People who show higher levels of certain autistic traits, even without a diagnosis, may be more prone to everyday stress, according to new research from Loughborough University. The findings offer insight into how personality and communication styles may combine to shape people’s experiences of everyday pressures.
The study surveyed 176 adults from the UK general population between December 2024 and February 2025, using three well established questionnaires. These assessed non clinical autistic traits, personality characteristics, and perceived stress levels over the previous month. The findings were published in Psychreg Journal of Psychology.
Researchers found that two specific autistic traits, difficulty with pragmatic language and a tendency towards rigidity, were associated with higher levels of perceived stress. Pragmatic language refers to social communication skills, such as knowing how to take turns in conversation or use language appropriately in context. Rigidity reflects a preference for routine and difficulty adapting to change.
A third trait, aloofness, which relates to reduced interest in socialising, was not found to independently predict stress once other factors were accounted for, even though it was linked to stress on its own.
Personality also played a significant role. Neuroticism, a tendency towards anxiety and emotional reactivity, was strongly associated with higher stress levels. Conscientiousness, on the other hand, appeared to offer some protection, suggesting that organised, goal driven behaviour may help buffer against daily pressures.
Interestingly, traits often thought to guard against stress, such as extraversion, agreeableness and openness, did not show a significant protective effect once autistic traits and other personality factors were considered together. The researchers suggest this may be because people with higher autistic traits tend to have less access to social support, which usually underpins the stress buffering effects of those particular traits.
The study also found that all three non clinical autistic traits were associated with higher neuroticism and lower levels of extraversion, openness, agreeableness, and conscientiousness. This pattern mirrors previous findings among people diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, supporting the idea that autistic traits exist across a broad spectrum rather than within a strictly defined clinical category.
The researchers, Victoria Wright and Laura Jenkins, say their findings provide a clearer picture of how subtle autistic traits may interact with personality to influence stress in everyday life, rather than only among clinical populations. They note that the study was conducted after the pandemic, addressing a gap in previous research that may have been influenced by pandemic related stress and difficulties with coping.
The authors acknowledge several limitations, including a predominantly female sample and the exclusion of factors such as social support and mental health history, both of which could influence the results. They call for future studies to explore these potential mediating factors further using more representative samples.
The research adds to a growing body of evidence suggesting that even mild, non clinical autistic traits may shape how people experience and cope with the pressures of daily life.
