CAT-Q score explained: camouflaging, examples and next steps
Understand your CAT-Q total, see everyday examples of compensation, masking and assimilation, and use a reflection template to describe what helps and what takes effort.
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The score and the habits behind it
Perhaps you recognized a habit while answering CAT-Q: rehearsing a conversation, watching your expression, or working out how to join a group. The questionnaire adds up your answers about these social strategies. Its 25 items give a total from 25 to 175; higher totals reflect more camouflaging reported in your answers.
Autistic and non-autistic adults can use these strategies. CAT-Q cannot diagnose autism or burnout. What it gives you is a set of questions to return to: pick one that rang true and think about the last time you did it.
Sources: [1]
Reading 100, 120 or 145
100 is halfway between 25 and 175. You would get it by selecting the neutral option on every question, although other combinations also add up to 100. It is a mathematical midpoint, not a population average.
120 and 145 indicate more reported camouflaging than 100 on this questionnaire. A total still leaves a lot out. Someone might prepare conversations because it helps them enjoy a gathering; someone else might feel under pressure to monitor every expression. The score alone does not tell those experiences apart.
There are no established diagnostic or clinical severity cutoffs for CAT-Q. Dividing its range into low, moderate and high bands does not create them, and a research group average is not an individual diagnostic boundary. A recent research commentary also cautions against using CAT-Q scores to make diagnostic decisions.
Compensation, masking and assimilation
Compensation covers learned ways of handling an interaction, such as rehearsing possible answers or picking up useful phrases from other people. Masking involves managing what others see: your expression, posture or eye contact, for example.
Assimilation describes trying to fit into the interaction. One example is feeling that you have to perform a role to take part in a group. The emphasis is on getting through or fitting into the social situation.
These can overlap. In one conversation you might use a prepared opening, keep an eye on your expression and feel that you are playing a part. The three labels help describe aspects of that moment.
Compensation has nine questions, with scores from 9 to 63. Masking and assimilation each have eight, with scores from 8 to 56. Because the groups have different sizes, the biggest raw total need not point to your biggest difficulty. Read the questions in each group alongside the chart.
Notice what helps and what wears you out
Think about a conversation from the past week. What preparation helped you speak? What kept taking your attention while the other person was talking? A short account of one event can make the answers easier to understand.
Keep preparations that work for you. If one part feels tiring, focus on that part and any small change you would feel comfortable trying. Asking for an agenda, for example, might let you prepare without spending the whole morning guessing what will come up.
A made-up scene: a video call
Imagine joining a video call with new colleagues. Before it starts, you write down an opening sentence; that helps you get the first words out. During the call, though, you keep checking the small picture of your face, wondering whether you look interested enough. It becomes harder to listen.
When the call ends, you close the laptop and sit quietly for a while. Later, talking to a close friend takes much less preparation. Your note might read: “Having the opening sentence ready helped. Watching my expression took attention away from the conversation. I would like an agenda beforehand and a break before the next call.”
Select and copy this reflection template
Date, score, language and questionnaire version: Situation / people involved: Strategy I recognize: How it helps: Effort or after-effects I notice: When I feel more choice or less need to use it: One support or change I would like to explore:
When a conversation leaves you drained
Pay attention to what happens afterward, too. If a meeting leaves you tired for the rest of the day, write that down, along with its length and what made it demanding. This is useful information even when your total is not especially large.
A small request can be enough to begin: “Could you send me the topics beforehand?” or “I need a short break between calls.” Choose a request that fits your situation and feels safe to make. You can start with someone you trust.
If tiredness or distress persists or affects daily life, tell a qualified professional about those symptoms and their impact. CAT-Q can be background information; it cannot explain the cause of the exhaustion.
Why the minimum is 25
Every item contributes from 1 to 7 points. With 25 items, that makes the minimum 25. Five items run in reverse: 3, 12, 19, 22 and 24.
Item 3 is about rarely needing to put on an act. Strong agreement gives 1 point; strong disagreement gives 7. With the current key, choosing “strongly disagree” for everything gives 55, and choosing every neutral answer gives 100. The direction belongs to the individual statement, so read each one before choosing an answer.
Sources: [2]
A note about older results
Version 2.0 corrected this site’s items, reverse scoring and dimension assignments. Older saved attempts use a different item set and cannot be reliably converted by changing the total. If your attempt is marked incompatible, take the questionnaire again. Keep the date, language and version with the result; a difference across these versions cannot establish a change in your wellbeing.
Sources and further reading
Related questionnaires
Optional, free and without registration. You can read and keep your notes without taking another questionnaire.