Open Society

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 ...

‘Mad’ is a contentious term with which many service users/survivors feel uncomfortable. Yet it is the framework for a major new user-led challenge to bio-medical thinking about distress – Mad Studi...

Autistic Parents UK members share what Autistic joy means to them.

This is what happens when kids don’t read for pleasure anymore.

Successful partnerships between families and schools can substantially improve children’s success in and out of school. Yet parents of autistic children often r...

Many autistic people unconsciously adopt the ableist attitudes of those around them. We explain how to combat ableism from the inside out.

How does internalised ableism affect autistic people and what can we do to overcome it?

Fawning is taking care of others by suppressing my own emotions, needs, or identity. It’s something I’ve done since I was a very small child, and it’s something that I observe people doing around me almost every day.

As the kids say, some folks will just have to stay mad.

Although fawning is common, as a result of abuse or neglect, the "fawn response" is one of the least known of the trauma responses.

A Field Guide for Journalists, Educators, Doctors and anyone else who wants to know how to better communicate about Autism.

Neurodiversity means that all people’s brains process information differently from each other. In other words, people think and learn in a variety of ways. Being neurodivergent means that the way a person’s brain processes information might be quite distinctive, or even rare—and in some cases this difference might have a name, like ADHD, autism, or dyslexia. About one person in every five is neurodivergent: maybe you are neurodivergent yourself! In this article, we discuss the ways that neurodiversity can affect how people experience day-to-day life. We explain some of the research that has explored how neurodivergent people process information. We also share some on-going research that focuses on making places like schools and hospitals more comfortable for neurodivergent people. When we all understand what neurodiversity is, it is easier for everyone to be themselves, no matter how they think, feel and learn.

Flow states are heightened moments of concentration, motivation and enjoyment, leading to total absorption in the present moment. A striking parallel exists between flow states and phenomenological a...

Four in 10 parents of children with special educational needs have stopped working, and mothers are hit the hardest

Study progression criteria were met, suggesting that the parameters of a future definitive trial of clinical and cost effectiveness of AASP to reduce self-harm and suicide in autistic adults are achievable, with minor recommended adaptions to outcome measures and AASP. Future research should explore the use of AASP in routine clinical practice.

“How has the safety plan helped me?” “It has saved my life more than once.” The Stanley-Brown Safety Planning Intervention is a brief, collaborative intervention between the clinician and the suicidal individual that aims to mitigate acute risk. For virtual and online training click here How does it work? Simple Steps towards Safety It all starts with a single first step. The purpose of the... Read More

The increased prevalence of suicide among autistic people highlights the need for validated clinical suicide screening and assessment instruments that are acces...

BackgroundThe Covid-19 pandemic has brought into sharp focus a school attendance crisis in many countries, although this likely pre-dates the pandemic. Child...

Wikipedia's editing is consensus-based, so when a subject is objectively contentious—as is the case with autism—that editing gets tricky.

We (by which I mean my plural self and anyone else who this resonates with) recognize monotropic theory to be a very helpful paradigm for a…

Transepistemic language education, or transepistemics, is the act of learning from multiple knowledges and lifeways to equip educators, learners, and humanity more broadly with more conceptual tools for sustainable and r...

Some cities are starting to update their emergency response systems to include the half million Americans who rely on tubes for nutrition. In the face of the climate crisis, the change is urgently needed.

During Hurricane Harvey in August, a striking image went viral: Nursing home residents sitting in waist deep floodwaters, surrounded by floating debris, an angry cat in the background. The Harvey f…

People use misinformation to maintain beliefs more often than change them

Ableism has been used for generations to degrade, oppress, control and disappear disabled and nondisabled people alike.

In indigenous societies human scale groups are those who we regularly rely on for mutual aid and assistance. In small societies without abstract formal authorities, everyone learns from everyone. T…