Engineers more likely to exhibit autistic traits, study finds

University of Cambridge research links autistic traits with 'systems-thinking' mind

People who work in science, technology, engineering or mathematics (Stem) jobs are more likely to exhibit autistic traits than those in less technical professions, new research has revealed.

University of Cambridge researchers have developed a method of measuring autistic traits - characteristics of personality and behaviour that are found throughout the general population and are linked to what is seen in the clinical condition of autism - using a questionnaire called the Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ).

The AQ has been used in hundreds of previous studies, conducted in samples of a few hundred people, finding that on average, men score higher than women, and those studying a STEM degree score higher than those who do not.

On average, previous research has showed, the male AQ score was 21.6, compared to a female score of 19.0. People working in a STEM-related job had an average AQ score of 21.9 compared to a score of 18.9 for individuals working in non-STEM jobs. This suggests autistic traits are linked to both sex and to having a ‘systems-thinking’ mind.

Now, new research has tested this in the largest study to date, in 450,395 individuals. The previous sex difference and the link to STEM were both “strongly confirmed”.

The study was led by Emily Ruzich, a PhD student, and Professor Simon Baron-Cohen at the Autism Research Centre at the University of Cambridge. The huge sample size was made possible through a collaboration with the public service television broadcaster Channel 4 in the UK, which put the AQ on its website following a discussion of autism and autistic traits on its flagship health TV programme Embarrassing Bodies: Live from the Clinic. Viewers from all over the UK took the online test.

Ruzich said: “I am pleased that such big data was available to test these questions. They provide clear evidence that autistic traits are sex-linked and STEM-linked and this will encourage further research into why these associations are seen.”

Professor Baron-Cohen added: “Previous studies have found the number of autistic traits a person has is influenced by both genetic factors and prenatal testosterone levels. These may shed light on why we find males in the population on average have slightly more autistic traits than females do, and why fathers and grandfathers of children with autism are over-represented in STEM fields.”

The study was supported by the Wellcome Trust, the UK Medical Research Council (MRC), the National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) CLAHRC for the East of England, and the Autism Research Trust.