Neurodiversity refers to the idea that neurological differences, such as those seen in autism or ADHD , reflect normal variations in brain development. Neurodiversity is often contrasted with the “medical model,” which views conditions like autism or ADHD as disorders to prevent, treat, or cure. There has been a push to move away from this idea of pathology and more toward a more nuanced perspective with variations of what is “normal.”
Neurodiverse and Brilliant
In one study of child prodigies, researchers found that these children scored high in autistic traits. For example, their attention to detail was on the obsessive end, which is a hallmark of the autism spectrum. The Austrian pediatrician and medical theorist Hans Asperger—after whom the syndrome was named—even referred to children with precocious aptitude as "little professors.”
Some neurodiverse individuals have keen memory and recall, others are prodigious at math. These savants are often hyper-focused on details and may have a specialized interest. One example is Rubik’s cube speed solver Max Park, who was diagnosed at a young age with autism. He is a world champion who set world records solving the puzzle, even with just one hand.
The term Rain Man is a derogatory term that identifies a mentally and, or, socially impaired individual; it’s also a term that often refers to autistic individuals. The term was highlighted in the 1988 film of the same name. The story was based on the life of Kim Peek , who was considered a megasavant but was not known to be autistic. He had a prodigious memory even at the early age of 16 months. In later years, he was able to read an entire book in an hour and retain the information in it. He could also read the left page of a book with his left eye, as well as the right page with his right eye. Peek was thought to have FG syndrome, whereby one or more recessive genes are located on the X chromosome .
People in this community may have genius IQ scores, yet unemployment or underemployment among them has been high—even chronically high. However, some companies are waking up to the value of employing neurodiverse individuals. These people are seen as useful in areas including data, IT, software design, car design, product-testing, and other skilled fields.
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