Words Matter! What language should I use to describe differences?
People often ask me about proper language to use when talking about disability. There are a lot of outdated resources out there, a lot that are not actually written by disabled people, and many that are good but lengthy. As an ADHDer and educational psychologist who has taught this stuff for a while, this is my attempt at a short, up-to-date guide of the essentials. It is imperfect I’m sure, but a good start.
How should I describe differences?
Disability and being disabled: Though it’s generally agreed that these terms are preferable to ones like “handicapped,” the way they are used requires some thought. While some people readily refer to themselves as disabled or having a disability, and consider that a constant of their identity, others point out that in many cases it is not themselves that are disabled, but different environments or aspects of our society that, at times disable them. For instance, some would say that blindness is not a disability unless you are doing something or going somewhere that is not well set up for different levels of vision. Know that people will identify with the term “disability” in different ways, but that generally it’s an acceptable place to start.
Person-first language: Describing someone as a person first, who happens to have a certain characteristic or condition that does not necessarily define them. This approach was made popular in the 90s, but is now often criticized for framing neurodivergent individuals as having a condition, rather than empowering their identity. One often-cited argument is that you would not say “a person with Judaism,” or that you should not refer to something like autism in the same way you would cancer (“She has cancer”). Though many advocacy groups reject person-first language, some people still prefer it. It’s always best to ask someone how they want others to refer to them, and go with that.
Examples:
She’s a woman with a disability.
Do you have a kid with ADHD?
Person with autism
My son has bipolar disorder.
Identity-first language: Describing people as having a specific identity or being a specific kind of person, and centering that identity. Many people now prefer identity-first language to person-first language because it implies that their neurodivergence (see below) is not something to be ashamed of, or a condition they have, such as a disease, but a critical part of who they are and something to be empowered by.
Examples:
I’m an autistic writer.
My daughter is dyslexic.
He’s bipolar.
I’m an ADHDer.
Neurodiversity: Neurodiversity is the fact that there are all kinds of ways of thinking and being, and that this is a natural and essential truth of human existence. In contrast to the “pathology paradigm” or “medical model of disability” which view disability as a problem within the individual that must be treated and cured so they can be more “normal,” the “neurodiversity paradigm” recognizes that there is nothing wrong, that most problems arise because of inflexibility in the environment and in other people, and that it is the world that needs to adapt towards more ways of thinking and being, rather than the person adapting or changing. The “neurodiversity movement” advocates on behalf of this paradigm. A group of people is “neurodiverse” if there is a range of different ways of thinking represented among them.
Examples:
We celebrate neurodiversity at this school by pointing out all the different styles of learning our student body represents.
The neurodiversity paradigm argues that there is nothing wrong with having a disability.
Representatives of the neurodiversity movement are protesting for better workplace policies for all kinds of employees.
We are proud of having a neurodiverse staff here.
Neurodivergent (ND): A way to refer to someone whose brain seems to work outside of our narrow dominant societal definitions of “normal.” That person may have a diagnosis, such as autism, dyslexia, OCD, or ADHD, or simply choose to identify by this term.
Examples:
I identify as neurodivergent.
I want to make our workplace more comfortable for neurodivergent employees.
She’s a great teacher for students who have any kind of neurodivergence.
Neurotypical (NT): Someone who does not identity as neurodivergent, who’s brain seems to function within societal definitions of “normal.”
Examples:
As a neurotypical, it’s important for me to adapt to the approaches of others rather than expecting everyone to think and feel as I do.
How does this math lesson assume that all students are neurotypical?
Ableism: Discrimination in favor of non-disabled people.
Why wouldn’t I say….
Special needs? If we consider nuerodiversity to be a fact, then the needs of a neurodivergent person are not special, but reasonable and necessary.
Normal? There is no normal. You can say neurotypical or non-disabled.
Disorder? This is the medical model talking. Having different ways of attending, for example, is not a disorder that needs to be cured, but something to embrace.
Where can I learn more?
Neurodiversity: Some Basic Terms and Definitions, by Nick Walker
