What is the Strength Based Model of Neurodiversity?

While it seems unfathomable today, people with obvious physical and neurodevelopmental differences were historically confined away from the public sphere in abusive institutions like asylums. Before the advocacy movements that helped establish laws like the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), disabled people were first allowed to live unconfined after the historic Brown v. Board of Education ruling. While celebrated mainly for its part in American race relations, the banning of segregation in public spaces was an immense win for disabled Americans: public schools began to educate children with intellectual differences.

While advocates have accomplished far more since that time, people with disabilities still struggle with the same issues of public perception. The medical model of neurodivergence is a clear example of this– in essence, it treats neurodivergence as a deficit or a disease to be cured. This is the model of disability that has justified historical isolation and horrific abuse of disabled people and it is the model that strips away people's autonomy and ruins their quality of life today. The autism advocacy community have largely adopted a far more relevant understanding of neurodivergence, which is called the "strength based model of neurodiversity".

As the name suggests, the strength based model of neurodivergence is focused on individual strengths rather than framing the individual as deficient or lacking. (The practice of ABA is highly contested among advocates because it follows the medical model more rigidly: read more here) This definition is based on positive psychology and psychiatry– shifting away from pathology and fostering quality of life– as well as Gardener's theory of multiple intelligences and Chickering's seven vectors of development. The strengths that neurodivergent individuals display are often much more focused than a neurotypical profile, which is generally more well rounded. Thus, neurodivergence is often characterized by a "spiky profile". In understanding neurodivergence as a difference rather than a deficit, neurodiverse individuals can foster their strengths and increase self satisfaction.

Supporting the strength based model in your day to day life is as easy as adjusting the language you use to describe neurodiversity. For example, you may have noticed that this website never uses the terms "autism spectrum disorder" or "ASD". By using person or identity first language ("people with autism"/"autistic people"), you can easily promotes the strength based model. All resources recommended and linked are also vetted to promote the same ideals. Here are some other examples of how to easily move away from pathologizing terminology in your day to day life!

While the language we use may seem inconsequential, it is a very important first step in destigmatizing neurodivergence and being an effective advocate!