“This Is a Quiet Library, Except When It’s Not:” On the Lack of Neurodiversity Awareness in Librarianship

This publication is included in the Autistic Autism Scholarship Project. one author of this publication is identified as autistic in the project.

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Tumlin, Z. (2019). “This Is a Quiet Library, Except When It’s Not:” On the Lack of Neurodiversity Awareness in Librarianship. Music Reference Services Quarterly, 22(1-2), 3-17. https://doi.org/10.1080/10588167.2019.1575017

Publication date: 11 Feb 2019 Added to AutiHub: 2 Oct 2026 Type: Article Article language: English
Publisher source (DOI) OpenAlex source

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Authors

Publication authors
1
Publication authors identified as autistic
1 / 1 (100.0%)
  1. Zachary Tumlin *

Abstract

While much has been written about diversity, disability, and specific neurominorities in information studies and music, the subject of neurodiversity as a whole has remained relatively untouched since it first appeared 20 years ago. This paper briefly reviews what few pieces do exist, then begins to fill that gap by laying a foundation for future scholarship. The history and vocabulary of neurodiversity are outlined, concepts from Disability Studies are introduced (like identity-first language and models of disability), and neurodivergent voices (besides the author’s own) are promoted. The author would like to state that as a neurodivergent person, his writing style may not meet traditional (i.e., neurotypical) standards, especially those in academia, which can be a particularly exclusionary and ableist environment. While he does not wish to be a “bad writer,” he also does not believe in altering his authentic, disabled voice simply to make it more palatable for the able-bodied and minded. He would like to thank the editors of this journal for their inclusivity and encourage readers to always seek out and privilege the voices of self-advocates over advocates.

Bibliography cited by this reference

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Cited bibliography overview

These indicators describe the bibliography cited by this publication. An author name is counted each time it appears in one cited reference, so the same person can be counted more than once. Names not yet linked to an author already present in AutiHub are treated as unknown, not as non-autistic. Last computed: 28 Oct 2026 01:01.

Cited references
7
With a DOI
2
Without a DOI, from raw bibliography text
0
3 / 7 (42.9%) cited references include at least one author identified as autistic.
References with data to complete
0 / 7 (0.0%)
References with detected author names
7 / 7 (100.0%)
Without detected author names
0
Without a structured title
0
Without a stable identifier
0
References with raw author names still to review
0
References with external metadata lookup issues
0
These indicators apply to cited references displayed on this page, after technical duplicates have been merged. A reference without a DOI can still support author statistics when a title and author names are available.
Author names detected in the cited bibliography
13
From DOI or external metadata
13
From validated raw bibliography text
0
Raw names already validated
0
Raw names still to review
0
5 / 13 (38.5%) names are linked to an author already present in AutiHub. 8 / 13 (61.5%) names are not yet linked.
Names linked to a person identified as autistic
4 / 13 (30.8%)
Calculated across all author names detected in the cited bibliography. Among names linked to an author already present in AutiHub: 4 / 5 (80.0%). Distinct people identified as autistic: 4 / 13 (30.8%).
  1. Thomas Armstrong (2010). Neurodiversity: Discovering the extraordinary gifts of autism, ADHD, dyslexia, and other brain differences .
    Type: Book OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W73173889
    OpenAlex
  2. Donna Williams * (1994). Somebody Somewhere: Breaking Free from the World of Autism .
    Type: Book OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W584370611
    OpenAlex
  3. Jim Sinclair * (2013). Why I Dislike “Person First” Language . Autonomy, the Critical Journal of Interdisciplinary Autism Studies, 1(2), 1.
    Type: Article OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W1829568558
    OpenAlex
  4. Alice Eng (2017). Neurodiversity in the Library: One Librarian's Experience . DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals).
    Type: Article OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2773933585
    OpenAlex
  5. Michael B. Bakan , Mara Chasar * , Graeme Gibson , Elizabeth J. Grace * , Zena Hamelson , Dotan Nitzberg et al. (2018). Speaking for ourselves: Conversations on life, music, and autism . Speaking for ourselves: Conversations on life, music, and autism.
    Type: Article OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W3016128488
    OpenAlex
  6. Silberman S. (2016). Neurotribes: the legacy of autism and the future of neurodiversity . Choice Reviews Online, 53(08), 53-3753-53-3753. American Library Association.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.5860/choice.194735 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W3152449083
    OpenAlex
  7. Mike Oliver (2023). The social model of disability . In Social Work (pp. 137-140). Routledge.
    Type: Book chapter DOI: 10.4324/9781003178699-26 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W4320497077
    OpenAlex