What is neurodiversity?
In a sense, we are all neurodiverse. When it comes to what goes on inside our heads, none of us are exactly the same. This was the original meaning of ‘neurodiversity’ when psychologist Judy Singer coined the term back in 1999. However, most people now use the word neurodiversity to say that a person’s mental functioning is in some way different from what society has dictated to be ‘normal’. In the past, the medical model was used with these people; they were seen as suffering from a medical condition or disorder, or from some form of learning deficit or impairment. The concept of neurodiversity replaces this with the idea that there is a range of human characteristics, with some people (the neurotypical) closer to the average of these and others (the neurodiverse or neurodivergent) further from the average.
What are common types of neurodiversity?
There are many different forms of neurodiversity, including for example Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), dyscalculia, dyslexia, dyspraxia (developmental co-ordination disorder) and Tourette's syndrome. Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) is also often seen as a form of neurodiversity. Here's a little more on each of these:
- With Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), people can seem restless, may have trouble with concentration and attention, and/or may act on impulse more than other people. Some people with ADHD are more inattentive (not paying attention to detail, not listening, or paying attention, getting distracted, making mistakes). Some are more hyperactive or impulsive (fidgeting, never staying still, talking too much, interrupting, not staying seated). Many show a combination of the two. While ADHD may affect tasks that involve attention to detail, repetitive tasks, rule following or strict management of time and resources, people with ADHD can be very creative and energetic, and when they are doing a job that they enjoy and find interesting, ‘hyperfocus’, avoiding distractions and producing high-quality and incisive results.
- With Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), autistic people may act in a different way to other people. They may find it hard to communicate and interact with other people and find it hard to understand how other people think or feel. Some may find things like bright lights or loud noises overwhelming, stressful, or uncomfortable, and get anxious or upset about unfamiliar situations and social events. Some can take longer to understand information while some do or think the same things over and over. Autism represents a spectrum of different behaviors. For most people, not all these issues will apply, and those that do will differ in their impact. Many autistic people can bring a high degree of attention, precision and accuracy to tasks, have in-depth expertise and knowledge in specific areas, and demonstrate a logical, analytical approach.
- Dyscalculia is a specific and persistent difficulty in understanding numbers which can lead to a diverse range of difficulties with mathematics. Those with dyscalculia may also have trouble understanding shapes, distance, or volume, or have difficulty with time, directions, recalling schedules, sequences of events, or financial planning. People with dyscalculia often see situations in a holistic way, leading to effective strategic decisions and creative problem-solving. They often have a great love of words and a high degree of practical ability.
- Dyslexia is when people may read and write slowly, confuse the order of letters in words, be confused by letters that look similar, write letters the wrong way round (such as "b" and "d"), and have poor or inconsistent spelling. They may understand information when told verbally but have difficulty with information that is written down. They may, however, have advantages in areas such as big-picture or lateral thinking, visualization, and some forms of creativity.
- Dyspraxia is a developmental co-ordination disorder affects movement and co-ordination, such as tasks requiring balance, playing sports, or learning to drive a car. Dyspraxia can also affect fine motor skills, such as writing or using small objects. People with dyspraxia have often had to overcome obstacles growing up, leading to a degree of resilience and determination. Having to carry out tasks in different ways means that they can often bring a new and creative view to problems.
- Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD) has historically been seen as a type of anxiety disorder or a form of mental illness, but it is now also often seen as a form of neurodiversity. In obsessive-compulsive disorder, a person has obsessive thoughts and compulsive behaviors. An obsession is an unwanted and unpleasant thought, image, or urge that repeatedly enters a person’s mind, causing feelings of anxiety, disgust, or unease. A compulsion is a repetitive behavior or mental act that they feel compelled to do to temporarily relieve the unpleasant feelings brought on by the obsessive thought, for example cleaning and hand washing, checking and rechecking, counting, or hoarding. The compulsive behavior temporarily relieves the anxiety, but the obsession and anxiety soon return, causing the cycle to begin again.
- Tourette's syndrome is a condition that causes a person to make involuntary sounds and movements called tics. These may be physical (such as blinking, eye rolling, jerking of the head or limbs, or touching objects and other people) or verbal (such as grunting, coughing, tongue clicking or saying random words and phrases). Although swearing is often depicted as a symptom, only a small percentage of people with Tourette’s syndrome do this.
And it’s important to remember that neurodiverse people are not a tiny minority. It’s estimated that 3 to 4 percent of adults have ADHD, 2 percent have ASD, and up to 15% have dyslexia. If anything, these numbers may be underestimates; many adults might not have had the opportunity for a formal diagnosis, or may feel a pressure not to reveal this about themselves.
Using personality assessments like Myers-Briggs Type Indicator to better understand neurodiversity—a good idea or terrible idea?
Personality assessment had something of a bad press in this area, accused of ‘screening out diversity’. This could be the case when personality assessments are used to screen out job applicants or at other stages of recruitment and selection, though even in this context the research suggests that other hiring practices, such as traditional interviews, can have a more detrimental effect. But when personality questionnaires used as part of development or counseling, as would always be the case with the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) assessment, they can help neurodiverse people in all sorts of ways. Following MBTI feedback, many neurodiverse people report a sense of relief that they now understand themselves better, that they can see how they are different from many other people but that they realize that this difference is OK. For a neurodiverse person, this positive recognition of aspects of their personality and behavior can be extremely empowering. Here are some comments from a recent survey that we carried out:
“I don’t feel as alone”.
“It confirmed that I’m OK”.
“It helped me better understand and manage my intrusive thoughts in relation to my OCD”.
“It was the MBTI assessment that first got me to push for my own diagnosis. There is so much more that I could say here about how powerful the MBTI tool is for helping people with neurodiversity understand themselves and how they can fit into the workplace as themselves and all that they can bring”.
There can be other benefits too. Personality frameworks like the MBTI can help non-neurodiverse people understand the positive benefits of the ways in which others are different, help neurodiverse people understand their behavior and that of other people, and recognize the ways in which they have ‘masked’ their natural behavior. Generally, personality assessment in a developmental context is probably a good idea.
The link between personality and neurodiversity
Can understanding your personality shed light on neurodiversity in other ways too? Well, yes and no. Personality type and the different aspects of neurodiversity are different ways of understanding yourself and other people. Some forms of neurodiversity will not show any relationship with MBTI type at all. Even when research shows that some relationship exists, neither will entirely explain the other. For example, research using the MBTI framework suggests a link between Extraverted Intuition (people with personality type preferences for ENTP and ENFP) and ADHD. However, not all ENTPs and ENFPs will show signs of ADHD, and not all people with ADHD will have preferences for ENTP or ENFP. Personality and neurodiversity are two different ways of helping people to understand themselves, and used together can give a richer picture.
Both our personality type preferences and our neurodiversity contribute to our behavior and to the ways in which we see the world. And there are correlations, overlaps, between these two different ways of understanding ourselves. But it is important to remember that these are general relationships that do not signify cause and effect, and that won’t hold for every person.
