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Six adults with a formal autism diagnosis (four male, two female; mean age 22.7 years) completed a virtual reality (VR) protocol that combined free drawing in the VR tool Open Brush with the Think Aloud method and a brief interview. To contextualize individual sensory and cognitive profiles, participants completed the Autism Quotient (AQ) and the Glasgow Sensory Questionnaire (GSQ). Reflexive thematic analysis of verbal reports, interviews and digital drawings identified three overarching themes: immersion, artistic expression and individuality, and escapism. Participants described VR as calming, engaging and controllable, with the ability to explore artworks from multiple perspectives and to adjust the environment to reduce sensory demands. Creative approaches were highly individual ranging from detailed figurative drawings to abstract compositions. These often reflected personal interest and preferred sensory qualities. Quantitative scores illustrate the heterogeneity in attention to detail and sensory sensitivity, supporting the qualitative emphasis on variability within autism. The findings demonstrate the feasibility and value of VR drawing as a neurodiversity- affirming participatory method, with potential applications in therapy and in communicating autistic perceptual experience to non-autistic audiences.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3389\/fpsyg.2026.1739991","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,1]],"date-time":"2026-05-01T04:18:13Z","timestamp":1777609093000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Drawing the inner world: exploring autistic perception through virtual reality art-making"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"17","author":[{"given":"Sarune","family":"Savickaite","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Psychology, University of Exeter","place":["Exeter, United Kingdom"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Rebecca","family":"Airlie","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Glasgow","place":["Glasgow, United Kingdom"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Neil","family":"McDonnell","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Philosophy, University of Glasgow","place":["Glasgow, United Kingdom"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"David","family":"Simmons","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Glasgow","place":["Glasgow, United Kingdom"]}],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,1]]},"reference":[{"key":"B1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"20","DOI":"10.1080\/00043125.2017.1335536","article-title":"Art education and art therapy strategies for autism spectrum disorder students","volume":"70","author":"Alter-Muri","year":"2017","journal-title":"Art Educ."},{"key":"B2","volume-title":"Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders","year":"2022"},{"key":"B3","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"514","DOI":"10.1080\/2159676X.2017.1331501","article-title":"The think aloud method: What is it and how do I use it?","volume":"9","author":"Arsal","year":"2017","journal-title":"Qual. 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