Attitudes towards autistic characters in mainstream series and connections with viewers’ own characteristics: an exploratory study

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Purpose This exploratory study aims to investigate viewers’ attitudes towards series with autistic characters. In recent years, there has been a noticeable increase in the depiction of autistic characters or characters displaying autistic symptoms in mainstream series. While research calls for a more realistic portrayal of these characters, little is known about viewers’ attitudes towards the portrayal of autistic characters. Design/methodology/approach Using an online questionnaire, the authors collected data from 348 young adults regarding their media consumption habits related to 15 different series featuring autistic characters. Additionally, the authors used an emotion recognition task (ERT). Findings The results show that participants expressed a stronger preference for series depicting characters with savant abilities compared to more “realistic” portrayals of autism. However, participants with lower scores in the ERT tended to watch series without savantism significantly more often. The findings revealed no significant differences based on sex in terms of viewership or preference for these series. These results suggest that biased or stigmatising portrayals may in part be influenced by viewers’ inclination towards savant characters. This study sheds light on viewers’ perceptions of television series featuring autistic characters, revealing potential preferences and the influence of certain character traits. Research limitations/implications Because of the exploratory nature of this study, further research is needed to enhance our understanding of the impact of media portrayals on attitudes towards autism. Originality/value The results suggest that biased or stigmatising portrayals may in part be influenced by viewers’ inclination towards savant characters. This study sheds light on viewers’ perceptions of television series featuring autistic characters, revealing potential preferences and the influence of certain character traits.