Associations between Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and the image of God were studied among adult mental health outpatients with ASD (N = 78) and compared to a psychiatric and a nonclinical norm group. The God image, which refers to the personal meaning that God/the divine has to the individual, of those with ASD had fewer positive and more negative traits than the God image of those without ASD. Especially impairments in the social domain of individuals with ASD were related to more feelings of anxiety toward God and the perception of God as ruling/punishing, which suggests that difficulties in the social, interpersonal domain and the accompanying feelings extend into the religious/spiritual domain. Religious saliency particularly predicted positive aspects of the image of God. This implies that the God image of individuals with ASD in this sample differs not only according to the degree to which autistic traits are present but also according to the degree in which religion is an essential factor in their lives. Implications for clinical care are discussed.
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