Mapping Clinical Diagnoses Associated With Neurodiversity and Neurodivergence in Mental Health Research

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

About the autistic author marker

Metadata sources used for this reference

OpenAlex Crossref BibTeX
Learn more about the sources used

Bellato, A., Long, M. R. P., Barilà, M., Frigeri, G., Rizzo, L., Serafino, S., Bilbow, A., Hovén, N., Baranger, A., Cirrincione, P., Ke, Y., Langdown, C., Li, J., Lipscombe, S., Ribeiro, J., Sgariboldi, E., Chellappa, S. L., Michelini, G., Margari, L.,..., & Cortese, S. (2026). Mapping Clinical Diagnoses Associated With Neurodiversity and Neurodivergence in Mental Health Research. JAMA Psychiatry. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2026.2851

Publication date: 16 Sep 2026 Added to AutiHub: 26 Oct 2026 Type: Article Article language: English
Publisher source (DOI) OpenAlex source

This publication is integrated into AutiHub through:

Authors

Publication authors
22
Publication authors identified as autistic
1 / 22 (4.5%)
  1. Alessio Bellato
  2. Martine R. P. Long
  3. Morena Barilà
  4. Giorgia Frigeri
  5. Luigi Rizzo
  6. Sabrina Serafino
  7. Andrea Bilbow
  8. Nina Hovén
  1. Aurelie Baranger
  2. Pietro Cirrincione *
  3. Yiling Ke
  4. Conni Langdown
  5. Jing Li
  6. Sophia Lipscombe
  7. Julia Ribeiro
  8. Emma Sgariboldi
  1. Sarah L. Chellappa
  2. Giorgia Michelini
  3. Lucia Margari
  4. Emilia Matera
  5. Maria Giuseppina Petruzzelli
  6. Samuele Cortese

Abstract

Importance The terms neurodivergence and neurodiversity are increasingly used across mental health and broader clinical literature, as well as in clinical practice, clinical service commissioning, and policy contexts, despite their lack of clinical and diagnostic specificity. Objective To quantitively map clinical diagnoses associated with the terms neurodivergence and neurodiversity in the empirical mental health literature through a scoping review conducted with experts with lived experience. Evidence Review Following JBI methods and the PRISMA extension for scoping reviews, PubMed/Medline, Web of Science, Embase, and PsycINFO were searched up to August 1, 2025, and identified 134 studies including 151 134 participants that recruited participants defined as neurodivergent or neurodiverse. Findings Participants were primarily identified through self-reported diagnoses (n = 56 [41.8%]) or self-identification (n = 50 [37.3%]). A heterogeneous range of diagnoses was associated with neurodivergence and neurodiversity, most commonly autism (n = 92 [68.7%]), followed by ADHD (n = 86 [64.2%]), dyslexia (n = 44 [32.8%]), dyspraxia (n = 21 [15.7%]), anxiety disorder (n = 20 [14.9%]), and dyscalculia (n = 17 [12.7%]). Notably, 29 studies (21.6%) did not specify any clinical diagnoses. Conclusions and relevance While neurodivergence and neurodiversity are valuable for capturing lived experience, their lack of specificity may introduce substantial heterogeneity in research focused on clinical categories. These findings suggest prioritizing precise diagnostic descriptors in clinical practice and research involving clinically defined conditions, while reserving neurodivergent for studies and contexts focused on self-identification and identity.

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: 27 Oct 2026 06:41.

Cited references
35
With a DOI
31
Without a DOI, from raw bibliography text
4
12 / 35 (34.3%) cited references include at least one author identified as autistic.
References with data to complete
1 / 35 (2.9%)
References with detected author names
34 / 35 (97.1%)
Without detected author names
1
Without a structured title
1
Without a stable identifier
4
References with raw author names still to review
1
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
226
From DOI or external metadata
226
From validated raw bibliography text
0
Raw names already validated
0
Raw names still to review
1
84 / 226 (37.2%) names are linked to an author already present in AutiHub. 142 / 226 (62.8%) names are not yet linked.
Names linked to a person identified as autistic
28 / 226 (12.4%)
Calculated across all author names detected in the cited bibliography. Among names linked to an author already present in AutiHub: 28 / 84 (33.3%). Distinct people identified as autistic: 21 / 200 (10.5%).
  1. Thomas Insel , Bruce Cuthbert , Marjorie Garvey , Robert Heinssen , Daniel S. Pine , Kevin Quinn et al. (2010). Research domain criteria (RDoC): toward a new classification framework for research on mental disorders. Am J Psychiatry, 167(7), 748. American Psychiatric Association Publishing.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1176/appi.ajp.2010.09091379 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W1977465442
    Crossref OpenAlex
  3. Roman Kotov , Robert F. Krueger , David Watson , Thomas M. Achenbach , Robert R. Althoff , R. Michael Bagby et al. (2017). The Hierarchical Taxonomy of Psychopathology (HiTOP): a dimensional alternative to traditional nosologies. J Abnorm Psychol, 126(4), 454. American Psychological Association (APA).
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1037/abn0000258 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2599264051
    Crossref OpenAlex
  5. Andrea C. Tricco , Erin Lillie , Wasifa Zarin , Kelly K. O'Brien , Heather Colquhoun , Danielle Levac et al. (2018). PRISMA Extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR): Checklist and Explanation . Annals of Internal Medicine, 169(7), 467-473. American College of Physicians.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.7326/m18-0850 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W2891378911
    Crossref OpenAlex
  8. Edmund J.S. Sonuga-Barke (2023). Paradigm ‘flipping’ to reinvigorate translational science: outlining a neurodevelopmental science framework from a ‘neurodiversity’ perspective. J Child Psychol Psychiatry, 64(10), 1405. Wiley.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1111/jcpp.13886 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W4386725779
    Crossref OpenAlex
  9. Giorgia Michelini , Isabella M. Palumbo , Colin G. DeYoung , Robert D. Latzman , Roman Kotov (2021). Linking RDoC and HiTOP: a new interface for advancing psychiatric nosology and neuroscience. Clin Psychol Rev, 86, 102025. Elsevier BV.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1016/j.cpr.2021.102025 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W3136402846
    Crossref OpenAlex
  10. Raul Miranda‐Ojeda , Anuksha Wickramasinghe , Georgios Ntolkeras , Isabel Castanho , Walid Yassin (2025). The neurodiversity framework in medicine: on the spectrum. Dev Neurobiol, 85(1), e22960-e22960. Wiley.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1002/dneu.22960 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W4406897434
    Crossref OpenAlex
  11. Uta Frith (2021). When diagnosis hampers research. Autism Res, 14(10), 2235. Wiley.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1002/aur.2578 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W3179407619
    Crossref OpenAlex
  12. Alessio Bellato , Asilay Seker (2025). Towards a more inclusive child and adolescent mental health research: bridging gaps through neuro-affirmative, transdiagnostic, and participatory frameworks. JCPP Adv, 5(2), e70015-e70015. Wiley.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1002/jcv2.70015 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W4410436554
    Crossref OpenAlex
  13. Carlos Hoyos , Samuele Cortese (2023). Beyond diagnosis: formulation-storytelling and maps. J Am Acad Child Adolesc Psychiatry, 62(2), 120. Elsevier BV.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1016/j.jaac.2022.06.008 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W4283697381
    Crossref OpenAlex
  15. Sarah E. Morris , Charles A. Sanislow , Jenni Pacheco , Uma Vaidyanathan , Joshua A. Gordon , Bruce N. Cuthbert (2022). Revisiting the seven pillars of RDoC. BMC Med, 20(1), 220. Springer Science and Business Media LLC.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1186/s12916-022-02414-0 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W4283739351
    Crossref OpenAlex
  16. Sarah L. Chellappa (2026). Exploring neurodiversity through an intersectional lens. Neurosci Biobehav Rev, 183, 106567. Elsevier BV.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2026.106567 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W7124834193
    Crossref OpenAlex
  20. Sarah L. Chellappa (2025). Addressing multiple neurodivergent identities in clinical and research settings. Lancet Child Adolesc Health, 9(1), 5. Elsevier BV.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1016/s2352-4642(24)00261-x OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W4404478740
    Crossref OpenAlex
  22. Paula Wurth , Anselm BM Fuermaier , Anne Hege Strand , Lisa B. Thorell (2025). Diagnosis acceptance, masking, and perceived benefits and challenges in adults with ADHD and ASD: associations with quality of life. Front Psychiatry, 16, 1668780-1668780. Frontiers Media SA.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1668780 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W4415214208
    Crossref OpenAlex
  23. Giorgia Michelini , Christina O. Carlisi , Nicholas R. Eaton , Jed T. Elison , John D. Haltigan , Roman Kotov et al. (2024). Where do neurodevelopmental conditions fit in transdiagnostic psychiatric frameworks? Incorporating a new neurodevelopmental spectrum. World Psychiatry, 23(3), 333. Wiley.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1002/wps.21225 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W4402554800
    Crossref OpenAlex
  24. Neha Deshpande , Siddhi Nair , Elise Taylor , Eus J.W. Van Someren , Sarah L. Chellappa (2026). Associations of autistic traits, sleep/circadian factors, and mental health in a community-based survey study. J Affect Disord, 398, 121019. Elsevier BV.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2025.121019 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W7116706020
    Crossref OpenAlex
  25. Tomoya Hirota , Keun-Ah Cheon , Meng-Chuan Lai (2024). Neurodiversity paradigms and their development across cultures: some reflections in East Asian contexts. Autism, 28(11), 2685. SAGE Publications.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1177/13623613241285678 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W4403195917
    Crossref OpenAlex
  26. Siddhi Nair , Neha Deshpande , Catherine Hill , Samuele Cortese , Eus J W Van Someren , Sarah L. Chellappa (2025). Associations of ADHD traits, sleep/circadian factors, depression and quality of life. BMJ Ment Health, 28(1), e301625. BMJ.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1136/bmjment-2025-301625 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W4412411847
    Crossref OpenAlex
  29. Maria Giuseppina Petruzzelli , Emilia Matera , Lucia Margari , Lucia Marzulli , Alessandra Gabellone , Chiara Cotugno et al. (2026). An update on the comorbidity of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and its clinical management. Expert Rev Neurother, 26(1), 75. Informa UK Limited.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1080/14737175.2025.2599856 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W4417292627
    Crossref OpenAlex
  30. Blandine French , Tycho J Dekkers , Isabella Barclay , Melissa H. Black , Sven Bölte , David Daley et al. (2025). The power of words: respectful language in ADHD research. Lancet Psychiatry, 12(12), 876. Elsevier BV.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.1016/s2215-0366(25)00167-1 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W4412534284
    Crossref OpenAlex
  31. Alice Newton , Aidan Flinn , James Downs , Laura Richmond (2025). Rethinking self-identification in neurodivergent communities: barriers, harms, and the need for change. Front Child Adolesc Psychiatry, 4, 1682129-1682129. Frontiers Media SA.
    Type: Article DOI: 10.3389/frcha.2025.1682129 OpenAlex: https://openalex.org/W4415120973
    Crossref OpenAlex
  32. Singer (2017). NeuroDiversity: The birth of an idea . Neurodiversity: The Birth of an Idea.
    Type: Other
    Crossref
  33. Amy S. Walker * (2014). Neurodiversity: Some Basic Terms & Definitions. Neuroqueer Heresies: Notes on the Neurodiversity Paradigm . Neurodiversity: Some Basic Terms & Definitions. Neuroqueer Heresies: Notes on the Neurodiversity Paradigm.
    Type: Other
    Crossref
  34. Peters (2015). Methodology for JBI scoping reviews. The Joanna Briggs institute reviewers manual 2015 . Methodology for JBI scoping reviews. The Joanna Briggs institute reviewers manual 2015, 3.
    Type: Other
    Crossref
  35. (n.d.). Bellato? A. Mapping clinical diagnoses associated with the use of neurodiversity and neurodivergence terminology in psychiatric and psychological research: a scoping review Accessed August 14, 2026. https://osf.io/pkcwn
    Type: Other
    Crossref