Sexuality and affectivity in people withautism spectrum disorders: Perspectives of family members and professionals

Abstract

The collaboration between parents and professionals is the ideal context to provide sexual education to people with Autism Spectrum Disorder, however, it is important that both have the knowledge and attitudes to adequately deal with these issues. The objective of this study is to know the attitudes that Spanishspeaking family members and professionals have towards the sexuality and affectivity of people with autism spectrum disorder; through a comparative quantitative study, applying a sociodemographic questionnaire and a questionnaire on attitudes towards sexuality in people with autism spectrum disorder, to a sample of 158 relatives and professionals, as well as 158 patients with autism spectrum disorder. The results reveal that the relatives presented less conservative attitudes towards sexuality than the professionals, although no significant differences between these attitudes were recognized. It is concluded that it is important to improve the sexual education of people with autism spectrum disorder, from the improvement of attitudes towards their professional and family approach.