What does the CAT-Q explore?

The CAT-Q looks at self-reported camouflaging patterns across compensation, masking, and assimilation. NeuroType presents it for adult self reflection with attribution. It is not a diagnosis and cannot determine whether autism or any condition is present or absent.

Does NeuroType diagnose from CAT-Q responses?

No. CAT-Q scores describe response patterns only. They should not be used as proof of a diagnosis, as a clinical decision, or as a substitute for assessment by a qualified professional.

Where are my answers stored?

Your answers stay in this browser. NeuroType does not send CAT-Q answers to servers, analytics tools, payment providers, email providers, or AI providers during this self reflection flow.

Does NeuroType own the CAT-Q?

No. NeuroType does not own the CAT-Q. The questionnaire is shown with visible attribution and source notes. NeuroType does not add optional notes to CAT-Q or present it as an original NeuroType instrument.

Are paid CAT-Q reports available?

Yes. After completing the questionnaire, you can choose a paid, non-clinical CAT-Q PDF report. Checkout receives only your aggregate total and three subscale scores, not your individual answers. The report is for self reflection and cannot confirm or rule out autism or any condition.

Available

CAT-Q masking questionnaire for adults

Use the 25-item CAT Q to reflect on masking and camouflaging patterns. This is self reflection only, not a diagnosis, and includes visible attribution.

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What camouflaging means here

Camouflaging is the effort of adjusting how you come across in social situations. The CAT-Q separates that effort into three kinds. Compensation covers actively working out and applying strategies, such as studying how other people converse and copying what works. Masking covers monitoring and adjusting your appearance and behaviour while an interaction is happening. Assimilation covers the pressure to fit in and the strain of not feeling able to be yourself.

Those three are worth keeping separate, because they feel different from the inside and they carry different costs. Somebody with high compensation and low assimilation is putting in effort but may not experience it as a loss of self. Somebody with high assimilation is describing something closer to strain. A single total blurs that distinction.

Camouflaging is reported by autistic and non-autistic people alike. It can follow from workplace culture, from past experiences of being singled out, from anxiety, or from any setting where fitting in carried a cost. The questionnaire records the effort, not its cause, which is one of several reasons it cannot indicate a diagnosis.

CAT-Q questionnaire

Continue with this reflection

One source-worded item at a time. Results describe response patterns only and are not a diagnosis.

What results mean

Results show the total score and three CAT-Q subscale scores as self-reported camouflaging patterns.

What results do not mean

Results cannot confirm or rule out autism, ADHD, AuDHD, or any condition. They do not replace assessment by a qualified professional.

How the CAT-Q is scored

The CAT-Q has 25 items answered on a seven point scale, so totals run from 25 to 175. Five items are reverse scored, meaning agreement counts towards a lower rather than a higher total. The items divide into three subscales, each with its own possible range:

Compensation9 items, 9 to 63
Masking8 items, 8 to 56
Assimilation8 items, 8 to 56

NeuroType does not publish a cutoff. A single threshold invites the total to be read as a verdict, and the total is the least informative part of the result. Two people with the same total can have very different subscale profiles, which describe genuinely different experiences of camouflaging.

What a particular total means

If you already have a CAT-Q total from elsewhere, what your CAT-Q score means works through where a total sits in the range and which subscale splits could have produced it.

Frequently asked questions

What does the CAT-Q explore?: The CAT-Q looks at self-reported camouflaging patterns across compensation, masking, and assimilation. NeuroType presents it for adult self reflection with attribution. It is not a diagnosis and cannot determine whether autism or any condition is present or absent.
Does NeuroType diagnose from CAT-Q responses?: No. CAT-Q scores describe response patterns only. They should not be used as proof of a diagnosis, as a clinical decision, or as a substitute for assessment by a qualified professional.
Where are my answers stored?: Your answers stay in this browser. NeuroType does not send CAT-Q answers to servers, analytics tools, payment providers, email providers, or AI providers during this self reflection flow.
Does NeuroType own the CAT-Q?: No. NeuroType does not own the CAT-Q. The questionnaire is shown with visible attribution and source notes. NeuroType does not add optional notes to CAT-Q or present it as an original NeuroType instrument.
Are paid CAT-Q reports available?: Yes. After completing the questionnaire, you can choose a paid, non-clinical CAT-Q PDF report. Checkout receives only your aggregate total and three subscale scores, not your individual answers. The report is for self reflection and cannot confirm or rule out autism or any condition.

Start this test

It takes about 8 to 12 minutes. Your answers stay in this browser, and you can stop and come back later.

No account required. Not a diagnosis.

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