How Autism Can* Be Viewed as a Cultural Difference
*Not always. In certain situations, such as providing support in the helping professions.
Not everyone sees it this way
I want to begin by stating that I am using a cultural lens to describe ways of more effectively supporting Autistic people in the helping professions. I am not arguing that, more broadly speaking, Autism should be considered a culture.
I’m not saying it can’t be either, but that isn’t the focus or purpose of this particular series of articles.
Autism is a neurotype, a divergent neurotype, meaning the way our brains develop and operate differs from the statistical ‘norm’. Some people feel they are disabled by their neurology. Others feel they are disabled by society’s lack of understanding and knowledge.
For many of us, it’s a bit of both.
Autism is a dynamic condition, meaning how we experience its symptoms and traits can vary throughout the day, and from one day to the next depending on a myriad factors.
What do I mean by Autistic culture anyway?
Each person’s definition of their own culture will be different. Broadly speaking, culture can be defined as, “the customs, arts, social institutions, and achievements of a particular nation, people, or other social group”.
Autistic culture can include — but is not limited to — shared vocabulary and experiences, social expectations & norms unique to Autistics, and specific strengths associated with being Autistic.
Empathy and Autistics in the helping professions
Despite potential challenges, we can excel in certain skillsets. I am currently reading a textbook called Choices: Interviewing and counselling skills for Canadians, written by Dr. Bob Shebib (2023).
I recently read a section about the importance of empathy in counselling relationships, and found some interesting points. This article explores different ways empathy can be experienced and expressed.
Barriers to appropriate support for autistics
An exploration of what gets in the way of schools and service providers effectively supporting Autistics.
Many of the evidence-based recommendations used to train counsellors to be more culturally competent are also applicable to supporting Autistics and other neurodivergent folks in a variety of settings.
Unfortunately many of the attitudes which limit cultural competence in counselling are also prevalent in the wider psychological profession, in public education, and in society in general.
The risks of outdated staff training
Many training programs, including — or perhaps especially — those offered by formal academic institutions (i.e. Colleges, Universities, accredited courses, CEUs, etc.) are painfully out of date.
The language used is from a decade ago, and the approaches or supports suggested or recommended are even older. This article explains how severely out-of-date staff training programs can cause harm to Neurodivergent clients.
Multicultural competencies in counselling
I’ve seen more and more parallels between the barriers to culturally competent counselling and the challenges which arise in providing effective and appropriate support for Autistics.
This article describes how the principles of multicultural competency can be applied to more effectively supporting Autistics in the helping professions.
Differences are too easily distorted into deficits
The last (and my personal favourite) of this series of articles.
The textbook from which I am studying outlines four steps to overcoming barriers to culturally competent practice, which align very well with the MCCs explored in the previous articles.
This article discusses the importance of learning from our clients, and of clinician self-awareness, in particular with regards to supporting Autistic clients in the helping professions.
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