Embodied Semiosis: Autistic ‘Stimming’ as Sensory Praxis

Nolan, Jason; McBride, Melanie

doi:10.1007/978-94-017-9404-6_48

Cited by 39 publications

(42 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…They decry practices such as ‘quiet hands’ (which teaches the suppression of hand flapping), instead using ‘loud hands’ as a metaphor both for using such non-verbal behaviour to communicate and for cultural resistance more broadly (Bascom, 2012). In addition, autistic scholar-activists denounce attempts to reduce their bodily autonomy (Nolan & McBride, 2015; Richter, 2017) and declarations of their stimming as unacceptable or as necessarily involuntary (Yergeau, 2016).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

‘People should be allowed to do what they like’: Autistic adults’ views and experiences of stimming

Kapp

Steward

Crane

et al. 2019

Autism

280

193

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‘Stereotyped or repetitive motor movements’ are characterised as core features in the diagnosis of autism, yet many autistic adults (and the neurodiversity movement) have reclaimed them as ‘stimming’. Supported by a growing body of scientific research, autistic adults argue that these behaviours may serve as useful coping mechanisms, yet little research has examined stimming from the perspective of autistic adults. Through interviews and focus groups, we asked 32 autistic adults to share their perceptions and experiences of stimming, including the reasons they stim, any value doing so may hold for them and their perceptions of others’ reactions to stimming. Using thematic analysis, we identified two themes: stimming as (1) a self-regulatory mechanism and (2) lacking in social acceptance, but can become accepted through understanding. Autistic adults highlighted the importance of stimming as an adaptive mechanism that helps them to soothe or communicate intense emotions or thoughts and thus objected to treatment that aims to eliminate the behaviour.

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mentioning

confidence: 99%

‘People should be allowed to do what they like’: Autistic adults’ views and experiences of stimming

Kapp

Steward

Crane

et al. 2019

Autism

280

193

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“…Within some areas of autism research, scholars have begun to include autistics as an active part of the research process, for example through participatory research methods (Milton and Moon 2012;Pellicano, Dinsmore, and Charman 2013). Furthermore, a number of autistic individuals are themselves becoming autism researchers (Milton 2014a;Arnold 2012;Murray, Lesser, and Lawson 2005;Kapp 2013;Nolan and McBride 2015). The emergence of self-advocacy networks and the fact that autistic individuals are participating actively in the processes of knowledge production reflects an emerging shift in the distribution of power in autism research (Graby 2012;Milton, Mills, and Pellicano 2012).…”

Section: Exploring Autistic Embodiment and Experiencementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Research has traditionally depicted repetitive, stereotyped or self-stimulatory behaviors in autism from a behaviorist perspective as something to be eliminated or treated(Boyd, McDonough, and Bodfish 2012). However, recent research emphasizes the productive and positive value of these behaviors as ways of managing a chaotic and overwhelming environment(Sinha et al 2014;Davidson 2010), as sources of pleasure, social engagement between autistics or even as cultural and artistic expression(Bakan 2014;Nolan and McBride 2015;Conn 2015).…”

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confidence: 99%

Toward a Phenomenological Account of Embodied Subjectivity in Autism

Boldsen

2018

Cult Med Psychiatry

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Sensorimotor research is currently challenging the dominant understanding of autism as a deficit in the cognitive ability to 'mindread'. This marks an emerging shift in autism research from a focus on the structure and processes of the mind to a focus on autistic behavior as grounded in the body. Contemporary researchers in sensorimotor differences in autism call for a reconciliation between the scientific understanding of autism and the first-person experience of autistic individuals. I argue that fulfilling this ambition requires a phenomenological understanding of the body as it presents itself in ordinary experience, namely as the subject of experience rather than a physical object. On this basis, I investigate how the phenomenology of Maurice Merleau-Ponty can be employed as a frame of understanding for bodily experience in autism. Through a phenomenological analysis of Tito Mukhopadhyay's autobiographical work, How can I talk if my lips don't move (2009), I illustrate the relevance and potential of phenomenological philosophy in autism research, arguing that this approach enables a deeper understanding of bodily and subjective experiences related to autism.

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“…Despite criticisms from within, the overarching aim of emancipation amongst neurodiversity proponents is generally agreed upon, and best summed up by Temple Grandin's (2012) famous quote, ‘different, not less’. The rise of neurodiversity has heralded complimentary qualitative research, engaging silenced voices to communicate, express, contest, and advocate for themselves beyond dominant clinical paradigms that have thus far been the unchallenged authority on their lives (Armstrong, 2011: 1–26; Broderick and Ne’eman, 2008; Gevers, 2000; Jaarsma and Welin, 2012; Nolan and McBride, 2015; Robertson and Ne'Eman, 2008).…”

Section: Inclusion and Reflexivitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Languages of sensing: Bringing neurodiversity into more-than-human geography

Judge

2017

Environ Plan D

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As geography increasingly engages with multiple ways of knowing, opportunities to contribute to research have also expanded. This paper contributes a perspective on academic inclusion as a neuro-diverse geographer working in a more-than-human context. In doing so, it seeks to open dialogue around the potential for neuro-diverse contributions to research by engaging reflexively with sensory ways of knowing and doing, and differences in how autistic and non-human social engagements are considered. To do this, I draw on a range of autobiographic literature, including reflexive exercises in relation to my own research work.

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Embodied Semiosis: Autistic ‘Stimming’ as Sensory Praxis

Cited by 39 publications

References 12 publications

‘People should be allowed to do what they like’: Autistic adults’ views and experiences of stimming

‘People should be allowed to do what they like’: Autistic adults’ views and experiences of stimming

Toward a Phenomenological Account of Embodied Subjectivity in Autism

Languages of sensing: Bringing neurodiversity into more-than-human geography

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