ASD and extreme political beliefs

Post Reply New Topic

Has anyone else noticed extreme political beliefs (in either direction) are common in the ASD crowd?

If so, what are your theories on why?

On a different online community, a neurotypical claimed the ASD crowd is more prone to brainwash (and that's her explanation of why a lot of us hold extreme political beliefs). I call BS on her explanation.

Here's what I think the explanation is (for why a lot of us hold extreme political beliefs): We're more likely (compared to the general population) to get victimized (because we come across as easy targets).

Victimization doesn't necessarily mean crime victims either (although it certainly includes crime victims).

Here are the ways in which ASD victimization could lead to extreme political beliefs:

If we get victimized by a criminal, we might develop far right authoritarian beliefs (in other words, create a society where criminals are scared into leaving us alone).

If we get treated poorly by a boss because of our ASD mannerisms, we might develop far left pro-worker beliefs. On a related note, ASD adults are far less likely than neurotypical adults to be financially independent (which could lead to us developing the far left belief that the government should help us, or our jobs should pay better, so we can become free of our parents).

If we get treated poorly for our race, we might develop racist beliefs (Racist beliefs can either be far right or far left, depending on your ethnicity, and depending on which ethnicity/ethnicities you're racist against).

If an ASD woman falls victim to sex abuse (which happens to the female ASD population at a higher rate than the general female population), she might develop far left misandrist beliefs.

If an ASD man has bad luck with the ladies (which happens to the male ASD population at a higher rate than the general male population), he might develop far right misogynistic beliefs.

Lastly, one more factor to explain why the ASD crowd is more likely to hold extreme political beliefs: Even though neurotypicals can get victimized too, ASD makes us hyper-focus on one thing. So if we get victimized, we're more likely to make it our lifelong mission to correct the injustice (whereas a neurotypical is more likely to brush it off and move on if victimized)

I think you're pretty much on the money. Another factor is that NTs are more likely to experience group identity through socializing. So, for example, a NT part of a religious group can feel that group identity by getting to know everyone, laughing with them, maybe hugging, etc. Many autistics struggle socially and even those who don't tend to be somewhat socially distant. This could cause them to fixate on the actual beliefs or purpose of a group to feel group identity.

You see this in a lot of things, religion, politics, even hobbies. NTs are more likely to be surface level fans or devotees. They know a little about the subject but are really about the group experience of the subject. Autistics are more likely to be experts on whatever it is. For us, it's more so about the subject itself, while for NTs, it's about the communal bonding over the subject.

It seems like folks on the spectrum are more prone to black and white thinking than the general population, so I think that could play a role in people’s political alignment. My sister-in-law who’s on the spectrum is a good example of that. She would never question the extreme religious beliefs she was raised with because it seems to be how her brain works. With her, things are either right or wrong; there are no gray areas or extenuating circumstances.

On the other hand, I’m on the spectrum and started questioning stuff as a young child. I always wanted to know why such and such was a rule and was bothered by unfairness and injustice. My thinking: why go along with the status quo when something else may be better?

With all that being said, I think the word “extreme” is overused in this context. It seems to be a common ad hominem attack when people don’t like someone’s political beliefs. I’m firmly on the left but wouldn’t consider myself extreme or misandrist despite experiencing a lot of abuse from men. I am especially interested in women’s and LGBTQ+ issues, but I’m concerned about equality and human rights for everyone.

On the topic of human rights, obviously human rights are important.

That being said, some criminals are irredeemable. By supporting the human rights of an irredeemable criminal (for example, by advocating for early release), you end up hurting the inevitable future victims of the irredeemable criminal.

I place the human rights of the victims over the human rights of the irredeemable criminal.

Violent criminals forfeit their rights.
I'm not including them and nor am I a bleeding heart.

I guess hating politics and politicians so much it hurts and wishing they'd all just drop dead, even though that would likely make everything worse, is an extreme political belief.

Also I've never voted for anyone or anything in my life, and I'd be clueless since they all look like idiots. Yeah, "look like".

I learned that politicians are bad because they lie and break promises constantly even as a small child. The first political joke I remember hearing was "How do you know a politician's lying? When his lips are moving!" And then there was an episode of The Muppet Show where comedian Phyllis Diller told Fozzie he had to learn to lie in his jokes, such as making up a spouse when he wasn't married. That way, if he didn't make it as a comedian, he could make it into politics.

I wouldn’t want anything bad to happen to people in prison who abused me. I’d probably feel guilty about it if it did, not that it’d be my fault. I’m just sayin’. Apart from more human concerns, prison reform/more humane practices are more effective.

A somewhat abstract concern that I have: I think that dehumanizing people isn’t good for anyone. IMO, we should be moving towards a more empathetic society.

I don’t think I’d mind violent criminals having good times in prison to some extent as long as they are away from those they could harm.

On the topic of efficacy in more humane settings: