Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Date of Degree

6-2024

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Ph.D.

Program

Psychology

Advisor

Kristen Gillespie-Lynch

Advisor

Jennifer E. Drake

Committee Members

Patricia Brooks

Zorana Ivcevic

Sinéad O'Brien

Subject Categories

Developmental Psychology

Keywords

autism, creativity, neurodiversity-affirming, art

Abstract

Neurodiversity-affirmative autism frameworks present a shift from deficit-based models of autism to the recognition that autism is but one of many facets of biodiversity that should be affirmed and embraced. However, there is little research examining links between creativity and autism that has adopted a neurodiversity-affirming approach. The dissertation aimed to expand upon the nascent interdisciplinary link between neurodiversity-affirmative autism research and creativity to 1) understand the creative experiences of autistic adolescents and young adults and 2) address the critical issue of chronic unemployment faced by autistic people.

The first study examined the perspectives of autistic adolescents and young adults in game design and employment workshops in 2022 and 2023 on creativity and compared their experiences of creative engagement inside and outside of informal learning environments. The second study examined whether the systematic integration and evaluation of a creativity framework (the Engineering Design Process or “EDP”) in these workshops can help autistic adolescents build creativity awareness and important skills for creativity. The third and final study explored how the arts and creative methodologies can be used to (a) conduct neurodiversity-affirming participatory research with autistic young adults and (b) begin to address the employment gap through the exploration of work skills.

These studies highlight the importance of learning directly from autistic people about their experiences of creativity. By prioritizing their insights, interests, needs, and v recommendations, we can begin to illuminate the untapped potential of creativity and novel methodologies to address the needs and priorities of autistic people more effectively.

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