‘It's Not Supposed to be a Personality Factory'

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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Deacon, L., Bikova, Z., Deacon, M., Thurgood, Y., & Barrett, M. (2025). ‘It's Not Supposed to be a Personality Factory'. In Neurodivergent Education and Lifelong Learning (pp. 1-22). IGI Global Scientific Publishing. https://doi.org/10.4018/979-8-3693-8044-4.ch001 · ISBN : 9798369380444

Publication date: 8 Aug 2025 Added to AutiHub: 13 Oct 2026 Type: Book chapter Article language: English
Publisher source (DOI) OpenAlex source

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Authors

Publication authors
5
Publication authors identified as autistic
1 / 5 (20.0%)
  1. Lesley Deacon *
  2. Zeta Bikova
  3. Matt Deacon
  4. Yasmin Thurgood
  5. Melanie Barrett

Abstract

This chapter presents findings from a collaborative narrative conducted in October 2024, involving parent-carers of neurodivergent children, some of whom are neurodivergent themselves. Utilizing a collaborative autoethnography approach, the narrative emphasizes the importance of making all voices heard in Neurodiversity Studies and challenges stereotyped understandings of neurodivergence. The narrative explores parent-carers' experiences navigating the UK education system, highlighting the challenges faced by neurodivergent children and their families. The chapter examines the impact of inclusive education policies and the role of Special Educational Needs Coordinators (SENCOs) in supporting neurodivergent children. The narrative also addresses the rigidity of the education system and the trauma experienced by neurodivergent children due to lack of understanding and support. The chapter concludes with recommendations for teachers, SENCOs, and policymakers to create a more inclusive and supportive education environment.

Bibliography cited by this reference

Cited references are imported from external metadata sources when they are available. The list may be partial.

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: 17 Oct 2026 10:35.

Cited references
58
With a DOI
21
Without a DOI, from raw bibliography text
33
9 / 58 (15.5%) cited references include at least one author identified as autistic.
References with data to complete
25 / 58 (43.1%)
References with detected author names
42 / 58 (72.4%)
Without detected author names
16
Without a structured title
25
Without a stable identifier
32
References with raw author names still to review
13
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
81
From DOI or external metadata
81
From validated raw bibliography text
0
Raw names already validated
0
Raw names still to review
15
23 / 81 (28.4%) names are linked to an author already present in AutiHub. 58 / 81 (71.6%) names are not yet linked.
Names linked to a person identified as autistic
12 / 81 (14.8%)
Calculated across all author names detected in the cited bibliography. Among names linked to an author already present in AutiHub: 12 / 23 (52.2%). Distinct people identified as autistic: 7 / 76 (9.2%).
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