The Autistic community often describes stimming (repetitive behaviours) as a helpful way to regulate themselves. But researchers have sometimes seen these repetitive actions as pointless or even concerning behaviours.​ We wanted to know what research has already been done on why Autistic adults stim, including to see if there are any clear gaps in work to date, so we conducted a scoping review of research on 'autism + stimming + function' in adults between 2013 - 2025. We found nine studies (see below) which met our criteria. In all the studies, Autistic individuals say stimming helps them regulate their emotions and bodies. The studies also concluded that Autistic adults might stim to manage their attention, emotions, and physical sensations in their body. Even though the studies found information on why Autistic people stim, only one had planned to research why Autistic people do so. This means we still do not know much about why Autistic adults stim, or what stimming means to them.