Open Society

Read writing from U.S. Gender and Disability Justice Alliance on Medium. Advocating for rights and justice at the intersection of disability and gender.

The photo is among several highly commended in this year's Wildlife Photographer of the Year contest

The Stanford Virtual Human Interaction Lab (VHIL) has released an interesting study of the stressors that come with video calls, and outlined potential solutions that can help. The research is alre…

To understand how the anti-trans agenda could reshape all of our lives, The 19th set out to examine how the laws and rhetoric behind it are impacting Americans.

Autistic people continue to face considerable stigmatization. Much work remains to be done to identify and tackle the causes of this stigmatization. We identify two related assumptions that generate and perpetuate this stigmatization: one ontological; one epistemic. We argue that breaking the stigma around autism requires addressing these twin assumptions. The ontological assumption presupposes the pathologization of autism as a disorder. Addressing this first assumption requires taking neurodiversity seriously and moving away from neuronormativity. The epistemic assumption posits that “allistics-know-best” and prevents allistics from acknowledging the epistemic limits of their own perspective. Addressing this second assumption requires centering Autistics’ perspectives and experiences in the production, dissemination, and use of knowledge about Autistics. To make our case against these two problematic assumptions, we draw on the key epistemological notions of standpoint, ignorance, and epistemic injustice—which have implications for all fields that concern minoritized groups and the contents produced about or with them. Fruitfully connecting our original pluralist conception of epistemic agency (which centers crucial experiential knowledge beyond mere propositional knowledge) to 4E cognition (embodied, embedded, extended, enacted), we identify a new category of epistemic injustice: ecological epistemic injustice. We then illustrate the importance of addressing the widespread yet problematic ontological and epistemic assumptions underlying the stigmatization of autism by turning to the case of applied behavioral analysis (ABA), which instantiates both neuronormativity and epistemic injustice.

Flow state, as described by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, is a mental state of operation where a person is fully immersed in an activity

In this month’s research roundup Ann picks out some of the current big debates on Autistic lives, and showcases new and important research from teams and academics working within the field.

People often ask if I believe autism is overdiagnosed, if we’re just slapping a label on geeky kids who in previous generations would have been considered merely eccentric. I reply that I believe autism is still underdiagnosed in two groups: women and people of color. The cultural and class bias built into the diagnostic process was so pervasive in the 1980s that psychologist Victor Sanua claimed that autism is rare among families of color. The reality was that people of color often didn’t get decent healthcare.

The medical model of disability describes a widespread approach to disability common since the 1800s that views disabilities of all sorts as abnormalities that need to be cured or eradicated. Under...

Fostering psychological safety can help teams perform and innovate, Google found while trying to understand what makes team great.

Superheroes usually manage to roll back the various apocalypses but rarely use their powers to build a better world. The villains are the ones constantly dre...

As learning management systems dominate, and students juggle competing priorities, Susan D. Blum asks, where is the joy, the adventure, the meaning?

This study explores the intersection of Theory of Mind (ToM) abilities and driving performance among novice drivers, with a focus on autistic individuals. The purpose is to investigate how ToM deficits may impact driving behaviors and decision-making, ultimately informing the development of tailored interventions and training programs for autistic drivers. We conducted a series of driving simulations using a custom-built driving simulator, capturing multimodal data including driving performance metrics, attention allocation, and physiological responses. Participants were categorized based on NEPSY scores, which assess ToM abilities, and self-reported autism spectrum disorder (ASD) diagnosis. Driving tasks were designed to simulate real-world scenarios, particularly focusing on intersections and merging, where ToM skills are crucial for safe navigation. Our analysis revealed differences in driving behaviors among participants with varying ToM abilities as determined through the NEPSY. Participants with lower NEPSY scores exhibited less smooth driving behaviors, increased risk-taking tendencies, and differences in attention allocation compared to those with higher scores. Alternatively, individuals with ASD displayed comparable driving patterns overall. ToM abilities influence driving behaviors and decision-making, particularly in complex social driving scenarios. Tailored interventions addressing ToM deficits and stress management could improve driving safety and accessibility for autistic individuals. This study underscores the importance of considering social cognitive factors in driving education and licensure pathways, aiming for greater inclusivity and accessibility in transportation systems.

At Calling Up Justice, our approach to storytelling and production has always embraced the fusion of various media and platforms. We’ve described our work as “transmedia,” a term that captured the essence of our storytelling across hybrid, digital, and mixed settings. However, as our practice evolves, so too does our language. We are now embracing […]

Non-Verbal Learning Disability (NVLD) is the talk of the town as Gus Walz broke the internet by being a teen proud of...

PDF | Purpose Autism spectrum conditions (ASC) and borderline personality disorder (BPD) have overlapping symptom profiles. Dialectical behaviour... | Find, read and cite all the research you need on ResearchGate

Kyle is one of the fastest-growing cities in the country. But with extreme heat and limited water supplies, that isn’t necessarily a good thing.

i was not going to publish this essay because i don’t like to yell but here the fuck i am.

ProPublica identified a group of connected political nonprofits — with names like American Breast Cancer Coalition and National Coalition for Disabled Veterans — that appear to be funneling more than 90% of donations to fundraisers.

The human capacity for language serves to improve understanding and trust, fostering collaboration instead of competition. This contradicts capitalist interpretations of evolution and supports the …

I am excited to announce that I am joining the board of Bluesky, where I will be providing advice and guidance to the company to help it achieve its vision of a more open, more competitive, more de…

Ignoring their own well-publicized calls to regulate AI development and to pause implementation of its applications, major technology companies such as Google, Microsoft, and Meta are racing to fend off regulation and integrate artificial intelligence (AI) into their platforms. The weight of the available evidence suggests that the current wholesale adoption of unregulated AI applications in schools poses a grave danger to democratic civil society and to individual freedom and liberty. Years of warnings and precedents have highlighted the risks posed by the widespread use of pre-AI digital technologies in education, which have obscured decision-making and enabled student data exploitation. Without effective public oversight, the introduction of opaque and unproven AI systems and applications will likely exacerbate these problems. This policy brief explores the harms likely if lawmakers and others do not step in with carefully considered measures to prevent these extensive risks. The authors urge school leaders to pause the adoption of AI applications until policymakers have had sufficient time to thoroughly educate themselves and develop legislation and policies ensuring effective public oversight and control of school applications. Suggested Citation: Williamson, B., Molnar, A., & Boninger, F. (2024). Time for a pause: Without effective public oversight, AI in schools will do more harm than good. Boulder, CO: National Education Policy Center. Retrieved [date] from http://nepc.colorado.edu/publication/ai

The Ultimate Guide to Autistic Burnout summarizes the most current research, and provides you with the tools to identify and recover from autistic burnout safely.

David J. O'Connor, DPI American Indian Studies Consultant providing a keynote at the Wisconsin Tribal Transportation Conference on Oct. 25, 2023 in Milwaukee. This article was written by David J. O'Connor, member of the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa ( Anishinaabe or Ojibwe), Education Consultant, American Indian Studies Program at the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, and Laura A. Roeker, Director of Teaching and Learning at the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction. Many educators across Wisconsin are familiar with land acknowledgments.

Land acknowledgments state that activities are taking place on land previously owned by Indigenous peoples. They’re popular – but they may harm more than they heal, say three anthropologists.

After hosting an Indigenous land acknowledgment event, we put together this written guide to based on our panelists' responses.

Statements recognizing Indigenous rights to territories seized by colonial powers may be well-meaning. But some Indigenous leaders fear these acknowledgments may become routine and performative.