Mutual Understanding: The Role of Neurotype-Matching and Perceptions in Communication Effectiveness

The purpose of this study was to investigate the communication success of partners with matched or mixed neurotypes and to explore how these differences influence the identification of neurotypes during interactions.

Thirty-three autistic adults and 37 non-autistic adults were paired in either a matched-neurotype or mixed-neurotype condition and were not told their assigned condition. The pairs completed two structured communication tasks (20 questions and tangram identification), for which accuracy and efficiency of completion were measured. Participants completed a survey about rapport in their interactions and their perception of their partner's neurotype.

Matched autistic pairs communicated significantly more accurately (p = .037) but significantly less efficiently (p = .047) than matched non-autistic pairs. Mixed-neurotype pairs reported significantly lower rapport than the matched-neurotype pair conditions (p = .023), which did not differ significantly from one another. Matched autistic pairs were significantly more accurate (p = .009) and more confident (p = .035) in their guesses about their partner's neurotype than participants in other conditions. However, participants' guesses were not significantly related to their communication success in the experimental tasks.

Neurotype-matching is associated with stronger rapport development and greater communication success, suggesting that autistic and non-autistic communication styles differ. Autistic participants demonstrated strengths in perceiving others' neurotypes, but communication success factors were not associated with neurotype perceptions.