Story perspectives

Autistic Adults Face Higher Sexual Victimization Odds, Study Finds

5/16/2026

Summary

Story summary

Researchers surveyed 663 U.S. adults—287 autistic, 270 non-autistic, and 106 who suspect autism—on sexual victimization.
Participants completed a 20-minute online survey for $4 using a revised 2024 questionnaire covering four victimization categories.
Autistic adults had higher odds of noncontact/illegal-act victimization while their technology-facilitated and verbal-pressure rates matched non-autistic adults.
Women faced risk, with older age increasing illegal-act and verbal-pressure incidents and sensory reactivity linking to victimization types among suspected-autism participants.

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Story summary

Researchers surveyed 663 U.S. adults—287 autistic, 270 non-autistic, and 106 who suspect autism—on sexual victimization.
Participants completed a 20-minute online survey for $4 using a revised 2024 questionnaire covering four victimization categories.
Autistic adults had higher odds of noncontact/illegal-act victimization while their technology-facilitated and verbal-pressure rates matched non-autistic adults.
Women faced risk, with older age increasing illegal-act and verbal-pressure incidents and sensory reactivity linking to victimization types among suspected-autism participants.