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Towards autistic flow theory: A non‐pathologising conceptual approach

Brett Heasman Orcid Logo, Gemma Williams Orcid Logo, Divine Charura, Lorna G. Hamilton, Damian Milton, Fergus Murray Orcid Logo

Journal for the Theory of Social Behaviour

Swansea University Author: Gemma Williams Orcid Logo

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DOI (Published version): 10.1111/jtsb.12427

Abstract

Flow states are heightened moments of concentration, motivation and enjoyment, leading to total absorption in the present moment. A striking parallel exists between flow states and phenomenological accounts of autistic daily life. We analyse the components of flow theory alongside autistic autobiogr...

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Published in: Journal for the Theory of Social Behaviour
ISSN: 0021-8308 1468-5914
Published: Wiley 2024
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URI: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa66586
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spelling v2 66586 2024-06-04 Towards autistic flow theory: A non‐pathologising conceptual approach c457f01f621c5274656e591f782f52a8 0000-0002-5162-0440 Gemma Williams Gemma Williams true false 2024-06-04 HSOC Flow states are heightened moments of concentration, motivation and enjoyment, leading to total absorption in the present moment. A striking parallel exists between flow states and phenomenological accounts of autistic daily life. We analyse the components of flow theory alongside autistic autobiographical accounts to explore similarities and differences, in doing so moving toward an understanding of autistic flow theory. We highlight the considerations and opportunities this may hold for future autism research, in particular the advantage that this offers a non-pathologising approach to researching autism, one which helps to explain contextualised behaviour (i.e., alignment between the situation and what is happening in one's mind). Drawing on autistic autobiographical accounts, we outline four principles: (1) autistic people are uniquely placed to discover and manage flow; (2) autistic flow may qualitatively diverge from traditional models of flow; (3) difficulties maintaining and exiting flow for autistic people highlight a need to examine transitions into and out of flow; and, (4) internal and external constraints to flow highlight there is unrealised autistic potential yet to be discovered. The implications of an autistic flow theory are discussed in terms of how it can impact (a) our conceptual understanding of autism providing alternative explanations to previously researched phenomena, and (b) how we build enabling environments for autistic people that allow flow to flourish across educational practice, wellbeing and research contexts. Journal Article Journal for the Theory of Social Behaviour 0 Wiley 0021-8308 1468-5914 autism, autistic flow theory, double empathy, flow states, monotropism 3 6 2024 2024-06-03 10.1111/jtsb.12427 COLLEGE NANME Health and Social Care School COLLEGE CODE HSOC Swansea University Another institution paid the OA fee York St. John University Psychology Quality Research Funding Grant 2024-11-01T14:25:27.0693934 2024-06-04T10:38:29.0195031 Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences School of Health and Social Care - Public Health Brett Heasman 0000-0002-3621-3863 1 Gemma Williams 0000-0002-5162-0440 2 Divine Charura 3 Lorna G. Hamilton 4 Damian Milton 5 Fergus Murray 0000-0002-7770-9187 6 66586__30562__1dcb7b140e474ac6a4eeef689871b3fa.pdf 66586.pdf 2024-06-07T09:15:02.1372000 Output 495815 application/pdf Version of Record true © 2024 The Author(s). This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. true eng https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
title Towards autistic flow theory: A non‐pathologising conceptual approach
spellingShingle Towards autistic flow theory: A non‐pathologising conceptual approach
Gemma Williams
title_short Towards autistic flow theory: A non‐pathologising conceptual approach
title_full Towards autistic flow theory: A non‐pathologising conceptual approach
title_fullStr Towards autistic flow theory: A non‐pathologising conceptual approach
title_full_unstemmed Towards autistic flow theory: A non‐pathologising conceptual approach
title_sort Towards autistic flow theory: A non‐pathologising conceptual approach
author_id_str_mv c457f01f621c5274656e591f782f52a8
author_id_fullname_str_mv c457f01f621c5274656e591f782f52a8_***_Gemma Williams
author Gemma Williams
author2 Brett Heasman
Gemma Williams
Divine Charura
Lorna G. Hamilton
Damian Milton
Fergus Murray
format Journal article
container_title Journal for the Theory of Social Behaviour
container_volume 0
publishDate 2024
institution Swansea University
issn 0021-8308
1468-5914
doi_str_mv 10.1111/jtsb.12427
publisher Wiley
college_str Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences
hierarchytype
hierarchy_top_id facultyofmedicinehealthandlifesciences
hierarchy_top_title Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences
hierarchy_parent_id facultyofmedicinehealthandlifesciences
hierarchy_parent_title Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences
department_str School of Health and Social Care - Public Health{{{_:::_}}}Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences{{{_:::_}}}School of Health and Social Care - Public Health
document_store_str 1
active_str 0
description Flow states are heightened moments of concentration, motivation and enjoyment, leading to total absorption in the present moment. A striking parallel exists between flow states and phenomenological accounts of autistic daily life. We analyse the components of flow theory alongside autistic autobiographical accounts to explore similarities and differences, in doing so moving toward an understanding of autistic flow theory. We highlight the considerations and opportunities this may hold for future autism research, in particular the advantage that this offers a non-pathologising approach to researching autism, one which helps to explain contextualised behaviour (i.e., alignment between the situation and what is happening in one's mind). Drawing on autistic autobiographical accounts, we outline four principles: (1) autistic people are uniquely placed to discover and manage flow; (2) autistic flow may qualitatively diverge from traditional models of flow; (3) difficulties maintaining and exiting flow for autistic people highlight a need to examine transitions into and out of flow; and, (4) internal and external constraints to flow highlight there is unrealised autistic potential yet to be discovered. The implications of an autistic flow theory are discussed in terms of how it can impact (a) our conceptual understanding of autism providing alternative explanations to previously researched phenomena, and (b) how we build enabling environments for autistic people that allow flow to flourish across educational practice, wellbeing and research contexts.
published_date 2024-06-03T14:25:25Z
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score 11.036706

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