8 Key terms you should understand when discussing neurodiversity.
When I talk about Active Neuroinclusion, a surprising number of people ask, ‘so what is neurodiversity?’. With discussions of autism and ADHD diagnosis so frequent in the news, I expected everyone to know this term. Although, maybe others don’t think about neurodiversity as much as I do!
The following resource will define and illustrate 8 key terms you should know when talking about neurodiversity or working with neurodivergent people.
Table of Contents
What is neurodiversity?
Neurodiversity is a part of human variation, much like ethnicity, sex and height.
Neuro- is a prefix referring to the nervous system. Diversity means variation or difference.
Therefore, neurodiversity is the difference in how our brains and nervous systems are wired. It leads to variation in behaviour, emotions, cognitions, communication and movements.
These differences are not deficits, but certain clusters may cause specific challenges or strengths.
Neurodiversity leads to differences in our behaviour. Every individual will be unique in how they move, talk. express emotions, perceive or react to information, perform bodily functions etc.
However, while some differences only impact personality or preferences, others can significantly impact development and daily functioning. For example,
Hyper- or hypo- sensitive to sensory stimuli
Difficulties understanding social cues
Slow auditory processing
Attention to many things at once
Hyperfocus
Repetitive movements or vocalisations
Tics
Difficulty regulating emotions
Mutism
Difficulties with executive functioning
Poor fundamental understanding of numbers
Difficulties with reading and writing
Differences in development of fine and gross motor skills
Intersectionality refers to how aspects of a person's identity interact with each other to create unique social experiences.
These identities might relate to:
Age
Sex and gender
Class
Ethnicity and nationality
Sexuality
Religion
Ability
Individuals with minority identities may become victims of discrimination, although this will also depend on the environment they are in. For example, a black, non-verbal, autistic man in America will have a very different experience to an upper class, white, dyslexic school girl in Britain.
Neurodivergent or neurodiverse
In many conversations about neurodiversity, the terms neurodivergent and neurodiverse will be used interchangeably. However, they have two distinct meanings.
People are neurodivergent if their behaviour, communication, cognitions etc fall outside the ‘norm’. They may be diagnosed with a neurodivergent condition, which is a categorisation of particular traits, such as autism, ADHD or dyslexia.
Environments or groups can be neurodiverse if they are populated by more than one neurotype. For example, if a workplace has neurotypical, autistic and ADHD employees, it is neurodiverse. Similarly if a class includes one child with Tourette’s, it is neurodiverse. However, if everyone in the group has the same neurotype, it is neuro-homogenous.
Categorisations of difference
Each cluster of traits is a ‘neurotype’. This literally translates into type of nervous system.
Those who are classed as the ‘norm’, in terms of how they communicate, learn, express themselves and move, are ‘neurotypical’. They will not be diagnosed with any neurodivergent condition.
Almost every environment, from schools and workplaces to shops and entertainment, are designed for the nervous systems of neurotypical people.
Autism is a spectrum on which people have marked differences in social communication, repetitive behaviours and sensory processing. The presentation of these traits will vary between autistic individuals, so they will require different levels of support.
Around 1-2% of adults in the UK are diagnosed with autism, although it is believed to be underdiagnosed (NICE, 2025).
Not everybody is “on the spectrum”. Those who do not have autism, such as neurotypical people, are allistic. People with dyslexia or ADHD can also be allistic if they do not have co-occurring autistic traits.
ADHD is attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. ADHD involves difficulty regulating attention, impulses, energy and emotions. There are three subtypes of ADHD- inattentive, hyperactive/impulsive, and combined.
The acronym ADD (attention deficit disorder) is still occasionally used, though it has now been replaced by the inattentive subtype.
AuDHD is an unofficial term used by those who have both autism and ADHD. Until 2013, you could not be diagnosed with both conditions.
However, it is now recognised that AuDHD has a complex, fluid presentation whereby the traits of each condition play off against each other. Sometimes, one will mask the other, and sometimes they will create a ‘tug of war’.
Aquired neurodivergence has an onset later in life. It can be caused by head injury, illness, toxins, infections and strokes. Therefore, this types of neurodivergence is not present at birth.
Aquired neurodivergence can include:
Mental health conditions, such as OCD or depression
Traumatic brain injury
Dementia
Epilepsy
These examples are forms of neurodivergence because they cause changes in behaviour, information processing and emotional regulation.
Aquired neurodivergence draws attention to the fact that anyone can develop changes to their brain function and nervous system. This should remove the ‘them and us’ mentality and make neuroinclusion a higher priority for everyone.
Why are these definitions relevant?
Approximately 15-20% of the global population is neurodivergent (Vo and Webb, 2024) and these individuals deserve access to the spaces they need and want to use.
We need to see neurodivergent conditions for what they are, natural human variation. Even within the neurotypical population, each person has a slightly different nervous system, due to nature and nurture.
Everybody has specific preferences, abilities and needs, which should be accommodated in school, workplaces and hobbies. Rather than seeing change as an inconvenience, it should be embraced as an opportunity to allow everyone to achieve their potential.
Using key terms accurately will help to reduce misunderstandings around neurodiversity and ensure we can have conversations that celebrate the contributions of neurodivergent people.
References
NICE. (2025). Autism in adults: How common is it? NICE. https://cks.nice.org.uk/topics/autism-in-adults/background-information/prevalence/
Vo, S. & Webb, L. (2024). Support for neurodivergent children and young people. UK Parliament Post. https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/POST-PN-0733/POST-PN-0733.pdf
