poster

Benefits and Challenges for Social Media Users on the Autism Spectrum

Authors:

Monica Garfield,

Pamela Wisniewski,

Xinru PageAuthors Info & Claims

CSCW '20 Companion: Companion Publication of the 2020 Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing

Pages 419 - 424

https://doi.org/10.1145/3406865.3418322

Published: 17 October 2020 Publication History

Abstract

Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) often face difficulties creating and maintaining social connections with others, which has been shown to negatively affect their well-being. Some researchers have investigated whether social media use can lead to social benefits, but with mixed results. To better understand how social media use can be beneficial and what challenges it poses, we conducted an interview study with eight adults on the Autism Spectrum. We report on the perceived benefits and real challenges participants faced when trying to engage with others through social media. Often the benefits users hope for are overshadowed by negative ramifications and safety risks that accompany their social media use. We conclude with recommendations for designing social media for neurodiverse users.

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Cited By

Cullen SJohnson EWisniewski PPage X(2024)Towards Digital Independence: Identifying the Tensions between Autistic Young Adults and Their Support Network When Mediating Social MediaProceedings of the 2024 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems10.1145/3613904.3642567(1-21)Online publication date: 11-May-2024
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3613904.3642567
Naggar A(2024)Exploring parental use of social media among autism spectrum disorder families in the UAE: perspectives and challenges in fostering social inclusionInternational Journal of Developmental Disabilities10.1080/20473869.2024.239298570:6(1092-1101)Online publication date: 14-Nov-2024
https://doi.org/10.1080/20473869.2024.2392985
Aitkenhead GFantoni SScott JBatchelor SDuncan HLlewellyn-Jones DMole CSmith OStoffel MTaylor RWhitaker KGreshake Tzovaras B(2024)How to co-create content moderation policies: the case of the AutSPACEs projectData & Policy10.1017/dap.2024.216Online publication date: 15-May-2024
https://doi.org/10.1017/dap.2024.21
Show More Cited By

Index Terms

Benefits and Challenges for Social Media Users on the Autism Spectrum
1. Human-centered computing
  1. Collaborative and social computing
    1. Collaborative and social computing systems and tools
      1. Social networking sites

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Published In

cover image ACM Conferences

CSCW '20 Companion: Companion Publication of the 2020 Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing

October 2020

559 pages

ISBN:9781450380591

DOI:10.1145/3406865

General Chairs:
Matthew Bietz
University of California, Irvine
,
Andrea Wiggins

Copyright © 2020 Owner/Author.

Permission to make digital or hard copies of part or all of this work for personal or classroom use is granted without fee provided that copies are not made or distributed for profit or commercial advantage and that copies bear this notice and the full citation on the first page. Copyrights for third-party components of this work must be honored. For all other uses, contact the Owner/Author.

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SIGCHI: ACM Special Interest Group on Computer-Human Interaction

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Association for Computing Machinery

New York, NY, United States

Publication History

Published: 17 October 2020

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Bentley Health Thought Leadership Network

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CSCW '20

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SIGCHI

CSCW '20: Computer Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing

October 17 - 21, 2020

Virtual Event, USA

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Overall Acceptance Rate 2,235 of 8,521 submissions, 26%

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CSCW '25

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sigchi

Computer-Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing

October 18 - 22, 2025

Bergen , Norway

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Cited By

Cullen SJohnson EWisniewski PPage X(2024)Towards Digital Independence: Identifying the Tensions between Autistic Young Adults and Their Support Network When Mediating Social MediaProceedings of the 2024 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems10.1145/3613904.3642567(1-21)Online publication date: 11-May-2024
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3613904.3642567
Naggar A(2024)Exploring parental use of social media among autism spectrum disorder families in the UAE: perspectives and challenges in fostering social inclusionInternational Journal of Developmental Disabilities10.1080/20473869.2024.239298570:6(1092-1101)Online publication date: 14-Nov-2024
https://doi.org/10.1080/20473869.2024.2392985
Aitkenhead GFantoni SScott JBatchelor SDuncan HLlewellyn-Jones DMole CSmith OStoffel MTaylor RWhitaker KGreshake Tzovaras B(2024)How to co-create content moderation policies: the case of the AutSPACEs projectData & Policy10.1017/dap.2024.216Online publication date: 15-May-2024
https://doi.org/10.1017/dap.2024.21
Ritzman MSubramanian R(2023)Voices from a pandemic: Understanding how young adults on the autism spectrum use computer-mediated communicationAutism10.1177/1362361323117096328:2(381-389)Online publication date: 14-Jun-2023
https://doi.org/10.1177/13623613231170963
Wang YRingland K(2023)Weaving Autistic Voices on TikTok: Utilizing Co-Hashtag Networks for NetnographyCompanion Publication of the 2023 Conference on Computer Supported Cooperative Work and Social Computing10.1145/3584931.3606995(254-258)Online publication date: 14-Oct-2023
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3584931.3606995
Barta KPyle CAndalibi N(2023)Toward a Feminist Social Media Vulnerability TaxonomyProceedings of the ACM on Human-Computer Interaction10.1145/35795337:CSCW1(1-37)Online publication date: 16-Apr-2023
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3579533
Barros Pena BKoteyko NVan Driel MDelgado AVines J(2023)"My Perfect Platform Would Be Telepathy" - Reimagining the Design of Social Media with Autistic AdultsProceedings of the 2023 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems10.1145/3544548.3580673(1-16)Online publication date: 19-Apr-2023
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3544548.3580673
Osuna ATagavi DSabini KVernon T(2023)Socialization, education and learning for the internet (SELFI): development and pilot of a social media skills program for autistic adultsAdvances in Autism10.1108/AIA-12-2022-00579:4(402-417)Online publication date: 8-Aug-2023
https://doi.org/10.1108/AIA-12-2022-0057
Osuna ASabini KYamane EFlores JPierce NLemus-Valle JVernon T(2023)Socialization, Education, and Learning for the Internet (SELFI): A Pilot RCT of a Social Media Skills Group Program for Autistic AdultsJournal of Autism and Developmental Disorders10.1007/s10803-023-06100-954:10(3639-3656)Online publication date: 16-Aug-2023
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-023-06100-9
Race LJames AHayward AEl-Amin KPatterson MMershon T(2021)Designing Sensory and Social Tools for Neurodivergent Individuals in Social Media EnvironmentsProceedings of the 23rd International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility10.1145/3441852.3476546(1-5)Online publication date: 17-Oct-2021
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3441852.3476546

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