‘Here comes trouble’: autism and gender performance

When one thinks of gender identity and its formation there has long been a tense discussion between those who see gendered behaviour as highly dependent on one’s biological makeup and those who would see gender as primarily a social identity. The first approach has had a significant impact on how conceptualisations of autism have developed, with autism traditionally seen as a ‘disorder’ impacting on young males at a far higher rate than females. This tradition however has led to a cultural bias in diagnostic practice with many women not being referred for assessment. In parallel to this development has been critique of such a biologically ‘essentialist’ approach to gender from feminist scholars such as Judith Butler (1990; 1993). In this chapter, the theories of Butler and those of sociologist Erving Goffman (1959, 1963) are drawn upon to explore how gender is ‘performed’ in a social context and how the performances of gendered identities of autistic people can be seen as subversive of traditional social expectations.