Friendships, fear, and (double) empathy: an ethnography of social care services for autistic people with high support needs

The neurodiversity paradigm, and associated concepts like the double empathy problem, are increasingly changing the way we do and think about autism research. Yet very little has been done to apply these concepts to autistic people with intellectual disabilities and/or higher support needs. This talk will cover the research findings from an ethnographic study of two day-support services for autistic adults with high support needs, through a neurodiversity paradigm lens. Specifically, we will look at the social dynamics, interactions, and communication between (autistic and non-autistic) staff, the supported (autistic) people, and the (autistic) researcher – and, specifically, how mutual (mis)understandings across neurotypes influence these dynamics.