NY Post: "Increase in ASD due to expanded diagnostic criteria, improved screening tools, greater awareness"

April 3, 2026, New York Post: TikTok's convinced everyone they have autism — what's actually going on

Social media users are increasingly diagnosing themselves with autism after watching TikTok content about the neurodevelopmental condition, drawing mixed reactions from experts.

While the trend can raise awareness and build community around autism, there are concerns that much of the content is misleading or inaccurate.

And just because you have a few eccentricities in common with an influencer who has a bona fide diagnosis doesn’t mean you’re on the spectrum.

Autism affects how a person socializes, communicates, learns and behaves. Diagnoses have skyrocketed from 1 in 150 children in 2000 to 1 in 31 by 2022. And adults 26 to 34 years old experienced a 450% increase in diagnoses between 2011 and 2022.

Scientists have attributed the spike to expanded diagnostic criteria, improved screening tools and greater awareness, perhaps in part from social media. #Actuallyautistic, for one, has generated more than 900,000 TikTok posts.

But viral videos can’t actually determine if you’re autistic — even if the behaviors, feelings or fixations in them feel familiar.

“While social media can be a strong tool for increasing awareness and connection, it is not a diagnostic tool,” Emily Newton, a licensed clinical psychologist and vice president of diagnostic services at Axis for Autism, told The Post.

“We need to be mindful of the complexity involved in understanding an individual’s traits and behaviors, including the importance of clinical context,” she added.

Here’s a look at the divisive phenomenon, including the traits that are often confused for autism.

When did the trend gain steam?

Social isolation and loneliness during the COVID-19 pandemic steadily drove teens online, where they searched for identity among their peers. This led to an increase in self-diagnoses of ADHD, obsessive compulsive disorder, dissociative identity disorder, Tourette syndrome and autism.

And it’s not just young people who had a lightbulb moment — it’s adults, too.

The casual use of the term “autistic” to describe certain behaviours is demeaning to people who are actually autistic, campaigners have claimed.