Library Guides: Stories of the Mind: Perspectives from the Tulane Neurodiverse Community: Books and Journal Articles

In the Library

Unmasking Autism by DeVon Price
ISBN: 0593235231
Publication Date: 2022-04-05
A deep dive into the spectrum of Autistic experience and the phenomenon of masked Autism, giving individuals the tools to safely uncover their true selves while broadening society's narrow understanding of neurodiversity. For every visibly Autistic person you meet, there are countless "masked" Autistic people who pass as neurotypical. Masking is a common coping mechanism in which Autistic people hide their identifiably Autistic traits in order to fit in with societal norms, adopting a superficial personality at the expense of their mental health. This can include suppressing harmless stims, papering over communication challenges by presenting as unassuming and mild-mannered, and forcing themselves into situations that cause severe anxiety, all so they aren't seen as needy or "odd." In Unmasking Autism, Dr. Devon Price shares his personal experience with masking and blends history, social science research, prescriptions, and personal profiles to tell a story of neurodivergence that has thus far been dominated by those on the outside looking in. For Dr. Price and many others, Autism is a deep source of uniqueness and beauty. Unfortunately, living in a neurotypical world means it can also be a source of incredible alienation and pain. Most masked Autistic individuals struggle for decades before discovering who they truly are. They are also more likely to be marginalized in terms of race, gender, sexual orientation, class, and other factors, which contributes to their suffering and invisibility. Dr. Price lays the groundwork for unmasking and offers exercises that encourage self-expression. It's time to honor the needs, diversity, and unique strengths of Autistic people so that they no longer have to mask--and it's time for greater public acceptance and accommodation of difference.
Autistic Community and the Neurodiversity Movement by Steven K. Kapp (Editor)
ISBN: 9811384363
Publication Date: 2019-11-19
This open access book marks the first historical overview of the autism rights branch of the neurodiversity movement, describing the activities and rationales of key leaders in their own words since it organized into a unique community in 1992. Sandwiched by editorial chapters that include critical analysis, the book contains 19 chapters by 21 authors about the forming of the autistic community and neurodiversity movement, progress in their influence on the broader autism community and field, and their possible threshold of the advocacy establishment. The actions covered are legendary in the autistic community, including manifestos such as "Don't Mourn for Us", mailing lists, websites or webpages, conferences, issue campaigns, academic project and journal, a book, and advisory roles. These actions have shifted the landscape toward viewing autism in social terms of human rights and identity to accept, rather than as a medical collection of deficits and symptoms to cure.
Neurodiversity in Higher Education by David Pollak (Editor)
ISBN: 0470741597
Publication Date: 2009-03-16
This edited collection offers screening, teaching and practical support for specific learning differences in Higher Education. Institutions in all major Western countries are required by law to avoid disadvantaging students with special educational needs, so staff must be up to date on how to recognise and support them.
Nobody's Normal by Roy Richard Grinker
ISBN: 0393531643
Publication Date: 2021-01-26
For centuries, scientists and society cast moral judgments on anyone deemed mentally ill, confining many to asylums. In Nobody's Normal, anthropologist Roy Richard Grinker chronicles the progress and setbacks in the struggle against mental-illness stigma--from the eighteenth century, through America's major wars, and into today's high-tech economy. Nobody's Normal argues that stigma is a social process that can be explained through cultural history, a process that began the moment we defined mental illness, that we learn from within our communities, and that we ultimately have the power to change. Though the legacies of shame and secrecy are still with us today, Grinker writes that we are at the cusp of ending the marginalization of the mentally ill. In the twenty-first century, mental illnesses are fast becoming a more accepted and visible part of human diversity. Drawing on cutting-edge science, historical archives, and cross-cultural research in Africa and Asia, Grinker takes readers on an international journey to discover the origins of, and variances in, our cultural response to neurodiversity. Urgent, eye-opening, and ultimately hopeful, Nobody's Normal explains how we are transforming mental illness and offers a path to end the shadow of stigma.

Journal Articles

Neurodiversity: An insider’s perspective - The neurodiversity movement has historically been led by and composed of autistic and other neurodivergent advocates and activists, with little involvement from neurotypical stakeholders. Now, as the neurodiversity movement gains traction within the wider autism community, we are beginning to see a positive shift in attitudes towards autism in neurotypical stakeholders.

den Houting. (2019). Neurodiversity: An insider’s perspective. Autism : the International Journal of Research and Practice, 23(2), 271–273. https://doi.org/10.1177/1362361318820762

Deficit, Difference, or Both? Autism and Neurodiversity - The neurodiversity movement challenges the medical model’s interest in causation and cure, celebrating autism as an inseparable aspect of identity. Using an online survey, we examined the perceived opposition between the medical model and the neurodiversity movement by assessing conceptions of autism and neurodiversity among people with different relations to autism. Participants (N 657) included autistic people, relatives and friends of autistic people, and people with no specified relation to autism. Self-identification as autistic and neurodiversity awareness were associated with viewing autism as a positive identity that needs no cure, suggesting core differences between the medical model and the neurodiversity movement. Nevertheless, results suggested substantial overlap between these approaches to autism. Recognition of the negative aspects of autism and endorsement of parenting practices that celebrate and ameliorate but do not eliminate autism did not differ based on relation to autism or awareness of neurodiversity. These findings suggest a deficit-as-difference conception of autism wherein neurological conditions may represent equally valid pathways within human diversity. Potential areas of common ground in research and practice regarding autism are discussed.

Kapp, Gillespie-Lynch, K., Sherman, L. E., & Hutman, T. (2013). Deficit, Difference, or Both? Autism and Neurodiversity. Developmental Psychology, 49(1), 59–71. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0028353

Neurodiversity: An Invisible Strength? - When we think of social justice movements, we often highlight events such as women's sufferage, the civil rights movement of the 1960s, and the fall of apartheid. More recently, LGBTQ+ rights have been at the forefront of our minds as society strives to be more inclusive of our diverse population. On the heels of these critical movements and advancements is a relatively new player: neurodiversity.

Fung, Ulrich, T. L., Fujimoto, K. T., & Taheri, M. (2022). Neurodiversity: An Invisible Strength? JOM (1989), 74(9), 3200–3202. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11837-022-05454-2

Untapped potential: embracing neurodiversity in medicine - Family physician Jennifer Vassel used to think she was weird. Situations affected her differently than her colleagues. She could remember exact pages from her grade 6 textbooks. And she had always been highly sensitive to other people’s feelings — “like being a sponge,” Vassel says. Then, she learned about neurodiversity. The term is often used interchangeably with neurodivergence to refer to the idea that there is a wide range of normal variation in the brain and no one “right” way to experience and interact with the world.

Duong, & Vogel, L. (2022). Untapped potential: embracing neurodiversity in medicine. Canadian Medical Association Journal (CMAJ), 194(27), E951–E952. https://doi.org/10.1503/cmaj.1096006

Neurodiversity studies: mapping out possibilities of a new critical paradigm - Neurodevelopmental classifications and the collective idea of neurodivergence can be seen as a ‘moving target’. In our understanding, this means that it responds to the needs of society as well as potentially infinite neurological differences between humans. Therefore, rather than assume that neurodiversity exists according to the existing clinical categories of autism and related conditions (that are often centred around autism as the exemplary kind of neurodivergence), we leave the possibility open that there are other forms of difference that have yet to be defined. In the paper we explore how neurodiversity has been described as a collective property of brains, as we try to negotiate between us what it is to be human and how we can work together to ensure our flourishing and to alleviate suffering. We consider implications of this understanding of neurodiversity for autism research, and propose that we unpick the analogy between neurodiversity and biodiversity.

Stenning, & Rosqvist, H. B. (2021). Neurodiversity studies: mapping out possibilities of a new critical paradigm. Disability & Society, 36(9), 1532–1537. https://doi.org/10.1080/09687599.2021.1919503

Neurodiversity in higher education: a narrative synthesis Neurodiversity is an umbrella term, including dyspraxia, dyslexia, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, dyscalculia, autistic spectrum and Tourette syndrome. The increasing number of students with learning difficulties associated with neurodiversity entering higher education (HE) poses a shared and growing challenge internationally for teachers and institutional leaders. This narrative synthesis draws together a corpus of international literature on how neurodiverse students experience higher education and the ways in which higher education institutions respond to the cluster of neurodiverse conditions. A systematic review was carried out to search, retrieve, appraise and synthesize the available evidence to provide an original contribution to the literature and significant insights of worth to higher education internationally. An inclusive approach to data extraction was used to ensure that all the relevant studies were included. All stages of the review process, including the initial search, screening, sample selection and analysis, are described. Three main themes and 11 subthemes were identified. Although the majority of publications focus on either dyslexia, autistic spectrum disorder, or ADHD, some common themes are evident in student experience across learning difficulties associated with neurodiversity. Although support services and technologies are available to meet students’ specific needs, there is an apparent dislocation between the two. Fear of stigmatization and labelling worsens the divide between what is needed and what is available to ensure neurodiverse students’ success in higher education, where good intentions are evidently not enough.

Clouder, Karakus, M., Cinotti, A., Ferreyra, M. V., Fierros, G. A., & Rojo, P. (2020). Neurodiversity in higher education: a narrative synthesis. Higher Education, 80(4), 757–778. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-020-00513-6

Autism as a Natural Human Variation: Reflections on the Claims of the Neurodiversity Movement - Neurodiversity has remained a controversial concept over the last dec- ade. In its broadest sense the concept of neurodiversity regards atypical neurological development as a normal human difference. The neurodiversity claim contains at least two different aspects. The first aspect is that autism, among other neurological conditions, is first and foremost a natural variation. The other aspect is about conferring rights and in particular value to the neurodiversity condition, demanding recognition and acceptance. Autism can be seen as a natural variation on par with for example homosexuality. The broad version of the neurodiversity claim, covering low-functioning as well as high-functioning autism, is problematic. Only a narrow conception of neurodiversity, referring exclusively to high-functioning autists, is reasonable. We will discuss the effects of DSM categorization and the medical model for high functioning autists. After a discussion of autism as a culture we will analyze various possible strategies for the neurodiversity movement to claim extra resources for autists as members of an underprivileged culture without being labelled disabled or as having a disorder. We will discuss their vulnerable status as a group and what obligation that confers on the majority of neurotypicals

Jaarsma, & Welin, S. (2012). Autism as a Natural Human Variation: Reflections on the Claims of the Neurodiversity Movement. Health Care Analysis, 20(1), 20–30. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10728-011-0169-9