Autistic young people usually have a very ‘black and white’ or literal way of understanding the people and world around them. This means that we tend to be trusting, and to believe what we hear and see. This can make it difficult for us to interpret what the people around us – in person or on screens – are thinking, feeling, doing or trying to communicate.

Autistic young people’s brains are usually wired to notice one thing – or a small, related group of things – at any one time. Rapidly shifting our attention from one thing to another or focusing on more than one thing at once is very difficult. In autism this is called being ‘monotropic’.

For young people growing up online, exposure to pornography has become normalised. Pornography has become a default sexuality educator, with serious implications for young people’s capacity to develop a sexuality that is safe, respectful, mutual and consenting. For autistic young people, pornography’s influence can be even more challenging.

If we want to help young people to build relationships and sexualities that are respectful, safe, mutually pleasurable and fully consenting, then we must tackle porn’s influence.

Developed and delivered by autism expert Dr Wenn Lawson and pornography expert Maree Crabbe, our resources are designed to support parents and carers of autistic young people and the teachers and other professionals who work with them to understand the interactions between autism, sexuality, technology and pornography, and how we can support autistic young people to navigate respectful, consenting and safe sexuality and relationships.

Autistic young people deserve access to sexuality education that makes sense to them - which is why we’ve created resources to support autistic young people and their parents, carers, teachers and workers to safely navigate the influence of pornography.

Autism is a developmental difference impacting the way individuals process, connect with and experience the world we all share. Because of these differences, autistic young people may need a different kind of support than other young people to navigate life’s challenges.

Understanding monotropism is important for supporting autistic young people on issues like technology, puberty, sexuality and pornography’s influence. Understanding monotropism can also help you work out the best ways to engage the autistic young people in your life.

Autistic young people have told us that parents, carers and workers need to be addressing the impacts of pornography on the young people in their care. Here’s what a few of the young people and experts we interviewed had to say.

Porn Is Not the Norm is a new initiative that aims to prevent pornography’s harms to autistic young people by equipping them and their parents, carers, teachers and workers to understand pornography’s prevalence and impacts, and how they can safely navigate healthy and respectful relationships and sexuality in this context.

Autistic young people need tailored support to navigate pornography’s influence and parents, carers, schools and workers all have important roles to play.