Autism Representation in Arabic and Foreign Digital Viewing Platforms: A Comparative Study Between Shahid and Netflix and Watch it Platforms

Alansari, Koloud; Qutub, Afnan

doi:10.21608/jkom.2024.395271

Autism Representation in Arabic and Foreign Digital Viewing Platforms: A Comparative Study Between Shahid and Netflix and Watch it Platforms

Authors

Koloud Alansari ¹
Afnan Qutub ²

¹ faculty of communication and media, King Abdulaziz University, KSA

² Faculty of Communication and Media, King Abdulaziz University, KSA

10.21608/jkom.2024.395271

Abstract

Arabic films presented stereotypical images about mental disorders and portrayed disorders in a dark dramatic form in the past decades. This study aimed to analyze the representation of autism disorder as presented in digital viewing platforms. The study also explored the most prominent ways to adapt the person with autism to society as they appear on digital platforms. The study relied on content analysis of the first ten episodes of four series dealing with the character of people with autism as a central character in the series: the series "Every week on Friday", the series "A special case", "Atypical" series, and the "The Good Doctor" series.
The results of the study confirmed that the image of autism disorder was presented positively in general, except for the series (Every week on Friday), which reinforced stereotypes of the psychiatric patient and portrayed the person with autism as a killer and hostile. Both "Atypical" and "Special Case" presented positive and realistic aspects of people diagnosed with autism daily life, such as the ability to improve their abilities with the support, family, social and professional acceptance, in addition to the challenges they face. The results indicated that there is a compatibility between the symptoms of autism disorder in the series and the symptoms of autism disorder in the 5-DSM psychological diagnostic manual at varying levels. The aspects of content analysis included nine dimensions: the personality of the hero and autism traits, romantic relationships, caring for others, work environment skills, skills of autistic character and their development, social relations and learning social skills, dealing with the nervousness of a person with autism, family environment of autistic characters, and exploiting the skills of autistic characters.
The study recommends a content analysis of social media to understand the impact of digital viewing platforms on viewers. It also recommends that dramas investigate the accuracy, originality and distance from stereotypes in the depiction of autism.

Keywords

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