Masking & Stimming
Stimming was recently discussed in the Middletown Centre for Autism research bulletin titled Neurodiversity (Bulletin issue number 40). The following information about stimming comes from research by Kapp and colleagues (2019)
Negative Historical Opinion
Research has uncovered how language used to talk about stimming has been largely negative (for example: suggesting it is under voluntary control; ascribing asocial or antisocial motivations to it).
Research has found that parents may opt for interventions that target stimming because it is a noticeable and stigmatised behaviour. Therapies are still being suggested to ‘treat’ stimming despite limited evidence relating to efficacy or appropriateness. In recent years, autistic people have started to be included in discussions about stimming. Autism activists have suggested that stimming may act as a type of coping mechanism leading them to oppose attempts to stop non-injurious stimming. They have also questioned the impact that preventing stimming may have in relation to bodily autonomy.
Suppressing Stimming Impacts Benefits
Autistic adults define stimming as a repetitive, usually rhythmic behaviour expressed through body movements and also vocalisations. Many people report they experience stimming as voluntary and unconscious, at least at the beginning of the behaviour.
Most people state that an emotional state was consistently linked to the need to stim. Some discussed stimming in response to a negative emotional state such as anxiety, while others described stimming in response to a positive emotional state such as excitement.
Participants expressed an awareness of the negative reactions that observers have in response to stimming. They suggested that responses to stimming had made them feel anger, nervousness, frustration, belittlement, shame and confusion. Many participants stated that they wished to avoid negative attention and sought to suppress or conceal stims in public. Some concealed their stims from view as much as possible, while others shared that they had felt the need to adapt stims into more socially acceptable behaviours that provided them with similar physical feedback. The choice to suppress, minimise or conceal stims was largely based on how much stimming behaviour was understood by those who might view it. A number of participants reported internalised stigmatisation, meaning that they had negative feelings about being seen to stim even though they were aware of the utility of their stims.
By suppressing or minimising stims due to feeling self-conscious, autistic children and young people may miss out on the suggested benefits of stimming such as self-regulation and contained emotions. This research particularly highlights participants’ calls for more understanding and acceptance of stimming.