Towards Aligned, Responsive, and Rigorous Appraisal of Neurodiversity Affirming Mental Health Research: The Neurodiversity Appraisal Tool (NeuDAT )

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Hoare, E., Harrison, M., Timperley, S., Riordan, J., Rowlings, J., Hedley, D., Brown, C. M., Bennett, B., John, T., Upward, K., Weir, E. M., Olive, L., Hall, K., Runswick, O. R., Swettenham, L. D., & McGinty-Minister, K. (2026). Towards Aligned, Responsive, and Rigorous Appraisal of Neurodiversity Affirming Mental Health Research: The Neurodiversity Appraisal Tool (NeuDAT ). Neurodiversity, 4. https://doi.org/10.1177/27546330261464728

Publication date: 1 Jul 2026 Added to AutiHub: 7 Aug 2026 Type: Article Article language: English
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Authors

Publication authors
16
Publication authors identified as autistic
1 / 16 (6.2%)
  1. Erin Hoare
  2. Matthew Harrison
  3. Sarah Timperley
  4. Jessica Riordan
  5. Jessica Rowlings
  6. Darren Hedley
  1. Claire M Brown
  2. Bindi Bennett
  3. Tayla John *
  4. Kisani Upward
  5. Elizabeth M Weir
  6. Lisa Olive
  1. Kate Hall
  2. Oliver R Runswick
  3. Laura D Swettenham
  4. Kristin McGinty-Minister

Abstract

The concept of neurodiversity has gained rapid scholarly, clinical, and broad community momentum. This includes the inclusion of understanding neurodiversity approaches as a new mandated competency for Australian psychologists to gain and maintain registration to practice. Consensus regarding the core conceptual features and effective application of neurodiversity affirming principles in research is evolving, and the field lacks a standardized tool to guide the interpretation, appraisal, and assessment of neurodiversity affirming mental health research. This includes moving beyond narrow Western ontologies of neurodiversity that often prevail in contemporary scholarship. Moreover, policymakers require guidance on the creation of inclusive policies that are aligned with neurodiversity-affirming best practices, which include trauma-informed care and commitment to cultural responsivity. Above all, it is imperative that neurodivergent people and communities continuously benefit from, shape the priorities of, and remain centralized. This includes ensuring neurodiversity affirming approaches do not reinforce colonial assumptions about independence, productivity, and normative functioning. In this Community Perspective, we draw upon our collective researcher-clinician-lived-experience expertise to synthesize current neurodiversity conceptual evidence and distil key principles for the application to mental health research. The resulting Neurodiversity Appraisal Tool (NeuDAT ) is a qualitative instrument to guide clinicians, educators, policymakers, researchers, and other evidence consumers in appraising neurodiversity research.

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Cited references
54
Total cited references integrated for this publication.
Cited references with an identified autistic author
13 / 54 (24.1%)
Cited author occurrences identified as autistic
18 / 220 (8.2%)
Among occurrences linked to AutiHub author records: 18 / 84 (21.4%). Distinct cited authors identified as autistic: 18 / 219 (8.2%).
Cited author occurrences linked to AutiHub author records
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Distinct linked cited authors: 84 / 219 (38.4%)
Linked cited-author occurrences not identified as autistic
66 / 84 (78.6%)
Among linked cited-author occurrences only. Across all cited-author occurrences: 66 / 220 (30.0%). Distinct linked cited authors not identified as autistic: 66 / 84 (78.6%).
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