited references
24
With a DOI
17
Without a DOI, from raw bibliography text
7
0 / 24 (0.0%) cited references include at least one author identified as autistic.
References with data to complete
0 / 24 (0.0%)
References with detected author names
24 / 24 (100.0%)
Without detected author names
0
Without a structured title
0
Without a stable identifier
5
References with raw author names still to review
0
References with external metadata lookup issues
0
These indicators apply to cited references displayed on this page, after technical duplicates have been merged. A reference without a DOI can still support author statistics when a title and author names are available.
Author names detected in the cited bibliography
44
From DOI or external metadata
44
From validated raw bibliography text
0
Raw names already validated
0
Raw names still to review
0
12 / 44 (27.3%) names are linked to an author already present in AutiHub. 32 / 44 (72.7%) names are not yet linked.
Names linked to a person identified as autistic
0 / 44 (0.0%)
Calculated across all author names detected in the cited bibliography. Among names linked to an author already present in AutiHub: 0 / 12 (0.0%). Distinct people identified as autistic: 0 / 40 (0.0%).
  1. Joo-Young Lee , Zhuoheng Deng (2020). Atypical: A Novel Portrayal of Individuals With Autism Spectrum Disorder . American Journal of Psychiatry Residents' Journal, 15(3), 20-20. American Psychiatric Association Publishing.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1176/appi.ajp-rj.2020.150309 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W3010118760
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  2. T. Franklin Waddell , S. Shyam Sundar (2020). Bandwagon effects in social television: How audience metrics related to size and opinion affect the enjoyment of digital media . Computers in Human Behavior, 107, 106270. Elsevier BV.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1016/j.chb.2020.106270 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2998860273
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  3. Darold A. Treffert (2014). Savant Syndrome: Realities, Myths and Misconceptions . Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 44(3), 564-571. Springer Science and Business Media LLC.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1007/s10803-013-1906-8 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W1975927285
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  4. Anders Nordahl-Hansen (2017). Atypical: a typical portrayal of autism? The Lancet Psychiatry, 4(11), 837-838. Elsevier BV.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1016/s2215-0366(17)30397-8 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2765620445
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  5. James E A Hughes , Jamie Ward , Elin Gruffydd , Simon Baron-Cohen , P. Smith , Carrie T. Allison et al. (2018). Savant syndrome has a distinct psychological profile in autism . Molecular Autism, 9(1), 53-53. Springer Science and Business Media LLC.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1186/s13229-018-0237-1 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2896743714
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  6. Virginia Braun , Victoria Clarke (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology . Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77-101. Informa UK Limited.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1191/1478088706qp063oa OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W1979290264
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  7. Anders Nordahl-Hansen , Roald A. Øien , Sue Fletcher-Watson (2018). Pros and Cons of Character Portrayals of Autism on TV and Film . Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 48(2), 635-636. Springer Science and Business Media LLC.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1007/s10803-017-3390-z OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2769209901
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  8. Abigail Zuger (2018). Television’s The Good Doctor Raises Good Questions . JAMA, 319(18), 1848. American Medical Association (AMA).
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1001/jama.2018.4665 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2800023420
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  9. Avery E. Holton (2013). What’s Wrong With Max? Parenthood and the Portrayal of Autism Spectrum Disorders . Journal of Communication Inquiry, 37(1), 45-63. SAGE Publications.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1177/0196859912472507 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2079081006
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  10. Poe PS (2016). “She's a little different”: Autism-spectrum disorders in primetime TV dramas . ETC, 73(4), 291.
    Type: Other
    Crossref
  11. David W. Eccles , Güler Arsal (2017). The think aloud method: what is it and how do I use it? Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health, 9(4), 514-531. Informa UK Limited.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1080/2159676x.2017.1331501 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2618362327
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  12. Virginia Braun , Victoria Clarke (2019). Reflecting on reflexive thematic analysis . Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health, 11(4), 589-597. Informa UK Limited.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1080/2159676x.2019.1628806 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2950504429
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  13. Anders Nordahl-Hansen , Magnus Tøndevold , Sue Fletcher-Watson (2018). Mental health on screen: A DSM-5 dissection of portrayals of autism spectrum disorders in film and TV . Psychiatry Research, 262, 351-353. Elsevier BV.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2017.08.050 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2748306184
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  14. Michelle Dean , Anders Nordahl-Hansen (2022). A review of research studying film and television representations of ASD . Review Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 9(4), 470-479. Springer Science and Business Media LLC.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1007/s40489-021-00273-8 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W3173694476
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  15. Sierra Wolff (2018). “Because He Is Different”: Shifts in Discourse and the Increasing Presence of Autism in Fictional Television . UWM Digital Commons (University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee).
    Type: Article OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2952083473
    Crossref OpenAlex
  16. Stephanie C. Stern , Jennifer L. Barnes (2019). Brief Report: Does Watching The Good Doctor Affect Knowledge of and Attitudes Toward Autism? Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 49(6), 2581-2588. Springer Science and Business Media LLC.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1007/s10803-019-03911-7 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2912961512
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  17. Caroline Treweek , Chantelle Wood , Jilly Martin , Megan Freeth (2019). Autistic people’s perspectives on stereotypes: An interpretative phenomenological analysis . Autism, 23(3), 759-769. SAGE Publications.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1177/1362361318778286 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2802267269
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  18. Jules Morgan (2019). Has autism found a place in mainstream TV? The Lancet Neurology, 18(2), 143-144. Elsevier BV.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1016/s1474-4422(18)30236-9 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2808181052
    Crossref OpenAlex OpenCitations
  19. Stark IS (2020). Representation of Autism in Popular Media: Rhetorical Disability in the Good Doctor . Representation of Autism in Popular Media: Rhetorical Disability in the Good Doctor.
    Type: Other
    Crossref
  20. Stern SC (2020). Using Popular Media to Change Attitudes and Bolster Knowledge About Autism Spectrum Disorder . Using Popular Media to Change Attitudes and Bolster Knowledge About Autism Spectrum Disorder.
    Type: Other
    Crossref
  21. Yuwei Zhong (2020). Explaining the Effects of Vicarious Contact in an Entertainment Television Program about Autism . SHAREOK (University of Oklahoma).
    Type: Article OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W3040757031
    Crossref OpenAlex
  22. Barker C (2016). Research Methods in Clinical Psychology: An Introduction for Students and Practitioners . Research Methods in Clinical Psychology: An Introduction for Students and Practitioners.
    Type: Other
    Crossref
  23. Stephanie C. Stern (2024). Using Popular Media to Change Attitudes and Bolster Knowledge About Autism Spectrum Disorder . Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 54(11), 3975-3991. Springer Science and Business Media LLC.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1007/s10803-023-06120-5 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W3134854799
    OpenAlex
  24. Cardon T (2016). Fictional narratives about individuals with autism spectrum disorder: Focus group analysis and insight . Reading Horizons, 55(3), 1.
    Type: Other
    Crossref