Accompagnement familial et autonomie sexuelle du jeune adulte avec autisme.

Abstract

This study deals with the sexual autonomy of young adults with autism by questioning the contribution of family support in this area. In the course of our observations, we found that some mothers of young adults with autism were involved in finding sexual partners for their children that they recognized the presence of sexual desires in the young adults but that at the same time they were afraid that the latter would not know how to go about it. As for the children themselves, we found that they have no control over their sexual behaviour or the ways in which they express their sexuality (they masturbate in public, touch women's bottoms and breasts as they please, tell their teachers and mistresses that they want to make love with them without any restraint). These findings highlight, on the one hand, the non-autonomous nature of the sexual lives of young adults with autism and, on the other, the inappropriate nature of their sexuality, despite the fact that it is very much present. According to Gagnon's theory of sexual scripts (1973), for a sexual act to take place, there must be a script that defines the sequence of what is to be done in a sexual act. However, this theory does not take into account people with disabilities, and in particular people with ASD who, whatever the level of severity of their disorder (level 1, level 2 or level 3), need the help of those around them in order to achieve a degree of autonomy. But parents, as their children's first educators, are not sufficiently equipped to provide the help their children need. Hence the problem of our study: the failure to take account of family support for the sexual autonomy of young adults with autism. The aim of our study was to assess the sexual autonomy of young adults with autism receiving family support. The method applied here is qualitative, more specifically clinical. Three (03) young adults with autism took part in the study. They were interviewed at the headquarters of the Maison Bleue de Julien (MBJ) association. Data were collected using observation and semi-directive interviews. They were analysed using the thematic content analysis technique. The results indicate that adaptation to sexual scripts by young adults with autism, i.e. their sexual autonomy, is favored by family support. In other words, young adults with autism achieve a certain degree of sexual autonomy when they are cared for by parents who have received family support, i.e. parents equipped with tools for supporting the sexual education of people with autism. The results of this study could be useful in the sexual education and rehabilitation of young adults with autism, to enable them to experience a fulfilled sexual life.