Showing posts with label Autism. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Autism. Show all posts

Role of Media in fostering inclusivity

Thoughts on the role of editors, journalists, publishers on fostering broader societal inclusivity

1. Irresponsible reporting: I absolutely am irritated by articles that to try to stir up old  controversies or conspiracy theories trying to malign/discredit the most marginalized autistics, while pretending to be their champion. Its hypocritical and magazines should not be printing this stuff. In what way is this helping us. It's such a total waste of airtime, because the eye on the ball should move forward, towards progress and solutions so the marginalized can move forward. 

2. Understanding 'Evidence-Based' in the context of Autism Heterogeneity: Blindly reporting that something is evidence based for autism is not helpful because practitioners and educators literally take that at face value, and do a blanket application for ALL of autism. In reality evidence based only applies to a small profile (discussed in my recent Time magazine article), which means Evidence Based Interventions have to be taken with spoonfuls of salt for the rest of autism. 

Ergo, if "evidence based" does not work for an autistic, it's not the fault of the autistic for not progressing, it's a failure of research that has not found solutions for them. 
Because the consequence for the autistic who does not improve with this evidence based stuff is extreme. They are basically written off and kept in special programs and group homes. And then we complain that this group is eating up resources and asking for attention.

3. Media needs to call out the Utter Lack of Action:  An example is that GI issues were being discussed when I was diagnosed two and half decades ago. Earlier this year, there was an article which made it seem linking GI and autism was a brand new discovery. The sad part is that because there has been no movement in finding explanations and solutions on this front for two and half decades, it looks like it's a brand new issue when it's not.

4. Including a call to action. One magazine told me that I should not be including a call to action. Which kind of seemed counterintuitive because then these disability stories primarily become objects of pity and sympathy or inspiration porn. While this may increase readership, they don’t do anything to help us. We want the story to generate action because action is the actual impact.

An endless cycle of labels in autism

 Targeted interventions for autism don't need creation of more new labels.

The issues that need help, were present there before the label creation and still exist years after the label.

In another 5-10 years, another new catchy trademarked label will appear

What missing is action towards actual solutions in the last 30 years.

 My Ted X talk titled "Pebbles in the Pond of Change

Hari Srinivasan, shares a powerful message about the power of small actions in creating ever-widening ripples in the pond of change. Drawing from personal experiences and the legacy of disability rights leaders, he redefines progress as a journey that starts with simple, accessible steps. His inspiring message encourages everyone to identify and act on their own "small pebbles" to drive societal transformation.

Who Autism Research Leaves Out

If genuine progress in autism research and the development of real solutions are to be achieved, we must expand the zone of the researchable autistic.
-Hari Srinivasan, Time


 

Finding solutions for the most marginalized

"There is very valuable insight that can be derived from the disability justice principles of Sins Invalid. This insight is that if we find solutions for the most marginalized members of a group, the entire group benefits. Just like elevators to help wheelchair users ended up benefiting everyone. " - Hari Srinivasan 

https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/aut.2024.38246.pw

Disability and Multilingualism

Embracing multilingualism and disability inclusion means valuing and integrating these diverse forms of communication into our educational systems, workplaces, and communities.

Read Full Article at unesco.org...

 

Caught Between Tears and Stoicism

It’s a catch-22: If we don’t show emotion, we risk being labeled as "cold" or "unexpressive"; if we do, we might be seen as "overly emotional."

Read Full Article at


 

 My Ted X talk titled "Pebbles in the Pond of Change

Hari Srinivasan, shares a powerful message about the power of small actions in creating ever-widening ripples in the pond of change. Drawing from personal experiences and the legacy of disability rights leaders, he redefines progress as a journey that starts with simple, accessible steps. His inspiring message encourages everyone to identify and act on their own "small pebbles" to drive societal transformation.

How Reasonable are Reasonable Accommodations at Work

 

As we observe National Disability Employment Awareness Month in October, it is essential to create true equity for all autistic and neurodivergent workers by closing this loophole around the subjectivity of “reasonable accommodations

Disability and Multilingualism

Just as ramps and elevators, which were initially designed for wheelchair users, can aid travelers with suitcases and families with strollers, solutions that support those with significant support needs in the autism community can enhance accessibility and inclusion for all.

Read Full Article at unesco.org...

 

Oversampling

Just as psychology research had its WEIRD (“western, educated, industrialized, rich and democratic”) sampling bias, autism research has not only a WEIRD sampling bias, but also has essentially oversampled the same, narrow band of what are considered the easily “researchable autistics,” and expected those findings (as well as the applications and interventions that resulted from them) to apply to everyone.
-Hari Srinivasan, Time

Participant Selection Bias


"Research participant selection bias is especially problematic in... autism because research [not only] provides explanations [but] also influences policy priorities, interventions, treatments, who gets access to funding, access to spaces, and even societal attitudes. Most importantly, research leads us to applications and solutions."
-Hari Srinivasan, Time

Temporal ventriloquism


Temporal ventriloquism refers to the brain's ability to synchronize slightly misaligned visual and auditory inputs, which may work differently in autism, leading to challenges in processing multisensory information. 

PlainSpeak. In Plain Language for the Lay Reader

Temporal ventriloquism is when the brain adjusts sounds and visuals that don’t match up perfectly, making them seem like they happen together. In autism, this process might work differently, which can make it harder to handle mixed sensory information. 

[Read in more detail

Challenges-Based-Solutions

"For some autistics, we can step right into the application of positive psychology. For others, we need to be working on challenge-based solutions at the same time. It’s not a binary, either/or situation where you do one at the expense of the other." - Hari Srinivasan 

https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/aut.2024.38246.pw

 My Ted X talk titled "Pebbles in the Pond of Change

Hari Srinivasan, shares a powerful message about the power of small actions in creating ever-widening ripples in the pond of change. Drawing from personal experiences and the legacy of disability rights leaders, he redefines progress as a journey that starts with simple, accessible steps. His inspiring message encourages everyone to identify and act on their own "small pebbles" to drive societal transformation.

Perceived reduced networking and socialization

Mainstream discussions around remote and hybrid employment models often focus on productivity, or the perceived reduced networking and socialization.

Paradoxically, these very reasons serve to increase productivity for many disabled people, including the autism community.