What neurotypical privilege actually looks like

Good morning! Last week I introduced 3 examples of what neurotypical privilege looks like in our modern world. But I also mentioned that I had more to unpack from those samples of neurodivergent life. Unfortunately, it isn’t only relationships, public perception and infantilizing where there’s a double standard between the neurotypical and neurodivergent experience. Here’s 3 more instances where neurotypicals have hidden advantages that neurodivergents don’t.

Easier To Find and Keep Employment

Finding meaningful employment is a big challenge for neurodivergents who are capable of holding jobs. We can end up failing assessments in application screenings because we didn’t understand the question or what the “correct” response is, or how this assessment determines if we’re a good fit for the job. It ends up costing us opportunities. Recruiters and interviewers can pick up on the fact that we’re different from other candidates, and not in a good way. A lot employers don’t like neurodivergent habits for some reason, and as I mentioned, there are some things we just can’t mask. And when you’re nervous and under pressure, it’s even harder to mask. As a result, we may end up giving a “bad answer” or doing something that’s considered “rude”. There’s also just not a lot of jobs out there that are a good fit for us, because we have the skills, but there may be certain tasks can’t do or environments we can’t work in. Noisy factories or customer service roles, for example.

And then when we do find a job, it can be challenging to keep it. Neurodivergent workers can be criticized for “not working fast enough” because we need to perform tasks at our pace to get the job done correctly. We can be targeted for harassment or bullying by our coworkers because of our disability. We can make mistakes or do something “wrong” because we weren’t given clear enough instructions or misunderstood what we were told. Neurodivergents can be labelled as “difficult” for having strong senses of justice, asking questions in a way that can be viewed as insuboridination, and being straightforward, direct communicators. We even be fired for revealing our diagnosis!

This is because recruiting and most employment is built solely with neurotypicals in mind. Assessment questions and responses are written in ways that neurotypicals will understand. Interviews and jobs are designed and conducted without considering the needs of candidates with disabilities. And workers and bosses automatically assume their new team member is neurotypical and get confused when that’s not the case. Many workplaces don’t have sensitivity training - or really, any kind of training - for employees to work effectively and cooperatively with peers who have disabilities. Unfortunately, all of this results in the problems I outlined above.

When I was laid off from my first job out of college, it took me an incredibly long time to find my next role. This is largely because my difficulty with speaking, my fidgeting, my lack of ability to maintain eye contact, and other habits I have because of autism meant I didn’t interview well. This meant that the interviewers assumed I wasn’t a good fit for the role and would turn me down without stopping to consider my disability and how it may affect my performance. There were also multiple assessments I failed because I didn’t understand a question or the “correct” answer wasn’t clear to me. So I bounced around between multiple part-time jobs, but didn’t stay because they were poor fits for me. And then when I did find my next full-time role, I found it was poorly suited for a neurodivergent person like myself. This plus bullying from my coworkers caused me to quit. I’ll go into more detail in another post.

Less Support Needed in School and Workplaces

It’s not just recruiting and jobs themselves that are built solely for neurotypicals, workplaces are as well. Same with schools. Many offices, schools, and blue collar spaces are designed for the use, comfort and focus of “normal” people without considering the needs of those with disabilities. Everything from wall colors, the amount of windows, and lighting to the type and texture of furniture and carpets is designed from the perspective of a neurotypical.

Unfortunately, this means that these environments can be very uncomfortable for neurodivergents with autism and sensory processing disorder. Visual stimuli such as bright, flashing flourescent lights and clutter can be overwhelming. Background noises such as people talking, A/C units humming, and chairs scraping can cause distraction or overstimulation, as can more overt sounds such as fire alarms, intercoms and school bells. Reactions to tactile stimuli can come from uncomfortable uniforms or other attire, bumping into others in crowded spaces, and scratchy fabrics on seats. Strong perfumes, food scents, cleaning chemicals, and other scents can be difficult to process. And lastly, an office or classroom can be too hot or too cold for a neurodivergent with interoceptive triggers.

Neurodivergents in schools and workplaces also rely on special tools, equipment, and procedures to keep up with their neurotypical peers. This can include recording devices, assisted note taking, visual aides, text to speech, taking tests in separate rooms, working in distraction-free environments, and more.

Some of the accommodations I’ve used include extended time on tests and assignments, taking exams in a separate room free from distractions, and using noise-cancelling headphones in enivronments with lots of auditory stimulation or distractions. Thanks to these accommodations, I was able to succeed throughout school and be productive in my previous roles.

Positive Representation and Role Models in Media

In every movie, TV show, comic, video game, and other form of entertainment, there’s always at least one neurotypical character portrayed in a positive role. The protagonist, the hero, the one you feel sympathy for, etc. And as our world diversifies, we’re seeing a growing number of these neurotypical protagonists become people outside of the “white, straight male” mold these roles have been occupied by for so long. Protagonists and other main character roles are increasingly being held by different races, genders, sexualities, nationalities, and backgrounds.

But finding positive, consistent representation of people with disabilities in the media is like finding a needle in a haystack. Even in today’s world, the only time we see disabled characters is when they’re the butt of a joke or they appear one time for the main character to “learn a lesson” and are never seen again. Autism is beginning to appear more in media in fictional and nonfictional shows, as we’ve seen in Love On the Spectrum, Elsbeth, and The Extraordinary Attorney Wu. But there’s more to neurodivergence than just autism. And even then, neurodivergence is only one part of the disability community. There’s still large numbers of people who don’t see themselves in the media because they’re being overlooked.

Finally, misrepresentation is an issue for neurodivergents and people with other disabilities. A lot of times, media producers don’t actually do research on disability or ask us about our condition, they just go with whatever sounds right. This results in depictions that are inaccurate at best, offensive at worst. Notice how many villains in media are depicted as schizophrenic or having a similar condition? Not to mention shows like Rain Man and The Big Bang Theory making autism a joke or something for audiences to laugh at.

Growing up, I saw plenty of female representation in the movies and shows I watched and the Pokémon games I played. But there was no autism representation. With this plus being the only autistic person in my entire family, community, and through most of school years, I felt incredibly alone and like no one really understood or related to me. I had no one like me to look up to or guide me, so I had to figure out everything either by myself or using neurotypical advice. It wasn’t until a few years ago I finally saw someone like myself on TV. And while I’m glad to see a rising representation of autism and neurodivergence in the media I consume, there’s still a long way to go and a lot that Hollywood needs to learn.

These are only a few examples of neurotypical privilege. And this post isn’t to shame any of my neurotypical readers or claim that neurodivergents are superior, because I’m definitely not about that. My goal is, by comparing and contrasting the experiences of neurotypicals against the neurodivergent experience, you guys will become more aware of some of the day-to-day struggles we face. And now that you know, you can start to look for other ways our world favors “normal” people at the expense of the disabled. You can create small changes in your life to make the world around you more equitable for the people with disabilities in your circle. And you can help us fight for a world that’s more inclusive, accessible, accepting, and equitable for us all.