Not just a one-sided deficit
First introduced by Damian Milton in 2012, the Double Empathy Problem moves away from the traditional view that autistic people lack empathy and social skills. Instead, communication is recognised as a two-way process, where each group (autistic and allistic) struggles to interpret the other.
When people with very different experiences of the world interact with one another, they will struggle to empathise with each other.
Damian Milton, 2018
Whilst the concept may appear simple, it involves a radical change in thinking about autistic communication which is often perceived as deficient rather than different. Additionally, the double empathy problem highlights that both allistic and neurotypical people share responsibility for ensuring communication is effective and respectful.
Communication does not occur in isolation but instead happens within physical, temporal, situational, historical, socio-cultural, and social-psychological contexts. Each context may have unspoken rules or expectations which are not obvious to autistic people unless they are clearly and explicitly communicated.
Examples in the workplace include:
Email communication: An autistic colleague may keep emails brief and functional, whereas an allistic colleague may expect social niceties or a more personal communication style. Consequently, the allistic colleague may perceive the autistic colleague to be rude or blunt, whereas the autistic colleague may perceive the allistic style to be inefficient or irrelevant.
Verbal conversations: An autistic colleague may struggle with sustaining attention when verbal instructions are given, misinterpret what has been communicated, and feel unable to disclose when they don’t understand. The allistic colleague may assume that the autistic colleague hasn’t listened or lacks care.
Team meetings: An autistic colleague may avoid eye contact as this makes them uncomfortable, and require more time than allistic colleagues to respond to questions due to difficulties in auditory processing. The allistic colleague may perceive the autistic colleague to be rude or disinterested. If this is communicated to the autistic colleague, they may feel unfairly judged and criticised.
Improving communication
There are multiple strategies and approaches that can be used to overcome these challenges, and what works for one organisation may not work for another. Educating colleagues and increasing awareness helps to overcome harmful stereotypes and enables autistic colleagues to feel more confident and accepted when communicating with others.
Strategies to improve communication include keeping instructions clear and concise, supplementing verbal instructions in writing, and using visual aids such as flowcharts.
Key takeaways
- What is the double empathy problem? The double empathy problem is a concept where a breakdown of communication between autistic and allistic people arises from a difference in communication styles rather than due to an autistic communication deficit.
- How is this relevant to the workplace? Communication between autistic and allistic colleagues may breakdown during communication by email, verbal conversations and team meetings, but this does not make it an autistic ‘deficit’ to be fixed.
- How can these challenges be overcome? Communication challenges can be reduced by being clear and explicit, normalising different communication styles, structuring meetings, educating colleagues and managers, and giving regular feedback.
Improving neuroinclusivity
The first steps towards making organisational changes are recognising that there is something that needs to change and then making a commitment to do so. Understanding the differences between autistic and allistic communication styles is useful, but it is also important to consider the context in which the communication occurs.
Doctor Divergent works with organisations to determine their individual needs in building a more neuroinclusive workplace. We take time to familiarise ourselves with your organisations mission and core values, to truly understand your priorities and ways of working. We can provide team or management training or work 1:1 with both autistic and allistic colleagues, to support, inform and transform your organisation.
This article was written by Dr Jackie on behalf of Doctor Divergent Ltd. Click here to enquire about our training for organisations.