Board Game Helping Autistic People Open Up
- clive579
- Jun 3
- 2 min read

A board game in which players use images on cards could enable autistic people to create stories about their condition.
Research published by the University of Plymouth shows the game Dixit offers people with autism a means to explain their thoughts and feelings.
The award-winning game produced by the French company Libellud, invites participants to select one of 84 illustrated cards which they feel matches a title suggested by the designated storyteller.
Researchers asked 35 autistic participants – split into groups of between five and eight – to place a card that they felt best described autism, and then being asked to explain the reasoning for their choices.
Analysing the responses, the researchers found the cards placed by participants covered three main themes:
Challenges – where participants chose cards that spoke to the difficulties experienced by neurodiverse people, including symptoms of autism and their effects that resulted in anxiety and exclusion;
Strengths – where participants chose cards that spoke to the unique traits of autistic people that make them excel in certain areas;
Society – through which participants highlighted how people’s perceptions of autism created a divide between autistic and neurotypical people that exacerbated any challenges they may already experience.
Based on this, the researchers say that playing Dixit could be particularly effective for autistic people since rather than having to come up independently with inspiration, participants could use the cards to evoke emotions about their condition.
They also believe it and similar games could go some way to creating a conducive environment for learning about different life experiences, bridging the gap between autistic and neurotypical people.
The study was published in Discover Psychology, and led by Dr Gray Atherton and Dr Liam Cross from the School of Psychology at the University of Plymouth.
"Sometimes it can be hard to find the words to explain something personal and complicated,” said Dr Atherton.
“That can include how what it feels to have a condition like autism, that comes with lots of stereotypes and misperceptions. Opening up about this by playing a game, and then being able to use images to support your words, may be a real breakthrough.”
Dixit was one of several games played in community groups for autistic adults across the UK as part of a larger study, also led by Dr Atherton and Dr Cross, on the connections between autism and board gaming.
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