Experiencing Time in Academia

Authors

Abstract

This chapter examines two concepts of temporality: chrononormativity and kairos, through the author&s;s experience as a disabled PhD student diagnosed with Asperger&s;s syndrome in adulthood. Using autoethnography, it analyses how everyday academic practices at a public university in Czechia expose temporal expectations that conflict with neurodivergent ways of experiencing time. This chapter focuses on three key activities of doctoral study: meeting deadlines while writing academic texts, the role as a teacher in the classroom, and presenting at conferences. Each activity unfolds within its own form of crip spacetime, where my preferred temporal pace diverges from normative academic time, creating “collisions of time expectations.” These collisions demonstrate how rigid academic schedules and productivity norms can become disabling when they fail to accommodate temporal diversity. This chapter argues that extended time is one of the most effective accommodations, allowing me to work in line with the functioning of my mind and body rather than under constant pressure to meet standardised temporal demands. Drawing on concepts from the geography of disability and Margaret Price&s;s framework of crip spacetime, this chapter highlights how recognising multiple temporalities is essential for creating more accessible academic environments for neurodivergent scholars.

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