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Tips & resources for autistic members of the profession?

In our newest "how can we help you?" thread, a reader asks:

I'm an early-stage PhD student and I've recently realized that I'm autistic. (Official diagnosis is pending, but it explains a lot.) I think this is one of the many reasons I've been drawn to academia as a profession: it's a space where I'm valued for my special interests and so can be myself. At the same time, I think it's clear that being myself has its limits! Specifically, I think there's evidence that I've had a harder time than neurotypical others when it comes to the social side of academia. And those social challenges can have considerable impacts on my professional success more generally.

I can't find anything in the archive about this, so I wanted to ask: Any advice/resources/experiences from autistic people in the profession that they would be willing to share? Among the things I'm curious about: Have you had to mask certain parts of yourself to succeed socially in academia? How do you avoid burnout from masking, especially given how social academia can be? Would you advise disclosing that you are autistic in select professional contexts, or is the risk of stigma too great?

(N.B. Obviously not asking for general life advice, as this wouldn't be the right forum for that. I'm asking about how to succeed as an autistic person in the specific social/professional world of academic philosophy.)

These are all great and important question. Do any readers have any helpful insights or resources to share?

Posted in ,

8 responses to “Tips & resources for autistic members of the profession?”

  1. undisclosed

    Fellow autistic academic here. Things that OP’s questions bring to mind, in no particular order:
    -there are a lot of really welcoming people in philosophy. Don’t feel like you have to mask your entire personality to be accepted or successful. This job became a lot more enjoyable when I stopped masking into the person I thought I “should” be. I still mask when I’m around people I don’t know well, of course. But there’s a high quirk tolerance in our field, so don’t beat yourself up if you feel like you come off as awkward in an interaction.
    -with that said, people in general still have a very poor understanding of autism. Self-disclosure is a very personal issue, but I myself do not disclose. In fact, no one in the profession is aware of my diagnosis. I prefer to come off as just weird and blunt. FWIW, I am young and femme-presenting, and I therefore find that establishing my credibility can be difficult enough without adding ableism to the mix. OP’s situation may be different.If you do disclose, be prepared to field well-intentioned but awkward questions or comments. Also be prepared for people to still not understand.
    -conferences can be a lot. If funds permit, I recommend staying at the conference site (or as close as possible if it’s not at a hotel) in a private room so you can retreat from the socializing for a bit if needed. You might also consider cutting the conference short so as not to overextend yourself.
    -for whatever reason, I’ve found that it’s a lot easier to get accommodations by telling people what you need rather than why you need it. For example, I struggle with auditory processing. Instead of telling people “I struggle with auditory processing,” I instead ask conference speakers if they would be willing to share their paper or notes with me. Even those who don’t prepare a handout have always been happy to oblige.
    -if you don’t know yet, figure out what stimming looks like for you. Make sure that you allow yourself to engage in stimming behavior after teaching, conferences, or other social events. For me stimming looks like singing and dancing, so I have a jam session on the drive home and feel unbelievably better afterwards.

    Reply
  2. AS postodoc

    I think I’ve had experience at least close enough to what you’re describing, so I’ll write a few things about this.
    1. While it is easy to get the impression that many successful academics got where they are in part because they feel comfortable “putting themselves out there” and making many connections, I doubt that this is actually the case. I’ve met many philosophers who are either autistic too or at least too introverted to mask as something other than who they are. It makes sense that extroverted people are more noticeable, but that doesn’t imply there are more of them. So, anyway, this is just to say that you are not alone.
    2. I think it’s important to find at least one mentor who you can openly talk with about your experience (and the fact that you’re autistic) as well as the ways in which you are likely second-guessing yourself. Perhaps it’s good if that’s your advisor, but for me it was another department member. (My advisor was great philosophically, but from a generation where people did not talk about these problems as openly, I think.) I think some of the mentoring problems also allow you to ask about specific needs in advance, so this may be an option.
    3. As far as “networking” is concerned: it sucks, and it’s not really getting better. That said, I think what one needs is a relatively small network of people who are willing to do things like give you feedback on your work. (I don’t think they need to be “famous” people either.) I try to go to two conferences a year (which do require some amount of masking), but honestly it’s mostly so that my CV doesn’t raise any questions. Emailing people and asking them to discuss their/your work can be a good and relatively low-pain way to get in touch.
    4. If you’re worried about the fact that you will be expected to teach: I, at least, find this a lot easier because I have a lot of control over what will happen in a class (or section). I don’t “present” well, but there are planable class activities that work even despite this, and students are usually quite happy to accept that there are different types of teachers.

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  3. Jacob Joseph Andrews

    Another autistic philosopher 🙂
    YMMV, but personally I find it more helpful to think of the issue less in terms of masking but more on a skills paradigm (if you’re into such things, I’m channeling Confucius). There’s a skill to knowing how to behave in society, including how much or little of your thoughts and feelings to reveal at a time. Some people are are more skilled; for some, the expected thoughts/feelings come more easily to them than the others. I’m wired a little different, so I have to work harder at it. I find that way of thinking both empowering (it’s a challenge, not a barrier) and comforting (it’s not my fault if I find it more difficult than others do). But again, what works for me might not work for you.
    Conferences are definitely a challenge. I find it helpful to articulate ahead of time what I hope to get out of the conference socially (my wife taught me this trick): Is there a certain colleague I want to catch up with or someone whose acquaintance I want to make? Or if not, would I be satisfied if I had two or three meaningful conversations? That sounds a little cold I know, and I really try to avoid making those plans purely on the basis of calculated career moves (eg, one goal might be to connect with a grad student, or reach out to someone who’s standing alone). But what that means is that (A) during the conference, if I’m doing a good job with my goals I can give myself permission to disengage a bit without feeling like the conference was a waste of time/money, (B) at the end of the conference, I can tell myself I accomplished my goals, even if subjectively I feel like I was socially awkward or absent (otherwise I just default to assuming I was a social failure).

    Reply
  4. new to autism, not to grad school

    I also recently discovered that I’m (very likely) autistic (not yet diagnosed). And I also find the social aspects of the profession challenging. (More evidence that you’re not alone!)
    Others have already said some very helpful things, but I have one thing to add: at conferences, I find it super helpful to establish a routine for myself. For me, this looks like waking up extra early (not for some people, I know) and going on a long walk to a coffee shop, sitting down with coffee and a good book, and then only then making my way to the conference. Doing my own thing–a lot like what I would do at home–helps me feel grounded, prepared to face people. So, I recommend finding and implementing a routine that helps you feel grounded when you’re in a socially demanding context like a conference.

    Reply
  5. austistic academic migrant

    Hello, fellow autistic philosopher and early career person here. One thing that I wish someone had warned me about is how particularly overwhelming it can be for someone in our position to have to move every 1-2 years all around the country (or, in many cases, the world) for short-term postdocs and teaching gigs following the PhD. This is extremely difficult for allistic people as well, of course, but it can be uniquely awful and challenging for those of us who may have a harder time adjusting to new routines and are prone to becoming overstimulated when constantly having to uproot. I personally experienced debilitating burnout during my first postdoc for this reason, and the publication gap that ensued from that has hindered my ability to land a TT job years later.
    If I were to do it all over again I might have opted to take a less desirable job out of grad school that wouldn’t have required me to move so far and so often. Hopefully, of course, you are able to land something good right out of grad school. In the (increasingly likely) event that you aren’t so lucky, however, be wary of the typical advice from advisors who will tell you that you must be willing to move wherever for the sake of your career. Although well intentioned, this sort of advice tends to underestimate how difficult this can be for autistic people in particular.

    Reply
  6. FeelYourPain

    I am a social introvert, probably not autistic, but I, too, find socializing — even when I intensely enjoy it — very draining. And I’m weird and awkward in other ways, some of which make academia more hospitable to me than other professions. I’m willing to bet, then, that I present a lot like some of you. But I would never want to come out as autistic in the profession (again, I don’t think I am).
    The reason is, unfortunately, the way the condition is still understood in the profession, even by those who self-identify as having it (!). I have seen countless philosophers equate the condition with lacking (as opposed to failing to exhibit) pro-social internal emotional responses, like sympathy, empathy or a deep interest in the feelings of others. People with autism, it is claimed, don’t have these. Really!
    I won’t name names, but one senior ethicist recently spoke to a packed venue of how “even autistic” people can find ways to use moral reasoning to act ethically despite not feeling sympathy or empathy naturally. This person meant well, you could tell, but still! At another talk I attended recently, a self-identifying autistic philosopher spoke about the ways their type of mind is not good at realizing that unflattering appraisals of others’ work or thinking can be insulting and hurtful, because not good at knowing what hurts others.
    Even though I doubt I’m autistic, I feel strongly that these sorts of characterizations short-change, misdescribe and stigmatize neuro-atypical people — and that they’re common in the profession. It’s why I wouldn’t recommend disclosing, or at least not widely.
    The only exception, from my (limited) perspective, might be if you’re someone who often comes off as mean and offensive; that would be even more stigmatizing, and this label would (misleadingly) excuse that somewhat. But otherwise, I’d be wary of coming out.

    Reply
  7. Not the only one

    I think the advice that’s been given is great. I don’t have anything to add other than to say I share the experience. I thought academia was a good place for people who weren’t very social. I didn’t understand how crucial the social part of academia is. It is an ongoing challenge. I don’t know how to network, but know that I need to. Conferences, with the anxiety and sense of aloneness they can generate, are sometimes miserable. I’m bewildered by the fact that everyone at the conference seems to be with others and have meetups planned and have people to share every meal with. I feel very alone. The goal setting for conferences explained by Jacob above is helpful for me. It helps me be less harsh and accusatory towards myself after meeting my modest social goals. Auditory processing is also a challenge for me. I’m a big fan of conferences where people use live captioning. I have never disclosed my situation to others explicitly, though I suspect those who interact with me a few times clue in to it.

    Reply
  8. OP

    OP here: Thanks all for this extremely helpful advice. I really appreciate it!

    Reply

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