Creating libraries where neurodiverse workers can thrive
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A lightning talk on neurodiversity in the library and archives workplace. Includes ways that people with autism, ADHD, dyslexia, and Tourette's syndrome can advocate for themselves and/or support others with invisible differences / disabilities in professional contexts.
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Creating libraries where neurodiverse workers can thrive
- 1. Creating libraries where neurodiverse workers can thrive A lightning talk on #neurodivlibs for LAUC-B 2021 Celia Emmelhainz @glamthropology Erin Pappas @erin_pappas
- 3. of Americans are neurodiverse. 10-20%
- 4. of disabilities are invisible. 90%
- 5. neurodiverse workers are unemployed / underemployed. Many
- 7. Neurodiverse library workers may struggle to: - Interpret social cues (autism) - Follow unwritten rules (autism) - Focus appropriately (attention deficit) - Suppress tics (Tourette’s) - Process written text/#s (dyslexia, dyscalculia) - Write by hand (dysgraphia, dyspraxia) - Ignore unwanted sounds (misophonia) - Process emotions (autistic meltdowns, alexithymia) - Process environment (auditory/sensory processing)
- 9. You don’t have to disclose! Not all workplaces are safe. *but you may be eligible for some protections under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
- 10. Ask for accommodations: Remote / compressed schedule Glare-reducing film on screens Dimmer-switches on lamps Noise cancelling headphones Private space to decompress
- 11. To be a better ally...
- 12. Read up on neurodivergence in the workplace: www.vice.com/en/article/wjvd9q/offices-can-be-hell-for-people-whose-brains-work-differently
- 13. Counter stereotypes Don’t doubt someone’s hidden disability (“oh, you don’t look…”) Don’t diagnose others, or ask for a disclosure! https://twitter.com/Siennapup1024/status/1294693677365772288
- 15. Advocate for equitable policies and practices: - Train staff and hiring committees on neurodiversity. - Evaluate candidates on skills rather than social charm. - Develop explicit written criteria for hiring and promotion. - Give questions / virtual walkthrough in advance of interviews. - Assign mentors to help new hires learn your social norms. [Do you have other tips? Tweet them using #neurodivlibs!]
- 16. Learn more: New book: LIS Interrupted: Mental Illness and Library Work Ebook: Creative Differences: embracing neurodiversity Report/podcast: Designing Neurodiverse-Friendly Workplaces Video series: How to ADHD Support groups: Autistics in Libraries, Autistic Adults with ADHD, Adult Dyslexia Check out related memes at: bit.ly/neuromeme ...and, share your favorite resources with hashtag: #neurodivlibs!
Editor's Notes
- [Celia] My name is Celia Emmelhainz, and I’m here with Erin Pappas. We’re academic librarians, and identify as ADHD and/or on the autism spectrum. About five years ago, my friend Casey* called to ask about a mutual friend who had just interviewed with their library. “Do you think they even want this job?” Casey asked me. “They didn’t seem excited, and they didn’t write us a handwritten thank-you note.” I was surprised. What Casey didn’t realize is that they were enacting an implicit bias. They were expecting candidates to know a set of unwritten social rules and to perform outward expressiveness in order to get hired -- an expectation that could have a disparate impact on candidates on the autism spectrum, and on other neurodiverse workers. So how do you avoid this, and help shape your library into a place where neurodiverse people can thrive? That’s what we’re here today to talk about.
- [Erin] By neurodiversity, we mean people who have been diagnosed with conditions like attention deficit disorder, autism, dyslexia (and related processing differences), and tourette’s syndrome.
- An estimated 10-20% of American workers are “neurodiverse.” (Because of overlapping diagnoses, numbers are hard to pin down). This is contrasted with “neurotypical” workers, meaning someone who doesn’t have one of these diagnoses.
- You may not recognize that you--or others--are struggling with these disabilities. Some estimates are that 90% of disabilities are invisible.
- [Erin] And while estimates are hard to pin down, reports from America, Britain, and Australia suggests that between 20-80% of neurodiverse workers are un- or underemployed. (Sources: workingnation.com/closing-the-neurodiversity-gap-in-the-workplace, www.neurodiversitymedia.com/neurodiversity-employment-statistics, www.peoplemanagement.co.uk/news/articles/shocking-data-reveals-only-one-in-five-autistic-people-are-in-employment)
- Neurodiversity involves challenges in processing one’s senses, organizing and planning, connecting to others, and regulating one’s emotions.
- At times (but not always!) neurodiverse library workers may struggle to interpret social cues, focus their work, manage their tics, process information, and adapt to their environment. [pause] So what can we do about this?
- [Celia] If you’re neurodiverse, or suspect that you are, then...
- Seek advice before disclosing in the interview process or workplace! You may be eligible for protections, but not all workplaces are safe.
- You can also ask for accommodations, like a schedule that reduces sensory overwhelm from a commute, light switches or films that minimize glare from screens and lamps, noise-reducing headphones, or private spaces to decompress. These requests can be formal or informal. For instance, I asked for a schedule that helped me to focus, and lamps to reduce the glare from overhead lights, before I knew that formal accommodations were a thing! The process in your workplace may vary. [Image from www.vice.com/en/article/wjvd9q/offices-can-be-hell-for-people-whose-brains-work-differently]
- [Erin] If this is all new to you, you can be an ally.
- You can read more about neurodivergence in the workplace, and on how you can support job candidates and colleagues who process information differently.
- Some other tips: - Pause before you comment, at least until you learn more. - Don’t assume that neurodiverse folks are mostly white men. This adds to the challenges faced by women and people of color, who face greater social and financial barriers to getting diagnosed and supported. - Don’t doubt someone’s challenges just because they’re working hard to ‘mask’ or hide their disability, and therefore it doesn’t seem as evident. - And don’t armchair diagnose others -- or ask them to disclose!
- [Celia] Other things you can do: You can advocate for work spaces that support library workers who are overstimulated (or understimulated!) by the standard office or library desk layout. For instance, those with Tourette’s syndrome may need a private place to work when their tics are strong. Those with sensory overload may need a space with soft light and minimal sound or stimulation. [Image from www.hok.com/news/2019-09/kay-sargent-talks-about-designing-neurodiverse-friendly-workplaces-on-cre-podcast/]
- And you can speak up and promote policies that allow a wider range of people a chance to join your library and move up the ranks. This could mean hosting trainings, developing explicit criteria for hiring and promotion, giving interview questions in advance, and assigning mentors to help workers as they advance throughout their careers. (If you have other tips, please tweet them using #neurodivlibs!)
- Finally, check out these resources! We’ll tweet them shortly, and encourage you to share your own tips with this hashtag. Thank you--and we really mean thank you--for your attention!