Assume nothing

There is no comprehensive set of attributes, limits, interventions or work accommodations that make information intelligible for all people.

Reliance on published research assumes a level of scientific rigor that may not be warranted.

Apart from different population sets, publication years, and audiences, assessments are inherently misleading because the studied population is not random.

Some reasons for this include:

• Most people don’t seek diagnosis given trait severity, social norms and financial constraints

• Educators rate behaviors as problematic based on their own comfort levels with racial, gender, social, and political communities

• Research rarely acknowledges the effect of co-occurring conditions, often conflating low & high trait intensity in subjects

• Conclusions inappropriately generalize results of US white, upper-middle class, cis males to explain all ages, races, genders, and income levels worldwide.

Best Practices

• Actively seek feedback on your communication skills from a variety of people.

• Question research that generalizes conclusions beyond the population studied.

• Challenge findings that are funded by private, non-educational institutions.

• Never require formal diagnoses to justify inclusive communications as standard practice.