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Study: Playing D&D helps autistic players in social interactions

"I can make a character quite different from how I interact with people in real life."

Since its introduction in the 1970s, Dungeons & Dragons has become one of the most influential tabletop role-playing games(TRPGs) in popular culture, featuring heavily in Stranger Things, for example, and spawning a blockbuster movie released last year. “There are many myths and misconceptions about autism, with some of the biggest suggesting that those with it aren’t socially motivated, or don’t have any imagination," said co-author Gray Atherton, a psychologist at the University of Plymouth. " It's essentially a case study with a small sample size—just eight participants—and qualitative in nature, since the post-play analysis focused on semistructured interviews with each player after the conclusion of the online campaign, the better to highlight their individual voices.

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