Reading & Research
A trans-diagnostic investigation of attention, hyper-focus, and monotropism in autism, attention dysregulation hyperactivity development, and the general population (Dwyer, P., Williams, Z. J., Lawson, W., & Rivera, S. M. 2024) Neurodiversity, 2
A super valuable and exciting piece of research, a must-read for everyone interested in monotropism!
We found elevated levels of hyper-focus in autistic, ADHD, and autistic + ADHD people relative to comparison participants, consistent with the monotropism account. Furthermore, somewhat counter-intuitively, hyper-focus appeared to be positively associated with susceptibility to inattention and distraction. Together, these findings imply that hyper-focus and inattention might at least in part be different manifestations of an underlying atypical regulation of attention involved in both autism and ADHD, though also presenting differently in each. However, further trans-diagnostic research is required to better understand constructs such as hyper-focus and monotropic tendencies, and their relation to executive functions and performance in cognitive and developmental science tasks. […]
Neurodivergent participants sometimes found their hyper-focus to be productive and enjoyable, but participants also reported many negative effects of hyper-focus, as well as negative effects of intense interests.
Stimpunks have created a Processing Time glossary page inspired by this paper that may be of interest. https://stimpunks.org/glossary/processing-time/
Relationship between autism spectrum disorder and suicide: a narrative review (Erdt, L., et al 2024). . Erdt | Psychiatria (Psychiatry) – cites Murray, Lesser & Lawson (2005), not open access.
‘Autism is the Arena and OCD is the Lion’: Autistic adults’ experiences of co-occurring obsessive-compulsive disorder and repetitive restricted behaviours and interests (Long, H., Cooper, K., & Russell, A. 2024). Autism.
A wide range of heterogeneous phenomena are included within this domain from stimming behaviours such as hand or finger-flapping, to intense and focused interests on an object or topic area (F. Murray, 2019), and strict adherence to a routine that may cause difficulty with transitions or appear ritualised.
This also cites Dinah Murray’s last paper, The Human Spectrum.
English, M., & Poulsen, R. (2024, May 15). Psychometric evaluation of the Comprehensive Autistic Trait Inventory (CATI) in autistic and non-autistic adults. OSF. https://osf.io/v3kf7/ – cites Murray et al (2005) in the context of “emerging traits not currently used in formal diagnosis” and our evolving understanding of what autism is.
They also reference the work of Adkin, T. (2023): Mask on, Mask off: How the common understanding of Autistic masking is creating another mask – Emergent Divergence.
Sculpting Aesthetic Experiences through Autistic Indigenous Knowledge (Manuel A. Sánchez Peña 2024) in Ought: The Journal of Autistic Culture.
According to Beardsley (1979), a key characteristic of aesthetic experiences involves suppressing attention to surrounding activities in favor of the object of appreciation. Autistic people tend to concentrate on a single element while shadowing others that are not currently the focus of attention. This phenomenon is termed monotropism by Murray (2023), and is considered a core aspect of the autistic experience. It is linked to sensory processing, profound interests, and social interaction patterns. While monotropism is multidimensional, its role in aesthetic experiences appears to align with the ideas of Silvia (2012), Beardsley (1979), and Shusterman (2006). Murray (2018) conceived monotropism as a theory based on interests with an emotional link to the individual in a real or imaginative world. It applies when engaging in aesthetic experiences, for example (and not limited to): the sound of water falling, feeling the texture of putty, watching a plasma lamp that creates a mesmerizing display of light, researching and learning about every satellite in Jupiter, and other elements that stimulate senses and cognition. Monotropic states facilitate emotional regulation by filtering out overwhelming environmental stimuli (Burrows, et al., 2021). The depth of focus facilitates the development of new insights and understandings about the world, often leading to skills acquisition.
An investigation into empathy in autistic and non-autistic people: Improving empathy measurement and understanding the autistic empathy profile (Brett, J. D. 2024). PhD thesis at the University of Western Australia). A brief mention about the theory of monotropism in this thesis in relation to behaviour models for empathy.
Towards autistic flow theory: A non‐pathologising conceptual approach (Heasman, B., Williams, G., Charura, D., Hamilton, L. G., Milton, D., & Murray, F. 2024). Journal for the Theory of Social Behaviour.
An excellent paper! Well worth a read for everyone interested in monotropism and flow theory!
Using the metaphor of water which can find its way through any gap, monotropic minds are especially good at focussing attention to deeply ‘irrigate’ dry areas with interest, whereas polytropic individuals may flow their attention across a much wider area with only a moderate arousal of interest.
There are further parallels with monotropism and flow states. Autistic people have been characterised as having ‘fixated interests’, wherein intense and focussed concentration can prevent intruding irrelevant thoughts or external feelings (APA, 2013). This mirrors the flow states account of losing one’s sense of self. For autistic people, becoming lost in one’s interest is a common feature that results in time distortion…
For those autistic people who experience hyper-sensitivity to their various external senses, additional difficulties in processing multiple sources of information arising from a monotropic attention style can lead to overwhelming experience of the surrounding sensory environment. In such cases flow states may be utilised to manage chaotically perceived environments, and as a method of wilfully entraining one’s attention, and reducing global stress
Hyper‐focus, sticky attention, and springy attention in young autistic children: Associations with sensory behaviors and cognitive ability (Dwyer, P., Sillas, A., Prieto, M., Camp, E., Nordahl, C. W., & Rivera, S. M. 2024). Autism Research.
Nice paper! Very much emphasises the importance of autistic people being able to return to a place of familiarity and safety with their interests.
Unexpectedly, the time-course of this trending novelty preference difference implied it was not driven by reduced orienting to novelty, but increased returning to already-familiarized stimuli: what we call “springy attention.“
Crucially, we observed a robust association between “springy attention”and lower cognitive abilities in autistic children, suggesting that this persistent focus might prevent opportunities for learning and have cascading effects on development.
The present study describes two forms of atypical attention in young autistic children: “sticky attention,” the well-studied tendency to disengage attention slowly from stimuli, and what we describe as “springy attention,” the tendency to return to a previous focus of attention after briefly orienting to a newly-presented stimulus. These attentional patterns could be regarded as distinct forms of hyper-focus in autism, which might help begin to clarify some of the conceptual confusion surrounding hyper-focus, monotropism, and how they specifically manifest and relate to one another.
Toward Overcoming the Double Empathy Problem: Bridging Autistic and Neurotypical https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=11431&context=etdMinds Through Science and Art. (Elizabeth Rose Bessey 2024) PhD thesis at Brigham Young University.
Why we need more autistic health care professionals and how to support them. Woods, S. E. O. (2024). Autism in Adulthood.
Fabulous and important work here!
Many autistic characteristics (especially attention to detail, social nonconformity, monotropism, and knowledge of autism) set autistic health care professionals apart as especially well-suited for their fields.
Autistic adults’ perspectives and experiences of diagnostic assessments that include play across the lifespan (Pritchard-Rowe, E., De Lemos, C., Howard, K., & Gibson, J. 2024). Autism.
This is an interesting and valuable paper with some case studies about the importance of valuing monotropism and flow theory.
Brianna indicates that flow could be an autistic play characteristic that may be useful diagnostically. Matthew articulated that ‘you just need to look at the strengths’ in (play) assessment, giving the example of his ‘focus on something . . . and not getting distracted’, or a flow state, as a strength that could be identified through play. This reinforces the use of play as a valuable tool, which professionals could use to identify autistic strengths
Social Media
https://helensan.com/handouts/monotropism/
Free downloads about monotropism from HelenSAN:
https://x.com/autisticrealms/status/1784640020864704764
Both infographics above and below are from Helen Edgar (Autistic Realms)
https://x.com/autisticrealms/status/1786104362067988767
https://diversitydoodleprint.etsy.com
https://www.facebook.com/share/bohKW7KB9JfK7fxU/?mibextid=WC7FNe
Blogs
Addie. (2024, April 14). Liberated Movement. Monotropic Musing’s Substack.
“Stimming should be celebrated. It’s another way to connect with the body, to regulate, it’s honouring the body’s needs – and it’s an important way to engage with the world….Being able to reconnect with your body is an invitation to slow the process, to be gentle with yourself and rest in a place not of urgency, but of curiosity.”
Marsh, E. (2024, April 11). Hypersensitive, hyperfocused and ready for “Hijack”: an autistic experience of sensory anxiety – reframing autism. Reframing Autism.
“This is how the theory of monotropism explains my sensory sensitivities and associated overwhelm. It is a combination of:
- the discomfort of my attention being drawn away from where it wants to be;
- a tendency to experience something intensely when it does enter my awareness; and
- this whole process being beyond my control.”
Facebook post from Marion McLaughlin (Aurora Consulting)
“Most of my brain is so focused on what I am doing that there is little bandwidth to process whatever else is going on around me. I am deep in the attention tunnel, and my sense of interoception (what my body is feeling) is dialled down low. My processing of the noises around me is barely registering…..we need to consider better how to make work and education more accessible for monotropic thinkers.“
Cook, S. T. (2024, March 18). For the Birds: Hi! I’m Autistic. For the Birds.
“I’d like to say a tiny bit more about this thing called, attention. I am often saying that our creativity lives not just in us or just in the external thing—the product going out, or the inspiration coming in—but in the relational space between us and it. In the attentional space…..Unlike you (unless you are like me), I cannot turn the dial down. It is always already set on high.
There are many choices I can make. Thinning my attention is not one of them. I’ve never met a surface. Everything feels like interiority to me.
Moments are places for me. I need to be able to locate myself inside of them.
Being Autistic means that my brain is not only monotropic, but rhizomatic.”
Browne, C. (Autistic Village). (2024, April 22). School as a Polytropic Environment: The impact on Monotropic minds. Autistic Village.
This fabulous blog and the rest of Claire Browne’s series in her Processing Mutism series explores why current school settings are not suited to autistic neurology using the theory of monotropism. She discusses what being monotropic means and gives examples of how to change the environment and expectations to facilitate and harness the benefits and immersive power of monotropic people’s unique cognitive style. She explores how school is a polytropic environment and looks at how this has a big impact on monotropic learners due to:
Constant transitions
Lack of interest-based learning – learning for academic attainment instead of enjoyment
Chaotic and unpredictable sensory environment
Vague communication
The article provides a useful list of ideas to support monotropic learners in school.
Shared on Facebook, Pete Wharmby discusses the difficulty of finding monotropic flow in the modern world:
https://www.facebook.com/100083308066424/posts/442005685253030/?mibextid=rS40aB7S9Ucbxw6v
Autism – Myths and Legends, an online comic by Vera von de Greent. Monotropism is in Chapter 6, p.52-53:
https://www.veravondegreent.com/portfolio-1/project-one-f5w4d-r7dwz
publication_id=2246921&post_id=143073663&
A Spring newsletter from Max Alexander, Play Radical:
https://substack.com/app-link/post publication_id=2246921&post_id=143073663&
Kelly Mahler and Kieran Rose have continued sharing their social media resources to support a better understanding of monototropism and how it may impact the interception system.
Little Black Duck have a great series sharing information about monotropic thinking.https://www.facebook.com/alittleblackduck/posts/pfbid07CgD1RHx62XCwnJcYU5pPeixmP66BC4LDytrAgdQ6M9GnoeVNNVeNZn2BKZNU6bYl
https://mindmate.org.uk/neurodiversity-information-hub/neurodiversity-characteristics/hyperfocus-nd/
Podcasts
Kate Fox & Nic King’s podcast: Neurotypicals Don’t Juggle Chainsaws! regularly covers monotropism related topics.
https://katewriter.substack.com/p/brain-overload-and-scarce-attention?r=o0s9q
Listen to Ep 10: Beyond the Spectrum by Stephen Fry’s Inside Your Mind on Audible. https://www.audible.co.uk/pd/B09QX6D2GC?source_code=ASSOR150021221000K
Stephen Fry mentions both Dinah Murray and Fergus Murray in this podcast, which was first aired on 3rd Nov 2022.
Courses and Webinars & Training:
Videos
Dr. Roger Jou. (2024b, May 7). CASY Cultural Autism Studies with guest speaker Julia Lee Barclay-Morton, Ph.D. [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_OynKEHAX4s
A wonderful video from CASY Cultural Autism Studies (The Ethnography Project led by Dr. Dawn Prince-Hughes). Julia Lee Barclay-Morton discussed, “IT SAVES YOUR LIFE: On Reframing Life After Very Late Autism Diagnosis.”
“Autistic flow may qualitatively diverge from traditional models of flow”…… Julia Barclay Lee Morton describes flow as being like basecamp for autistic people, which I like, for me it is a space/ place of safety that you want to return to and helps regulation too and can be restortative.”
A new series from The Neurodiversity Club:
In this video, Yo Samdy Sam takes the monotropism test to see if it aligns with their own cognitive style.
https://youtu.be/H4LWdyhRxIQ?si=8jEO87rbR6L2LpKn
Leave a Reply