Monique Botha
Biographic Data
| ID | 4624642 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Monique Botha |
| GIVEN NAMES | Monique |
| FAMILY NAME | Botha |
| SIGNATURE | BOTHA M |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Stirling |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-5935-9654 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 10 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 20 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 10 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2020 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 1 |
‘Let Us Be the Art, Not Just the Entertainment’: A Participatory Zine-Making Study Engaging Autistic Women and Non-Binary People in Discussing Media Representations of Autism
Autistic people experience social stigma, which involves facing negative or false social stereotypes. A prevalent stereotype of autism in society is that it is a male condition, which has led to most traditional representations of autism across different types of media (e.g., characters in films and TV) being predominantly male-focused. In this study, a group of autistic women and/or non-binary people were recruited to speak about how they percei…
An Experience Sensitive Approach to Care With and for Autistic Children and Young People in Clinical Services
Many support schemes in current autism clinical services for children and young people are based on notions of neuro-normativity with a behavioral emphasis. Such neuro-disorder approaches gradually undermine a person, restrain authentic self-expression, and fail to address the impact of a hostile world on autistic well-being. Furthermore, such approaches obscure attention from a fundamental challenge to conceptualize an alternative humanistic inf…
Neurodiversity‐Affirming Intersectional Approaches That Target Public Policy: Moving the Focus From Changing Individuals to Changing Systems of Power
The neurodiversity movement challenges traditional deficit‐oriented models of autism. However, inclusion efforts often prioritize individual attitudinal change over structural reform (e.g., policies and research practices) or exclude Autistic people with intersecting marginalized identities. Just research requires scientific inquiry to challenge the oppressive systems from which it emerges, and can sometimes reinforce, by directly addressing inte…
Inclusion Must Be Global, Decolonized, Culturally and Linguistically Diverse, and Anti‐Normative
In this concluding commentary for our special issue, Neurodiversity‐Affirming Intersectional Approaches that Target Public Policy: Moving the Focus from Changing Individuals to Changing Systems of Power , we seek to ameliorate the pervasive omission of nonspeaking Autistic people and those outside the Global North from research, services, and policy. In our special issue, we tried to nurture the often‐neglected intersectional roots of the neurodi…
Critical realism, community psychology, and the curious case of autism: A philosophy and practice of science with social justice in mind
Community psychology (CP) is a transformative subdiscipline of psychology which aims to address inequality and social injustice and to attend to wellbeing. It has been argued that CP lacks an underpinning philosophy of science. Philosophies of science provide road maps for values, methods, and objectives, thus ultimately framing all research. This study will highlight how traditional philosophies of science such as positivism, interpretivism, and…
Does Language Matter? Identity-First Versus Person-First Language Use in Autism Research: A Response to Vivanti
In response to Vivanti’s ‘Ask The Editor...’ paper [ Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 50 (2), 691–693], we argue that the use of language in autism research has material consequences for autistic people including stigmatisation, dehumanisation, and violence. Further, that the debate in the use of person-first language versus identity-first language should centre first and foremost on the needs, autonomy, and rights of autistic peopl…
Anti-ableism and scientific accuracy in autism research: A false dichotomy
It was recently argued that autism researchers committed to rejecting ableist frameworks in their research may sacrifice "scientifically accurate" conceptualizations of autism. In this perspective piece, we argue that: (a) anti-ableism vs. scientific accuracy is a false dichotomy, (b) there is no ideology-free science that has claim to scientific accuracy, and (c) autism science has a history of false leads in part because of unexamined ableist i…
Come as You Are: Examining Autistic Identity Development and the Neurodiversity Movement through an Intersectional Lens
Singer intended for neurodiversity to be a new category of intersectionality. However, intersectionality has been neglected in autism research and practice. This paper aims to inform an intersectional approach to autism by exploring autistic identity development in relation to other marginalized identities. We reviewed literature about neurodiversity, intersectionality, discrimination, and the identity development of autistic people, racial/ethni…
Extending the Minority Stress Model to Understand Mental Health Problems Experienced by the Autistic Population
Research into autism and mental health has traditionally associated poor mental health and autism as inevitably linked. Other possible explanations for mental health problems among autistic populations have received little attention. As evidenced by the minority disability movement, autism is increasingly being considered part of the identities of autistic people. Autistic individuals thus constitute an identity-based minority and may be exposed …
Autism is me: An investigation of how autistic individuals make sense of autism and stigma
There are many different perspectives for understanding autism. These perspectives may each convey different levels of stigma for autistic individuals. This qualitative study aimed to understand how autistic individuals make sense of their own autism and experience the stigma attached to autism. The study used critical grounded theory tools. Participants (N = 20) discussed autism as central to their identity, and integral to who they are. While p…
Autism is me: An investigation of how autistic individuals make sense of autism and stigma
There are many different perspectives for understanding autism. These perspectives may each convey different levels of stigma for autistic individuals. This qualitative study aimed to understand how autistic individuals make sense of their own autism and experience the stigma attached to autism. The study used critical grounded theory tools. Participants (N = 20) discussed autism as central to their identity, and integral to who they are. While p…
Neurodiversity‐Affirming Intersectional Approaches That Target Public Policy: Moving the Focus From Changing Individuals to Changing Systems of Power
The neurodiversity movement challenges traditional deficit‐oriented models of autism. However, inclusion efforts often prioritize individual attitudinal change over structural reform (e.g., policies and research practices) or exclude Autistic people with intersecting marginalized identities. Just research requires scientific inquiry to challenge the oppressive systems from which it emerges, and can sometimes reinforce, by directly addressing inte…
Extending the Minority Stress Model to Understand Mental Health Problems Experienced by the Autistic Population
Research into autism and mental health has traditionally associated poor mental health and autism as inevitably linked. Other possible explanations for mental health problems among autistic populations have received little attention. As evidenced by the minority disability movement, autism is increasingly being considered part of the identities of autistic people. Autistic individuals thus constitute an identity-based minority and may be exposed …
Autism is me: An investigation of how autistic individuals make sense of autism and stigma
There are many different perspectives for understanding autism. These perspectives may each convey different levels of stigma for autistic individuals. This qualitative study aimed to understand how autistic individuals make sense of their own autism and experience the stigma attached to autism. The study used critical grounded theory tools. Participants (N = 20) discussed autism as central to their identity, and integral to who they are. While p…
Come as You Are: Examining Autistic Identity Development and the Neurodiversity Movement through an Intersectional Lens
Singer intended for neurodiversity to be a new category of intersectionality. However, intersectionality has been neglected in autism research and practice. This paper aims to inform an intersectional approach to autism by exploring autistic identity development in relation to other marginalized identities. We reviewed literature about neurodiversity, intersectionality, discrimination, and the identity development of autistic people, racial/ethni…
Does Language Matter? Identity-First Versus Person-First Language Use in Autism Research: A Response to Vivanti
In response to Vivanti’s ‘Ask The Editor...’ paper [ Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 50 (2), 691–693], we argue that the use of language in autism research has material consequences for autistic people including stigmatisation, dehumanisation, and violence. Further, that the debate in the use of person-first language versus identity-first language should centre first and foremost on the needs, autonomy, and rights of autistic peopl…
Anti-ableism and scientific accuracy in autism research: A false dichotomy
It was recently argued that autism researchers committed to rejecting ableist frameworks in their research may sacrifice "scientifically accurate" conceptualizations of autism. In this perspective piece, we argue that: (a) anti-ableism vs. scientific accuracy is a false dichotomy, (b) there is no ideology-free science that has claim to scientific accuracy, and (c) autism science has a history of false leads in part because of unexamined ableist i…
Neurodiversity‐Affirming Intersectional Approaches That Target Public Policy: Moving the Focus From Changing Individuals to Changing Systems of Power
The neurodiversity movement challenges traditional deficit‐oriented models of autism. However, inclusion efforts often prioritize individual attitudinal change over structural reform (e.g., policies and research practices) or exclude Autistic people with intersecting marginalized identities. Just research requires scientific inquiry to challenge the oppressive systems from which it emerges, and can sometimes reinforce, by directly addressing inte…
Inclusion Must Be Global, Decolonized, Culturally and Linguistically Diverse, and Anti‐Normative
In this concluding commentary for our special issue, Neurodiversity‐Affirming Intersectional Approaches that Target Public Policy: Moving the Focus from Changing Individuals to Changing Systems of Power , we seek to ameliorate the pervasive omission of nonspeaking Autistic people and those outside the Global North from research, services, and policy. In our special issue, we tried to nurture the often‐neglected intersectional roots of the neurodi…
Critical realism, community psychology, and the curious case of autism: A philosophy and practice of science with social justice in mind
Community psychology (CP) is a transformative subdiscipline of psychology which aims to address inequality and social injustice and to attend to wellbeing. It has been argued that CP lacks an underpinning philosophy of science. Philosophies of science provide road maps for values, methods, and objectives, thus ultimately framing all research. This study will highlight how traditional philosophies of science such as positivism, interpretivism, and…
‘Let Us Be the Art, Not Just the Entertainment’: A Participatory Zine-Making Study Engaging Autistic Women and Non-Binary People in Discussing Media Representations of Autism
Autistic people experience social stigma, which involves facing negative or false social stereotypes. A prevalent stereotype of autism in society is that it is a male condition, which has led to most traditional representations of autism across different types of media (e.g., characters in films and TV) being predominantly male-focused. In this study, a group of autistic women and/or non-binary people were recruited to speak about how they percei…
An Experience Sensitive Approach to Care With and for Autistic Children and Young People in Clinical Services
Many support schemes in current autism clinical services for children and young people are based on notions of neuro-normativity with a behavioral emphasis. Such neuro-disorder approaches gradually undermine a person, restrain authentic self-expression, and fail to address the impact of a hostile world on autistic well-being. Furthermore, such approaches obscure attention from a fundamental challenge to conceptualize an alternative humanistic inf…
Autism (9 works) · Autism Spectrum Disorder Research (9 works) · Psychology (7 works) · Developmental psychology (6 works) · Family and Disability Support Research (5 works) · Social Psychology (5 works) · Sociology (4 works) · Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development (3 works) · Disability Rights and Representation (3 works) · Intersectionality (3 works)