Neurodiversity is now a common word in HR teams and boardrooms, but it is often used loosely. This guide explains what it means, where it came from, the terms that go with it and why it matters at work.
What is neurodiversity?
Neurodiversity means the natural variation in how human brains work: how people think, learn, process information, communicate and experience the world. Just as biodiversity describes variety in nature, neurodiversity recognises that there is no single “correct” kind of brain.
Under this view, differences such as autism, ADHD and dyslexia are part of normal human variation rather than faults to be fixed. That does not mean they never bring difficulties. It means many of those difficulties come from a world built around one way of thinking, and they can be reduced by changing the environment. Acas guidance on neurodiversity at work uses the same framing for employers.
Where does the term come from?
The word “neurodiversity” first appeared in print in 1998, in work by the Australian sociologist Judy Singer and in an article by the American journalist Harvey Blume. Singer has described herself as likely somewhere on the autistic spectrum, and her thinking grew out of online autistic communities and the wider disability rights movement.
The idea spread quickly among autistic people and then across the wider neurodivergent community. Today the neurodiversity movement covers many conditions and argues that the goal should be acceptance and support, not cure.
Which conditions are included?
There is no fixed list, but the conditions most often included are:
- autism
- ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder)
- dyslexia
- dyspraxia, also known as developmental coordination disorder
- dyscalculia
- Tourette syndrome
Some people also include other neurological or mental health conditions, and there is ongoing debate about where the boundaries sit. Many people have more than one of these, and every individual is different. Our guide to how neurodiversity shows up at work describes what these differences can look like day to day.
Neurodivergent, neurodiverse and neurotypical
These words are often mixed up, so here is how we use them.
Neurodivergent
A neurodivergent person is someone whose brain works differently from what society treats as typical, whether or not they have a formal diagnosis. The term was coined by the autistic activist Kassiane Asasumasu in 2000.
Neurodiverse
Neurodiverse describes a group. A team, a workforce or a country is neurodiverse because it includes people whose brains work in different ways. An individual person is neurodivergent rather than neurodiverse.
Neurotypical
Neurotypical describes someone whose thinking and processing fall within what society treats as typical. The word came from the autistic community as a way to describe non-autistic people.
The neurodiversity movement and the neurodiversity paradigm
The neurodiversity movement is a social justice movement. It seeks rights, respect, equal access and inclusion for neurodivergent people, and it builds on the social model of disability, which says people are disabled largely by barriers in society rather than by their differences.
The neurodiversity paradigm is the way of thinking behind the movement, a term developed by the autistic scholar Nick Walker. It holds that variation between brains is natural and valuable, and that there is no single right way for a brain to work. Problems arise when workplaces, schools and services are designed around one kind of mind and expect everyone else to adapt.
Why it matters at work
A meaningful share of every workforce is neurodivergent, and many people will not have told their employer, as we explain in our article on neurodivergent employees you might not know about. When organisations design recruitment, management and workspaces with different minds in mind, they get more from the people they already have and widen the pool they can hire from.
For more depth, read our guides to neurodiversity in the workplace, ADHD in the workplace and autism in the workplace, or look back at the history of autism to see how thinking has changed.
How Enna can help
If your organisation is new to neurodiversity, our Neurodiversity 101 workshop gives staff a clear and current introduction, and the Neurodiversity Deep Dive goes further for teams ready to change how they work. To see how far along you already are, try our neuroinclusion maturity assessment.
Neurodivergent and job hunting? Our jobs board lists roles with employers who are serious about neuroinclusion.
