Coined by autism researcher Damian E. M. Milton in 2012 in a journal article.[1]
doubleempathyproblem (uncountable)
- (psychology) The phenomenon ofautistic andnonautistic people mutually failing to understand each other due tocognitive differences in expressing and processingemotion.
2018, Michael James,Forest School and Autism: A Practical Guide[1], page37:Autistic people's difficulties with communication combined with the 'double empathy problem' can lead to assumptions being made by staff about the people they are teaching or supporting.
2020, Karen Guldberg,Developing Excellence in Autism Practice: Making a Difference in Education,unnumbered page:Rather, such difficulties are reciprocal, so a 'double empathy' problem exists.
2021, Felicity Sedgewick, Laura Hull, Helen Ellis,Autism and Masking: How and Why People Do It, and the Impact It Can Have[2], page163:In contrast to the old (and disproven) idea of autistic people lacking empathy, thedouble empathy problem suggests that non-autistic people often lack empathy towards autistic people, and this might be the cause of many difficulties experienced by autistic people.
