Understanding Autistic Identity Disclosure in Higher Education

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Hodges-Fulton, M. R. & Monahan, J. (2025). Understanding Autistic Identity Disclosure in Higher Education. Autism in Adulthood, 7(4), 421-434. https://doi.org/10.1089/aut.2024.0086

Publication date: 3 Feb 2025 Added to AutiHub: 22 Sep 2026 Type: Article Article language: English
Publisher source (DOI) Full text OpenAlex source

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Authors

Publication authors
2
Publication authors identified as autistic
1 / 2 (50.0%)
  1. Michaela R. Hodges-Fulton
  2. Jessica Monahan *

Abstract

Background: As autistic students enter postsecondary education, they must decide if and when to disclose their autistic identities. The existing literature on this topic either focuses on students with disabilities more broadly or is not the exclusive focus of the study. Given the need to disclose in order to receive accommodations and the inherent risk involved in disclosing a marginalized identity, it is imperative to understand what factors lead to an autistic college student’s willingness to disclose. Methods: After an extensive literature review on disclosure, we created a survey to better understand autistic college students’ disclosure thoughts and behaviors. Researchers developed the survey and obtained feedback on item clarity and importance from autistic college students. We distributed the survey through national networks, resulting in a sample of 123. We analyzed the data using descriptive statistics, ordinal logistic regression, and Mann–Whitney U tests. We analyzed open-ended data using an inductive thematic approach. Results: The sample was diverse in gender and sexuality, and the majority had co-occurring mental health conditions. Being autistic was an important part of the student’s identity, but they expressed worries about negative perceptions or impacts from disclosure. Most students wished they could disclose without consequences. Willingness to disclose to a professor at the beginning of the semester was predicted by how safe a student felt it would be to disclose at their university and the necessity of accommodations. Cisgender, heterosexual students, and white students were more likely to disclose than LGBTQIA+ students and students of color, respectively. In open-ended responses, students discussed concerns about disclosure and when they feel safe to disclose. Conclusion: We provide questions for students to consider when contemplating disclosure and recommendations for higher education professionals and future research.

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 07:50.

Cited references
61
With a DOI
40
Without a DOI, from raw bibliography text
21
9 / 61 (14.8%) cited references include at least one author identified as autistic.
References with data to complete
11 / 61 (18.0%)
References with detected author names
50 / 61 (82.0%)
Without detected author names
11
Without a structured title
11
Without a stable identifier
21
References with raw author names still to review
11
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
140
From DOI or external metadata
140
From validated raw bibliography text
0
Raw names already validated
0
Raw names still to review
11
66 / 140 (47.1%) names are linked to an author already present in AutiHub. 74 / 140 (52.9%) names are not yet linked.
Names linked to a person identified as autistic
11 / 140 (7.9%)
Calculated across all author names detected in the cited bibliography. Among names linked to an author already present in AutiHub: 11 / 66 (16.7%). Distinct people identified as autistic: 10 / 133 (7.5%).
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