Tan: The involvement of autistic people with high support needs in participatory research is still lagging.

We need to shift the power redistribution in research to underrepresented groups, including multiply marginalized autistic people, autistic young ppl, & autistic people with HSNs.

#INSAR2025

In the desired futures:
-Neurodivergence is normalised.
-Complexity is celebrated
-Intersectionality is assumed
-Abelism becomes socially and scientifically unacceptable
-Neurodivergent voice is always included
-Neurodivergent cultures are centred, respected and integrated
-Epistemology is fluid

Thanks to co-authors @dianatan.bsky.social , Liz Pellicano, David McAlpine and Paul Sowman. And of course, a HUGE thank you to the almost 300 people who participated in the study! Enjoy, and please share :)
www.nature.com/articles/s41...

Grateful to my co-authors for their contributions: Liz Pellicano, @torihaar.bsky.social, Lara Hardy, Marion Rabuka

#neurodiversity #highered

3️⃣ Fostering an enabling environment – Practical ways universities can provide better support.

4️⃣ Building a sense of belonging – The importance of meaningful connections and acceptance.

Based on these findings, we proposed 10 recommendations (see info-graphic)

1️⃣ “Fight[ing] really hard to get through” – The immense challenges Autistic students face.

2️⃣ “[Taking] a lot longer to try to make sense of the system” – The difficulty of navigating university structures.

Thank you to colleagues for this fun collab: @thesiswhisperer.bsky.social @drchrised.bsky.social Charlotte Brownlow, Kate Simpson, & Amanda Webster