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Previous research has identified an association between masking and mental health for autistic people. However, the direction of causality and mechanisms involved in this relationship are not well understood. This qualitative study aimed to investigate autistic teenagers’ experiences of masking, mental health and how the two develop and interact.

Twenty autistic teenagers took part in a semi-structured interview. The interviews were analysed using Reflexive Thematic Analysis.

From the analysis, one theme was identified to conceptualise masking as described by participants. Five more inter-related themes were identified, each involved both in the relationship between masking and mental health and conversely in the relationship between authenticity and mental health. Participants described how masking and mental health both influence each other, and both are influenced by social …