A critical reflection on definitions of autistic well‐being
Open Society
Bullying Victimization is Associated with Heightened Rates of Anxiety and Depression Among Autistic and ADHD Youth: National Survey of Children’s Health 2016–2020 - Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders
Autistic youth and youth with ADHD have heightened rates of bullying victimization, anxiety, and depression. The purpose of this research is to use nationally representative US data to 1) estimate the prevalence of anxiety and depression among bullied neurodivergent youth and 2) investigate whether the association between bullying victimization and anxiety or depression is significantly greater among autistic youth and youth with ADHD. For this research, we used five years of data (2016–2020) from the nationally representative National Survey of Children’s Health (NSCH), youth ages 12–17 years (n = 71,973). Data were analyzed with R and the R survey package to estimate average marginal percentages, risk differences, and additive interactions as recommended by STROBE guidelines. The study identified heightened anxiety and depression among bullied autistic or ADHD youth. Results also showed that the increase in the rate of anxiety or depression associated with bullying victimization was significantly greater among autistic youth and youth with ADHD relative to non-autistic non-ADHD youth; interactions were significant among both male and female youth. Autistic youth, youth with ADHD, and youth with co-occurring autism and ADHD are particularly vulnerable to bullying victimization and associated depression and anxiety. Future research is needed to understand why the association between bullying victimization and depression/anxiety is significantly greater among autistic and non-autistic ADHD youth. Recommendations include exploring school-wide anti-stigma initiatives to stop the reciprocal bullying–anxiety/depression cycle, routine bullying and mental health screening of autistic and ADHD youth, and clinical management of bullied autistic and ADHD youth with anxiety or depression.
A model linking emotional dysregulation in neurodivergent people to the proprioceptive impact of joint hypermobility | Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
Emotional feelings are putatively ascribed to central representation of bodily states
in the context of expectation and uncertainty in both internal state and external
world. Neurodivergent people are more likely to experience co-occurring mental health
...
What Are the Lived Experiences of Strengths in Autistic Individuals? A Systematic Review and Thematic Synthesis | Autism in Adulthood
Background: Research about strengths in autistic individuals has often been based on informant perspectives. These may not align with the subjective experiences and perspectives of autistic people themselves. This study therefore aimed to center the perspectives of autistic people through a qualitative synthesis investigating the lived experiences of strengths in autistic individuals. Methods: A systematic search identified 26 qualitative articles that met the inclusion criteria, out of articles that used qualitative methods to understand autistic participants’ perspectives on strengths in autism. Results: A thematic synthesis approach generated four themes as follows: wired differently, focused interests enrich life, embracing an autism identity, and context-dependent strengths. The review findings showed that autistic individuals value abilities and attributes that they can use to help them thrive in their daily lives, for example, by enhancing their performance at work, enjoyment during an activity, or helping others. Participants had differing views about whether their strengths were attributable to their autism. Autistic strengths extended beyond abilities to pride in having an autism identity and self-knowledge. Participants recognized that their ability to express themselves or their strengths often depended on the context. Conclusion: Recommendations include supporting autistic individuals to openly explore their interests and experiences and to recognize for themselves the characteristics and skills they value, for example, how to draw upon focused interests to develop relaxation strategies.
A thematic synthesis approach generated four themes as follows: wired differently, focused interests enrich life, embracing an autism identity, and context-dependent strengths. The review findings showed that autistic individuals value abilities and attributes that they can use to help them thrive in their daily lives, for example, by enhancing their performance at work, enjoyment during an activity, or helping others. Participants had differing views about whether their strengths were attributable to their autism. Autistic strengths extended beyond abilities to pride in having an autism identity and self-knowledge. Participants recognized that their ability to express themselves or their strengths often depended on the context.
Recommendations include supporting autistic individuals to openly explore their interests and experiences and to recognize for themselves the characteristics and skills they value, for example, how to draw upon focused interests to develop relaxation strategies.
“Utterly Overwhelming”—A Mixed-Methods Exploration of Sensory Processing Differences and Mental Health Experiences in Middle-Aged and Older Autistic Adults | Autism in Adulthood
Background: Sensory processing differences (SPDs) and mental health symptoms are not limited to young autistic people but continue to occur into adulthood. However, existing quantitative research has predominantly focused on younger autistic people. Less work has been done to investigate SPDs and relationships with mental health conditions in older autistic adults (i.e., aged 40 and older) across their midlife and older adulthood. Methods: A total of 432 participants (autistic n = 265; non-autistic n = 167) aged 40–93 years completed online questionnaires related to SPDs and mental health (i.e., anxiety and depression symptoms). Neurotype and gender differences, age associations, and associations between SPDs and mental health were examined. Participants’ contextualization of their lived experiences of SPDs was analyzed qualitatively. Results: Overall, SPDs and mental health symptoms were more apparent in the autistic group than the non-autistic group, with autistic women showing higher levels of SPDs and poorer mental health than autistic men. SPDs were more often reported to worsen across adulthood by those in the autistic group than those in the non-autistic group, with older autistic people more often reporting worse coping abilities. Furthermore, positive associations between SPDs and anxiety/depression symptoms were observed in the autistic group, with the strength of associations increasing with age. From the qualitative data, we developed six topics reflecting participants’ lived experience of SPDs. Conclusion: Quantitative and qualitative evidence suggest that autistic adults in older age may be more likely to have a heightened risk of SPDs and associated poorer mental health. This study extends previous understanding of SPDs with mainly younger autism populations and highlights the necessity of exploring sensory difficulties in autistic adults in midlife and older adulthood.
Quantitative and qualitative evidence suggest that autistic adults in older age may be more likely to have a heightened risk of SPDs and associated poorer mental health. This study extends previous understanding of SPDs with mainly younger autism populations and highlights the necessity of exploring sensory difficulties in autistic adults in midlife and older adulthood.
Autism Research—What’s New in July — Neurodiverse Connection
This research roundup 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.
never get old
From Puerto Rico to Palestine, with Solidarity — The Revealer
Exploring alliances between Puerto Ricans and Palestinians
Why Puerto Rico has such deep support for the Palestinian cause
In Puerto Rico, solidarity with the cause of Palestinians runs deep, in large part because of their shared colonial histories and struggles for self-determination.
The Autism Books by Autistic Authors Project
The Atlas Of Redistricting
See how seven different ways of drawing congressional districts across the country — from pretty fair to seriously gerrymandered — could change the partisan and racial makeup of the U.S. House.
Why Jews Say 'May Her Memory Be a Blessing/Revolution' When Someone Has Died
When Ruth Bader Ginsburg passed away on September 18, many took to social media to share sentiments like "may her memory be a blessing" and "may her memory be a revolution."
What do these phrases mean? Where did they originate? How should we use them? Let's break it down.
What do Jewish people s
How Trump and Vance went from a ‘threat to democracy’ to ‘weird’
With Harris at the top of the ticket, Democrats shift to a simpler characterization of Trump.
Video | Facebook
Right now, Minnesota is showing the country you don't win elections to bank political capital – you win elections to burn political capital and improve lives.
We’re leading the nation on climate, gun safety, and protecting reproductive rights. We’re putting resources behind our educators and ensuring no child has to learn on an empty stomach. We’re expanding voting rights, expanding workers' rights, and cutting child poverty.
In January, I outlined a vision to make Minnesota the best state in the nation for kids to grow up in.
We’re delivering on that promise.
Rethinking the “we” in “we” intentionality: intention-sharing with—and not simply about—things
This paper aims to place the general thesis for a species-unique “shared” or “we” intentionality, against the theoretical background of the material engagement approach. We will argue that the huma...
Opinion | Libraries can help end the culture wars. That’s why they’re under fire.
Nothing threatens authoritarianism like a free, quiet place to absorb a full range of information.
For those trying to move the United States toward a less democratic, more authoritarian model of governance, there is power to be gained by sowing information chaos. Libraries, on the other hand, are free, publicly funded places that exist to clear away the fog of uncertainty by providing patrons with access to primary sources, a diversity of recorded experiences and a calm place to consider them.
In a library, people with questions can ask a librarian for help finding answers. Instead of telling a curious patron what to think, the librarian will point out titles that might help them learn enough to figure it out for themselves.
The patron’s journey through the library is guided by their own quest for knowledge.
When times get truly tough, however, it might be time for librarians to go rogue.
Pro-library activists are simply circulating the titles so that people can read them and decide for themselves what to think.
In his book “Palaces for the People,” sociologist Eric Klinenberg calls libraries “social infrastructure.” He’s referring to the way these places offer physical shelter and calm, as well as an intangible sense of social stability and community. They are material and psychological spaces that hold us together when we feel lost or curious, lonely or adventurous. Yes, the library might contain propaganda. But it contains the voices of many people, from many historical eras and far-flung places, and those voices wait quietly on the shelves to be heard. That’s because the library is a place of information without coercion.
Though book bans have been a familiar tactic in culture wars, today we’re witnessing an attack on libraries themselves as social institutions. There’s a reason for this escalation: For those trying to move the United States toward a less democratic, more authoritarian model of governance, there is power to be gained by sowing information chaos. Libraries, on the other hand, are free, publicly funded places that exist to clear away the fog of uncertainty by providing patrons with access to primary sources, a diversity of recorded experiences and a calm place to consider them.
In 1948, when an Army psychological operations expert produced a guide to psychological war, it included instructions on how to achieve postwar psychological disarmament. “The free circulation of books” was key.
In the culture war, libraries with free access to a full range of books can light the way toward psychological peace. They provide us with a mental model for a public sphere in which Americans debate each other as equals to reach a resolution or compromise.
We need to preserve our libraries and the books they hold, partly to figure out who we are and where we came from. But perhaps more pressingly, we need to preserve them as both a refuge from the culture wars and a template to rebuild a cultural life together when this war is over. Without them, we may have no way to teach our children to share ideas, instead of battling each other forever.
New James Baldwin Art Exhibit Emphasizes His Love For Community
“This Morning, This Evening, So Soon: James Baldwin and the Voices of Queer Resistance” is a new exhibit at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C.
Classroom Management as a Curriculum of Care
Treat classroom management as an opportunity to teach young children what it really means to take care of each other.
This City Stopped Sending Police to Every 911 Call
Riding along with the civilian “crisis responders” of Olympia, Washington.
Justice Department Finds Civil Rights Violations by the Minneapolis Police Department and the City of Minneapolis
Following a comprehensive investigation, the Justice Department announced today that the Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) and the City of Minneapolis (City) engage in a pattern or practice of conduct in violation of the U.S. Constitution and federal law. The Department also announced that the city and MPD have agreed in principle to resolve the Department’s findings through a court enforceable consent decree with an independent monitor, rather than through contested litigation.
Directory of Alternative Crisis Response Programs v2.1.9.pdf
Many big US cities now answer mental health crisis calls with civilian teams — not police
The Associated Press has found that 14 of the 20 most populous U.S. cities are experimenting with removing police from certain, nonviolent 911 calls and sending behavioral health clinicians.
Star summary
Justice Department Finds Civil Rights Violations by Phoenix Police Department and City of Phoenix
Following a comprehensive investigation, the Justice Department announced today that the Phoenix Police Department (PhxPD) and the City of Phoenix (City) engage in a pattern or practice of conduct that violates the U.S. Constitution and federal law.
Justice Department Finds Civil Rights Violations by the Louisville Metro Police Department and Louisville/Jefferson County Metro Government
Following a comprehensive investigation, the Justice Department announced today that the Louisville Metro Police Department (LMPD) and the Louisville/Jefferson County Metro Government (Louisville Metro) engage in a pattern or practice of conduct that violates the U.S. Constitution and federal law. The Department also announced that it has entered into an agreement in principle with Louisville Metro and LMPD, which have committed to resolving the department’s findings through a court-enforceable consent decree with an independent monitor, rather than contested litigation.
Central Iowa arrests go down thanks to new crisis intervention program
The new program aims to divert people suffering a mental health crisis to better care and not jail.
St. Petersburg social workers go to 911 calls. What’s the program’s future?
“We’re leading the way right now in law enforcement from this little city,” one community organizer said.
In Washington County, 'boots-on-the-ground' social work is transforming police response to people in crisis
The county plans to triple the number of social workers who are paired with police to respond to some calls for help.
Mediation Response Unit (MRU) | Dayton Mediation
Sending Unarmed Responders Instead of Police: What We’ve Learned
There are more than 100 response teams nationwide, but experts say more research on their impact is needed.
In the four years since George Floyd’s murder, many sweeping attempts to reform policing have faltered. But one proposal that has taken hold across the country, and continues to spread, is launching alternative first response units that send unarmed civilians, instead of armed officers, to some emergencies.
In Dayton, Ohio, trained mediators are dispatched to neighbor disputes and trespassing calls. In Los Angeles, outreach workers who have lived through homelessness, incarceration or addiction respond to 911 calls concerning people living on the street. In Anchorage, Alaska, trained clinicians and paramedics are showing up to mental health crises.
“The reason why the police response is so harmful may not be because there’s an excessive force incident — it’s because you’re not getting effective treatment,” said Michael Perloff, interim legal director for the ACLU of D.C. and one of the lawyers on the case. “If you called the EMTs for your broken leg and they sent someone who didn’t know how to set a broken bone, that’s denying you effective care. People with mental health crises, that’s their experience with emergency response services.”
There have been no known major injuries of any community responder on the job so far, according to experts. And data suggests unarmed responders rarely need to call in police. In Eugene, Oregon, which has operated the Crisis Assistance Helping Out On The Streets (known locally as CAHOOTS) response team since 1989, roughly 1% of their calls end up requiring police backup, according to the organization. Albuquerque responders have asked for police in 1% of calls, as of January. In Denver, the Support Team Assisted Response (STAR) had never called for police backup due to a safety issue as of July 2022, the most recent data available. In Durham, members of the Holistic Empathetic Assistance Response Team (HEART) reported feeling safe on 99% of calls.