“What’s the point of having friends?”: Reformulating Notions of the Meaning of Friends and Friendship among Autistic People

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

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Bertilsdotter Rosqvist, H., Brownlow, C., & O’Dell, L. (2015). “What’s the point of having friends?”: Reformulating Notions of the Meaning of Friends and Friendship among Autistic People. Disability Studies Quarterly, 35(4). https://doi.org/10.18061/dsq.v35i4.3254

Publication date: 10 Nov 2015 Added to AutiHub: 4 Jul 2026 Type: Article Article language: English
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Authors

Publication authors
3
Publication authors identified as autistic
1 / 3 (33.3%)
  1. Hannah Bertilsdotter Rosqvist *
  2. Charlotte Brownlow
  3. Lindsay O’Dell

Abstract

In this paper we discuss the notion of 'autistic friendship'. Drawing on articles published in the Swedish advocacy magazine Empowerment, written for and by autistic people, a thematic analysis explores two interrelated themes: the meaning and performance of friendship in non-autistic (NT) and autistic (AS) worlds and the meaning of space in social interaction and community. Articles published in the magazine frequently discuss autistic only spaces as safe places in which to make friends with other autistic people and also in which to perhaps learn how to manage social interactions with the dominant non-autistic (NT) culture.

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 07:53.

Cited references
20
With a DOI
20
Without a DOI, from raw bibliography text
0
2 / 20 (10.0%) cited references include at least one author identified as autistic.
References with data to complete
1 / 20 (5.0%)
References with detected author names
19 / 20 (95.0%)
Without detected author names
1
Without a structured title
0
Without a stable identifier
0
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
43
From DOI or external metadata
43
From validated raw bibliography text
0
Raw names already validated
0
Raw names still to review
0
7 / 43 (16.3%) names are linked to an author already present in AutiHub. 36 / 43 (83.7%) names are not yet linked.
Names linked to a person identified as autistic
2 / 43 (4.7%)
Calculated across all author names detected in the cited bibliography. Among names linked to an author already present in AutiHub: 2 / 7 (28.6%). Distinct people identified as autistic: 2 / 42 (4.8%).
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    AutiHub · Autistic Autism Scholarship Project OpenAlex
  2. Jill Locke , Eric H. Ishijima , CONNIE KASARI , Nancy London (2010). Loneliness, friendship quality and the social networks of adolescents with high‐functioning autism in an inclusive school setting . Journal of Research in Special Educational Needs, 10(2), 74-81. Wiley.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1111/j.1471-3802.2010.01148.x OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W1762001202
    OpenAlex
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    OpenAlex
  4. Roy Richard Grinker (2010). Commentary: On Being Autistic, and Social . Ethos, 38(1), 172-178. Wiley.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1111/j.1548-1352.2010.01087.x OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W1966658499
    OpenAlex
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    OpenAlex
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    OpenAlex
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    Type: Article DOI: 10.1016/j.emospa.2008.08.003 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2057087773
    OpenAlex
  8. Robert J. Kruse (2002). Social spaces of little people: The experiences of the Jamisons . Social & Cultural Geography, 3(2), 175-191. Informa UK Limited.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1080/14649360220133934 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2057257362
    OpenAlex
  9. Sara Ryan , Ulla Räisänen (2008). “It's like you are just a spectator in this thing”: Experiencing social life the ‘aspie’ way . Emotion, Space and Society, 1(2), 135-143. Elsevier BV.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1016/j.emospa.2009.02.001 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2077465873
    OpenAlex
  10. Charlotte Brownlow (2010). Re-presenting Autism: The Construction of ‘NT Syndrome’ . Journal of Medical Humanities, 31(3), 243-255. Springer Science and Business Media LLC.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1007/s10912-010-9114-4 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2085538644
    OpenAlex
  11. Thomas J. Berndt (2002). Friendship Quality and Social Development . Current Directions in Psychological Science, 11(1), 7-10. SAGE Publications.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1111/1467-8721.00157 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2101714678
    OpenAlex
  12. Gael I. Orsmond , Marty Wyngaarden Krauss , Marsha Mailick Seltzer (2004). Peer Relationships and Social and Recreational Activities Among Adolescents and Adults with Autism . Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 34(3), 245-256. Springer Science and Business Media LLC.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1023/b:jadd.0000029547.96610.df OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2115711376
    OpenAlex
  14. Fred Frankel , Cynthia Whitham (2011). Parent-assisted group treatment for friendship problems of children with autism spectrum disorders . Brain Research, 1380, 240-245. Elsevier BV.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2010.09.047 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2134275253
    OpenAlex
  15. Yorkys Santana GonzáLez , Digno Silot Moreno , Barry H. Schneider (2004). Friendship Expectations of Early Adolescents in Cuba and Canada . Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 35(4), 436-445. SAGE Publications.
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    OpenAlex
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    Type: Article DOI: 10.1080/09687590802535410 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2159962068
    OpenAlex
  17. Catherine L. Bagwell , Sarah E. Bender , Cristina L. Andreassi , Tracy L. Kinoshita , Staci A. Montarello , Jason G. Muller (2005). Friendship quality and perceived relationship changes predict psychosocial adjustment in early adulthood . Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 22(2), 235-254. SAGE Publications.
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    OpenAlex
  18. (2013). Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th Edition . American Psychiatric Publishing, Inc.
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    OpenAlex
  19. Willard W. Hartup (1996). The Company They Keep: Friendships and Their Developmental Significance . Child Development, 67(1), 1. Oxford University Press (OUP).
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  20. Yuriy V. Karpov (2003). Development Through the Lifespan . In Vygotsky's Educational Theory in Cultural Context (pp. 138-155). Cambridge University Press.
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