Neurodiversity is an opportunity for business. Different thinking challenges norms and leads to new solutions. But for diversity to flourish, it needs the right soil. Without clear support and inclusion measures, many neuroatypical people will be forced to camouflage their traits to keep their jobs, at the cost of an increased cognitive load, under-utilization of their potential and the risk of burnout. The best way to remedy a problematic situation is to understand its origin. Here’s a look at cognitive load, social camouflage and how to alleviate them.
What is neurodiversity?
Neurodiversity refers to the multiplicity of human neurological structures. To be neuroatypical is to possess cognitive functioning that differs from what is considered the norm. The term, although historically associated with autism, encompasses several other diagnoses, including ADHD, giftedness, Tourette’s syndrome and dys disorders (dyslexia, dysorthographia, dyscalculia, etc.).
According to Dr. Tarek Kassem, founder of the Academy of Neurodiversity, 10% to 15% of the population has some form of neurodiversity, which is far from negligible. Neuroatypical people have a wealth of potential, but because they are different, they face a multitude of adaptation challenges on a daily basis.
People with autism, for example, often have difficulty understanding certain social norms. Their employment rate is very low, because regardless of their skills and motivation, many of them do not necessarily master the codes implicit in a job interview or work environment.
Social camouflage as a coping strategy
To cope with isolation and discrimination, some people use social camouflage, a survival strategy based on masking and compensating for their difference. Masking means suppressing certain salient traits considered “unacceptable” (such as repetitive movements or hypersensitivities), while compensating involves learning and imitating external codes and norms (learning to look in the eyes, give handshakes) that are not instinctive for the person.
According to a 2017 study that examined this phenomenon, this strategy offers advantages, such as better access to employment, but also has disadvantages, the cost of which is paid in terms of short- and long-term mental health. If the neuroatypical person is not optimally camouflaged, this leads to integration difficulties and exposes people to discrimination; whereas if the n camouflage is too successful, it causes fatigue, stress, anxiety, low self-esteem, loss of identity and leads to poor recognition of its issues by society as well as a possible delay in diagnosis.
Autistic burn-out
For a neuroatypical person, attaining the codes of “normality” requires an invisible emotional and cognitive investment, akin to a mental burden. Indeed, it may be tempting to believe that if an autistic person “doesn’t look autistic”, it’s because their integration has been successful and “everything’s fine”. However, it may be precisely because of their constant efforts at camouflage that their difference goes unnoticed. People thus find themselves trapped in their own facade, their ability to “pass” prompting observers to minimize their challenges, which in turn erodes their self-confidence. Thus, paradoxically, autistic people with greater language skills, who appear the most integrated and independent, may also be more prone to depression and anxiety than autistic people deemed less “functional”.
According to Saxe (2017), the issue is particularly prevalent among women with autism. Indeed, the study of autism has long relied on the observation of men, and while its essential features are similar across genders, its outward manifestations can vary, so the particularities of autistic women are less well known. For example, women are more likely to experience internalized difficulties (such as anxiety or depression) – where men experience more externalized difficulties (behavioral problems) – and therefore go unnoticed. What’s more, women are socially expected to be more emotionally intelligent and sociable, which can encourage them to hide their difficulties at an early age. Women with autism are faced with a double requirement of camouflage, which makes their diagnosis even more difficult to establish.à
Unacknowledged camouflage, combined with other factors, can lead to exhaustion, or what is known as autistic burn-out, when the demands of adaptation exceed the person’s capacities and no support is available.
Letting a neuroatypical person shut himself up in his camouflage means taking the risk not only of seeing him burn out, but also of losing his unique potential.
Josée Durocher, author and creator of the blog Mot d’Autiste, tells us about her experience. Diagnosed with autism late in life at the age of 49, after years spent camouflaging her feelings of inadequacy, she recalls one job in particular that felt like a waste of potential. She easily integrated and applied her company’s protocols, but she didn’t understand the deeper purpose of her position, and interactions with her colleagues generated misunderstandings and even frustrations. Despite her good performance, she was hiding a lot to fit into an environment with rigid standards and hierarchy. Her results earned her a raise, but also a bout of depression that led to her resignation.
It is therefore important to be proactive in integrating neuroatypical people, not only for their well-being, but also for that of the company, which will then be able to benefit fully from the talents and assets of its employees… without the risk of seeing them go into burn-out.
No, hiring neurodiverse people is not more expensive for the company
Mathieu Giroux, an autism expert and lecturer with whom we spoke, highlights three important consequences of camouflage: the impact on people’s mental health, the bias in employers’ assessments, and the invisibilization of the difficulties experienced, masked by a blanket of “normality”.
Diagnosed with autism himself, he knows all about the camouflage and everyday misunderstandings that can arise between a neurotatypical person and their environment. For him, communication is a matter of empathy and collective effort, on everyone’s part.
Adapting the work environment need not be complex or costly. Research by the Employment Support Partnership debunks common misconceptions about hiring people with autism. It doesn’t cost more to employ autistic people, and they are just as committed, serious and efficient as neurotypicals. The important thing is to be able to distribute the burden of adapting to others in a balanced way between the different players.
How to adapt the work environment to people with neuroatypia
Beyond the specific issues associated with neurodiversity, social camouflage is based on an adjustment dynamic that can be generalized to any situation involving a divergence of codes. On a daily basis, we analyze our environment and our interlocutors, and modify our way of communicating. This is a normal process, which only becomes damaging when a minority group is forced to resort to it to avoid discrimination, or when the duty to adapt from one party to another is demanded in a one-way fashion.
Understanding and addressing this dynamic, in order to lighten the load for those who are most affected by it, means creating an environment conducive to diversity in all its forms, and favorable to the development of each individual.
To conclude, here are a few practical tips to promote the inclusion of neuroatypical people and facilitate communication between everyone.
- Understanding the camouflage and adaptation mechanism. This helps to avoid taking as normal or obvious actions that may require a great deal of effort on the part of some people.
- Don’t assume the other person’s intention, and be open to differences. If a neuroatypical person communicates in a way that seems strange, or avoids certain interactions, it’s not because they’re trying to be rude, but probably because the interaction is difficult for them, they don’t know the implicit rules, or they’re exhausted by other tasks. Everyone communicates in their own way, and in the face of this common problem, a benevolent attitude can avoid many misunderstandings.
- Understanding the personal needs of each employee. No two neuroatypical people are alike. Taking the time to discuss each person’s issues and needs creates an atmosphere of trust, and ensures the best possible fit with the company.
- Assign a mentor or peer helper. Where possible, a mentoring system can be set up for neuroatypical people who so desire. They could then turn to a qualified person in the company to facilitate their inclusion and help them in the event of problems or misunderstandings.
- Don’t impose a rigid policy on everyone. As pointed out in this article previously published by URelles, flexibility is important for neuroatypical people. Flexibility in terms of working hours, but also flexibility in terms of corporate culture and codes, allowing differences to express themselves rather than stifling them. For example, avoid making standard social events compulsory, but offer alternatives to enable people to socialize at their own pace.
- Make important rules clear. If there are codes or practices that are essential to the company’s functioning, culture or image, they should be marked as such. This enables neuroatypical people to focus their efforts on what really matters, and it can also be an opportunity to take a critical look at the company’s culture by questioning its codes and essential values. In short, sort out what’s best for you!
- Letting neuroatypical people choose whether or not to reveal their difference. Not everyone wants to be shown off, especially as this can sometimes lead to curiosity which, while often harmless, is nonetheless potentially exhausting. Neuroatypical people don’t always want to explain the details of their difference, and we need to give them that space.
- Adopt a clear policy in favor of diversity and sharing the burden of adaptation. If management takes an open stance in favor of inclusive values, employees will be more inclined to adopt these same values, and this may also attract new talent who share them.
- Raising awareness among all employees. To avoid misunderstandings between colleagues or unintentional micro-aggressions, it’s important to circulate information about neurodiversity and the specific issues that certain employees may experience. Neuroatypical people can explain their difference if they wish, but this should not be expected or demanded of them. Ideally, the company should support the work of providing in-depth information, in collaboration with the people concerned.
Camouflage is a survival strategy used by neuroatypical people to blend into their environment and avoid discrimination linked to their neurodiversity. In the long term, this strategy can have harmful effects on their mental health. Very often, the difficulties experienced by these people are due to differences in norms and codes, and not to inescapable failings. The key is to become aware of this dynamic, and to alleviate it through a policy of openness and flexibility. It’s important for management to be actively involved in creating an inclusive space – you can’t hire an atypical person and expect them to repress their difference, or to sensitize their environment themselves. Such measures will also have an impact on other employees, since adapting to the environment is a process that can affect anyone, and camouflage is also an issue for other minorities. Providing a space where everyone is freer to be themselves encourages self-expression. In this way, being proactive in ensuring the well-being of employees from diverse backgrounds helps to create a general climate of inclusion that benefits everyone.
