"I Am Human, Just Like You": What Intersectional, Neurodivergent Lived Experiences Bring to Accessibility Research

TL;DR

This paper uses critical autoethnography to explore intersectional neurodivergent experiences, proposing a reconceptualization of neurodivergence as inclusive, collaborative, and dynamic to improve accessibility research in HCI.

Contribution

It introduces three intersectional tenets for understanding neurodivergence, emphasizing inclusivity, fluidity, and collaboration in accessibility research.

Findings

Neurodivergence is a functional difference, not a deficit.

Neurodivergent disability is a dynamic experience, not a static label.

Accessibility should be a collaborative practice, not a one-sided solution.

Abstract

The increasing prevalence of neurodivergence has led society to give greater recognition to the importance of neurodiversity. Yet societal perceptions of neurodivergence continue to be predominantly negative. Drawing on Critical Disability Studies, accessibility researchers have demonstrated how neuronormative assumptions dominate HCI. Despite their guidance, neurodivergent and disabled individuals are still marginalized in technology research. In particular, intersectional identities remain largely absent from HCI neurodivergence research. In this paper, I share my perspective as an outsider of the academic research community: I use critical autoethnography to analyze my experiences of coming to understand, accept, and value my neurodivergence within systems of power, privilege, and oppression. Using Data Feminism as an accessible and practical guide to intersectionality, I derive three tenets for reconceptualizing neurodivergence to be more inclusive of intersectional experiences: (1) neurodivergence is a functional difference, not a deficit; (2) neurodivergent disability is a moment of friction, not a static label; and (3) neurodivergence accessibility is a collaborative practice, not a one-sided solution. Then, I discuss the tenets in the context of existing HCI research, applying the same intersectional lens. Finally, I offer three suggestions for how accessibility research can apply these tenets in future work, to bridge the gap between accessibility theory and practice in HCI neurodivergence research