"On the day that The Female Eunuch was issued in America, a person in
flapping draperies rushed up to me and grabbed my hand. 'Thank you', it
breathed hoarsely, 'thank you so much for all you've done for us girls!' I
smirked and nodded and stepped backward, trying to extricate my hand from
the enormous, knuckley, hairy, be-ringed paw that clutched it.
The Problems with "High" and "Low" Functioning Labels
Functioning labels do not always relate to people’s real skills and can be based on hurtful stereotypes about autistic people.
Many professionals talk about autistic people’s “functioning labels.” Functioning labels are a way to describe how well people learn, take care of themselves, and live in the community. People will often talk about “high-functioning” and “low-functioning” autistic people when they are describing them. Even though people who talk about high-functioning and low-functioning autistic people often mean well, these labels are not accurate for many people. Functioning labels do not always relate to people’s real skills and can be based on hurtful stereotypes about autistic people. They also assume that people’s skills cannot change over time.
Many people use people’s intelligence to determine whether they are high-functioning or low-functioning, but many autistic people’s daily living skills are not affected by how intelligent they are. Someone can learn quickly and have a hard time with daily living skills, while someone else who learns more slowly can find the same skills easy most of the time. Using these labels can make it hard for people to get services. If you do not have an intellectual disability, agencies may tell you that you are high-functioning and do not need help, even if you’re struggling to stay fed, clothed, and clean. If you do have an intellectual disability, you may be told you are low-functioning even if you don’t need as much help with daily living skills.
Sometimes people can call the same person “high-functioning” and “low-functioning” at different times in their life. People have said I was “high-functioning” for most of my life, but when I was very young and was non-speaking, they would have said I was “low-functioning” because they thought I had an intellectual disability. Saying that people are “low-functioning” is especially hurtful, because it means that some people will have low expectations of you and will not expect you to learn, grow, and pick up new skills.
Instead of talking about functioning labels, we should talk about the specific kinds of support people need.
Jason Arday Was Diagnosed With Autism As A Child. He Will Now Be The Youngest Black Professor Ever At The University Of Cambridge
The renowned sociologist who didn't learn to read or write until the age of 18 hopes that his story will inspire others from under-represented backgrounds to pursue higher education.
Do puzzle pieces and autism puzzle piece logos evoke negative associations? - Morton Ann Gernsbacher, Adam R Raimond, Jennifer L Stevenson, Jilana S Boston, Bev Harp, 2018
Puzzle pieces have become ubiquitous symbols for autism. However, puzzle-piece imagery stirs debate between those who support and those who object to its use be...
Seeing is Disliking: Evidence of Bias Against Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder in Traditional Job Interviews - Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders
Job interviews are an integral component of the hiring process in most fields. Our research examines job interview performance of those with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) compared to neurotypical (NT) individuals. ASD and NT individuals were taped engaging in mock job interviews. Candidates were rated on a variety of dimensions by respondents who either watched the interview videos or read the interview transcripts and were naïve to the neurodiversity of the interviewees. NT candidates outperformed ASD candidates in the video condition, but in the absence of visual and social cues (transcript condition), individuals with ASD outperformed NT candidates. Our findings suggest that social style significantly influences hiring decisions in traditional job interviews and may bias evaluators against otherwise qualified candidates.
Employability in autism spectrum disorder (ASD): Job candidate's diagnostic disclosure and asd characteristics and employer's ASD knowledge and social desirability - PubMed
Participants assessed the employability of vignette characters whose presentation varied across two dimensions during a job interview: presence of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) characteristics (present, absent) and disclosure of diagnosis (ASD, ADHD, diabetes, or no disclosure). Participants more k …
It’s the end of the month and that means it’s time to hear from resident guest blogger Serena. This month Serena’s sharing her experience of job hunting as someone with Tourettes. While job hunting is stressful for lots of people, I’m very aware of the added pressures that having Tourettes can bring
Only three people (in my world) know that I was recently interviewed for a part-time job that paid £120/hr + expenses. I was pleased but not surprised to be shortlisted, as the requirements were ve…
A second hugely informative article from our guest writer Will van Zwanenberg on issues around autism and employment. His first can be read here. We know that interviews are a generally poor indica…
Barriers to Employment: Raters' Perceptions of Male Autistic and Non-Autistic Candidates During a Simulated Job Interview and the Impact of Diagnostic Disclosure | Autism in Adulthood
Background: Autistic individuals face low rates of engagement in the labor force. There is evidence that job interviews pose a significant barrier to autistic people entering the workforce. In this experimental study, we investigated the impact of diagnostic disclosure on decisions concerning candidate suitability during job interviews. Methods: Participants (n = 357; 59% female) from the general population rated 10 second “thin slices” of simulated job interviews of one male autistic and one male non-autistic candidate. In a between-subjects design, autism diagnostic disclosure was manipulated (None, Brief, and Detailed), so that neither (“None” condition) or both (“Brief” and “Detailed” conditions) candidates were labeled as autistic before the simulated interview (with additional information provided about autism in the “Detailed” condition). Results: Results for 255 non-autistic raters (57.6% female) were analyzed. Participants gave more favorable ratings of first impressions, employability, and endorsement for candidates labeled as autistic, irrespective of the actual diagnostic status (i.e., autistic and non-autistic) of the individual. Participants rated non-autistic candidates more favorably on all employment measures (first impressions, employability, and endorsement), and “hired” non-autistic candidates more frequently, compared with autistic candidates. Providing additional information about autism did not result in improved ratings. However, the discrepancy between autistic and non-autistic people chosen for “hire” was reduced when more information was provided. Conclusions: Although we found some support for the benefits of diagnostic disclosure during a simulated interview, these benefits were not restricted to autistic candidates and may be a positive bias associated with the diagnostic label. Contrary to our predictions, providing information about autism in addition to the diagnostic label did not have an overall impact on results. More research is required to determine whether benefits outweigh any risks of disclosure for autistic job candidates, and whether training interviewers about autism might improve employment outcomes for autistic job seekers.
What are flow states and can they be applied to autism and other conditions? Flow is a concept developed by Professor Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi. Flow occurs when people are engaged in controllable but challenging tasks. Usually these activities require a considerable amount of skill, for example running, sailing, and stimulating conversation. Csikszentmihalyi (2002) refers to the impact of flow states on a person’s mental wellbeing, stating that whilst in a flow state 'people are so involved in an
“Aren't orderly classrooms and effective instruction less stressful for everyone? (with @_MissingTheMark). When I talk about the stress experienced by some young people in school, I'm sometimes told that answer is better control. Here's why that's a problem. 1/”
The blind men and the elephant: The case for a transdiagnostic approach to initiation
Difficulty initiating voluntary action is an under-recognized and often invisible impairment in various psychiatric, neurodevelopmental, and neurological conditions. Understanding the commonalities of volition impairments across diagnoses is limited by a lack of consistent terminology, arbitrary distinctions between conditions, the habit of looking only to the prevailing definitions and theories to explain observed traits, and the covert nature of initiation. The siloed approach to research in this area evokes the parable of the blind men and the elephant, where understanding the whole picture is impeded by a limited view. There has been little effort to consider how differing terms overlap or to use objective methods to differentiate phenomena along meaningful lines. We propose a triad of interacting elements, all of which are needed for successful initiation of voluntary action: (i) executive function, (ii) volition, and (iii) movement. Failure to initiate a response may be due to impairments in any of these, which often co-occur. This paper calls for the following considerations to improve research in this area: (i) put aside preconceptions about conditions and their mechanisms to adopt a flexible transdiagnostic approach; (ii) consider executive function, movement, and volition as possible dimensional variations with related underlying mechanisms; (iii) carefully differentiate components of complex functions; (iv) look to first-hand reports for covert and previously un...
"Not rehired" for "teaching politics" in 2021: One teacher's story | Human Restoration Project | Sam Shain
I personally see no real point of teaching if the material is watered-down and sanitized, if I can’t discuss things like media literacy, critical thinking, and political issues as a means of hitting the “education standards” in my classroom. Published by Human Restoration Project, a 501(c)3 organization restoring humanity to education.
Media coverage of law enforcement use of force and disability
PDF version available for download here
Text Only version available for download here
For a searchable database of all 2013-2015 news coverage of police violence involving persons with disabilities, click here.
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Disability is the missing word in media coverage of police violence.
Disabled individuals make up a third to half of all people killed by law enforcement officers. Disabled individuals make up the majority of those killed in use-of-force cases that attract widespread attention. This is true both for cases deemed illegal or against policy and for those in which officers are ultimately fully exonerated. The media is ignoring the disability component of these stories, or, worse, is telling them in ways that intensify stigma and ableism.
When we leave disability out of the conversation or only consider it as an individual medical problem, we miss the ways in which disability intersects with other factors that often lead to police violence. Conversely, when we include disability at the intersection of parallel social issues, we come to understand the issues better, and new solutions emerge.
Contents
Disability intersects with other factors such as race, class, gender, and sexuality, to magnify degrees of marginalization and increase the risk of violence. When the media ignores or mishandles a major factor, as we contend they generally do with disability, it becomes harder to effect change.
This white paper focuses on the three years of media coverage of police violence and disability since the death of a young man with Down syndrome, named Ethan Saylor, in January 2013. After reviewing media coverage of eight selected cases of police violence against individuals with disabilities, the paper reveals the following patterns in the overall data:
Disability goes unmentioned or is listed as an attribute without context.
An impairment is used to evoke pity or sympathy for the victim.
A medical condition or “mental illness” is used to blame victims for their deaths.
In rare instances, we have identified thoughtful examinations of disability from within its social context that reveal the intersecting forces that lead to dangerous use-of-force incidents. Such stories point the way to better models for policing in the future.
We conclude by proposing best practices for reporting on disability and police violence.
Content Analysis
How often do American police use force against disabled civilians? No one knows because we lack comprehensive data sets. Currently, there is no legal requirement for local, state or federal law enforcement agencies to aggregate or collect the number, type, and result of violent incidents that occur between police officers and disabled people. From a purely practical standpoint, those who seek to track, monitor, and/or analyze trends related to police violence and disability are limited to collecting the data themselves from print and online media coverage.
From individual cases to a broad analysis of media representation of incidents of police violence against disabled people, we have compiled and summarized media coverage of stories about police violence and disability by year, organized the stories into various categories, and offered brief commentary on a few examples.
Our review and analysis reflects the patterns of media coverage on issues related to disability and police violence. Generally speaking, reporting on police violence against disabled people includes the date of the incident along with specific details about when and where the event occurred. Using this as our starting point, we added the reactions of law enforcement agencies and community responses to allegations of police violence as reported wherever possible.
We close by offering some ideas for “best practices” that journalists might consider when reporting cases linking police violence and disability.
As an addendum to this white paper, we have prepared an online spreadsheet which can be searched by name, date, state, and disability.
Conclusion
Twenty-five years after the U. S. Congress passed the Americans with Disabilities Act, notions of disability continue to evolve. An increasingly powerful set of concepts, they push us to redefine how to build an inclusive society that is accessible to all.
When disabled Americans get killed and their stories are lost or segregated from each other in the media, we miss an opportunity to learn from tragedies, identify patterns, and push for necessary reforms.
Disability rights are civil rights. Disability rights are human rights and disability justice is intersectional.
The needs of disabled people aren’t special. There is nothing special about not wanting to be shot. What disabled people seek are the same things (employment, education, access, consideration, respect, etc.) that non-disabled people likewise desire. The obstacles faced by disabled people, though, too often go unseen. The language used to report issues that confront disabled people—especially issues linked to injury and death—should reflect that disparate reality.
Published in March 2016
Teen Suicides Fell During Lockdown, Rose When In-Person Schooling Resumed, Study Finds
Exposure to bullying could be a key factor in the link between schools re-opening and teen suicide rates.
Suicide rates among teenagers fell sharply when schools were closed during the Covid-19 lockdown, but rose again when in-person schooling resumed, according to a new study.
Returning from online to in-person education was associated with an increase in the rate of teen suicides of as much as 18%.
The results provide convincing evidence that “in-person schooling is a contributor to teen suicide,” researchers say, with exposure to bullying likely to be a key factor in the link.
“We consistently find that increased K-12 foot traffic is associated with a significant increase in teenage suicides,” the team reported, in a working paper published by the National Bureau of Economic Research.
“Our results suggest that changes in exposure to bullying, which has been documented to be an important trigger for teenage suicide, may be a key factor in the association between school calendars and teen suicide,” they conclude.
“I am begging the large platform punditocracy to please consider our culture of schooling as a potential source for the increasing rates of anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation among young people. Far better explanation than social media exposure. https://t.co/h9044NOxtd”
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