Neurodiversity

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Autism rights movement

Issues

Ethical challenges to treatment

Controversies about labels

Organizations

Aspies For Freedom

Autism Network International

Philosophy

Neurodiversity · Neurodivergent

Neurotypical

People

Michelle Dawson · Jim Sinclair

Judy Singer

Neurodiversity is the natural diversity of human neurological wiring. All humans have unique brains. This encompasses both neurotypical (typically-developing) and neurodivergent (having developmental, personality, or mental health conditions) people.

For the idea that conditions such as autism and ADHD are differences to accept instead of diseases to cure or extinguish, see the neurodiversity paradigm. The social movement is the neurodiversity movement.

While the term originated in the Autistic community, it applies to all types of brains, including autism, ADHD, dyslexia, dyspraxia, mental health conditions, personality disorders, and more.

History of the term

The word "neurodiversity" is thought to have been coined by Judy Singer. She first used this term in her honors thesis, written in 1996-7 and presented in 1998. However, journalist Harvey Blume, who corresponded with Singer about autism, also used the term in 1998. The concept itself may have been developed collectively.

Singer's chapter “Why Can’t You be Normal for Once in Your Life?”, based on her thesis, helped popularize the concept. It is used to describe a post modernist critique and addition to the social cleavages of class, gender, race and so on.

Every brain is unique.

Judy Singer wrote:

For me, the significance of the Autistic Spectrum lies in its call for and anticipation of a Politics of Neurodiversity. The Neurologically Different represent a new addition to the familiar political categories of class / gender / race and will augment the insights of the Social Model of Disability. The rise of Neurodiversity takes postmodern fragmentation one step further. Just as the postmodern era sees every once too solid belief melt into air, even our most taken-for granted assumptions: that we all more or less see, feel, touch, hear, smell, and sort information, in more or less the same way, (unless visibly disabled) are being dissolved. (pp 12-13)

The idea incorporated insights of socio-biology, evolutionary psychology, sociology, and disability studies in a positive synthesis. Judy Singer talked about the politics and sociology of neurodiversity on the InLv forum for Autistics at the time, and it may have spread from there.

A print citation is given for the Coventry Evening Telegraph (U.K.) (Jan. 14th 2004) with reference to the Coventry and Warwickshire Neurodiversity Group who define the term thus:

"Neurodiversity is a word that has been around since autistic people started putting sites on the internet. It has since been expanded to include not just people who are known as "autistics and cousins", but to express the idea that a diversity of ways of human thinking is a good thing, and dyslexic, autistic, ADHD, dyspraxic and tourettes people to name but a few all have some element in common not being neurotypical in the way our brains work."

See also

• Types of minds
  • Neurodivergent
  • Neurotypical
  • Neurodiverse (for a group of people)
• Autism
  • Autistic community
  • Autism rights movement
  • Autistic culture
  • Autism
  • Controversies in autism