Building a Neuro-Inclusive Culture in the Workplace Through Language

The content and resources provided in this newsletter are for informational purposes only and should not be considered medical or legal advice. We hope that this information can set you on a pathway to learning more about neurodiversity in the workplace. To ensure the highest quality content for our readers, all our articles are co-edited by Jane McColl, Senior People Manager at CareScribe. Happy reading!

Welcome back to our LinkedIn Newsletter, Inclusive Workplaces, where we share practical tips every month and help over 900+ people professionals create a more inclusive environment and culture in their organisations.

We hope you’re enjoying the summer and finding some time to relax. For those at work, we aim to keep this month’s topic with a light yet crucial read: building a neuro-inclusive workplace culture through language.

At a glance

🌈 Investing in inclusive language and practices is now more crucial than ever, as more Gen Z individuals join the workforce and prefer to work for organisations that value diversity and inclusion.

🖐 Neurodivergent individuals tend to prefer person-first language, such as “people living with a disability”, instead of terms like “disabled people.”

💬 How individuals prefer to be acknowledged can vary widely. Therefore, asking individuals how they would like to be described and represented is always good practice.

👌 Use plain language for clearer communication. Avoid jargon, acronyms, and idioms.

🧠 Focus on abilities and contributions and refrain from using terms that imply disability is negative or undesirable. For example, use “neurodivergence” instead of “condition”, difference”, or “disorder”.

🏆 Leaders play a crucial role in setting the tone for inclusion. Ensure your leadership team exemplifies inclusive language and behaviour.

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Inclusive language matters

Language isn’t just a way to communicate—it shapes our thoughts, attitudes, and actions. For those of us in HR, EDI, and inclusion roles, mastering inclusive language is a crucial step towards making sure everyone feels seen, heard, and valued.

“Neurodiverse people should not be seen as 'abnormal' and neurotypical people not seen as 'normal'.”

A respondent’s insights on neurodiversity, Exceptional Individuals Language Consultation Report.

However, it’s not just people professionals who can drive this change. How leadership communicates and highlights differences can significantly impact your organisation's culture. By adopting inclusive language, you can foster a workplace where everyone feels they belong and can contribute uniquely. This inclusive culture can help you achieve your organisation's broader goals of equality and diversity and ultimately lead to a revenue increase of up to 20%.

Why use inclusive language?

🖐 Encourages respect

Using person-first language (e.g., "people with disabilities" instead of "disabled people") respects individuals' identities and emphasises that the individual comes before their identity. In fact, 75% of respondents in a recent survey expressed a preference for person-first language, such as “people living with a disability”, over terms like “disabled people.”

👁️ Shifts the perception of neurodiversity

Language shapes how we perceive others. We can shift societal attitudes by choosing words that emphasise strengths and abilities rather than focusing on challenges. For example, you should refer to someone as ‘detail-oriented’ or ‘creative’ rather than ‘suffering from autism’.

🧠 Empowers unique talents within the organisation

By amplifying the voices of neurodivergent individuals and allowing them to define how they wish to be described and represented, it creates a safe space for their unique traits and talents to be displayed and celebrated. Deloitte ’s report suggests that neurodivergent professionals can increase their team's productivity by 30%. By using inclusive language in the workplace, you not only break down the stigma surrounding neurodiversity but also encourage your neurodivergent employees to reach their full potential and contribute more effectively.

☝️ A must for the new Gen Z workforce

Investing in inclusive language and practices isn't just a moral imperative—it makes good business sense, especially as more Gen Z individuals join the workforce. Over 30% of Gen Z employees prioritise diversity and inclusion for their desired workplace. Moreover, Deloitte ’s report reveals that over 50% of Gen Z and Millennial employees will leave a company within two years if they’re not satisfied with its progress on workplace inclusion.

Creating an inclusive workplace is more crucial than ever. Organisations that fail to support neurodivergent staff or those with specific needs may face higher turnover rates. By using inclusive language that embraces and celebrates differences, your organisation can improve employee retention and engagement.

Quiz yourself! How familiar are you with these definitions?

Traditional workplace norms often cater to neurotypical individuals, inadvertently excluding those who think and process information differently. Embracing neurodiversity means challenging these norms and creating spaces where neurodivergent individuals can thrive.

Your organisation’s journey begins with familiarising yourself, managers, and other team members with the terms and definitions used within the scope of neurodiversity.

🧠 Neurodivergence: a broad, non-medical term to describe individuals with diverse mental functioning. Neurodiverse conditions include autism, dyspraxia, dyslexia, dyscalculia and ADHD, and more.

🧠 Neurotypical: people who show thinking patterns that fit within societal expectations, they don’t have a diagnosable disability, or show indications of a disability.

🧠 Neurodiverse: describes a group of people with a variety of brains or styles of functioning, including neurodivergent and neurotypical individuals.

🧠 Neurominority: a group of individuals with the same type of neurodivergence.

🌈 NeuroQueer: term, coined by Nick Walker , encourages embracing one's neurodivergence in a way that defies societal expectations. example: "I embrace my Autism and my stimming and am promoting stimming acceptance in my workplace – I am NeuroQueering my workplace."

🌶️ Neurospicy: A playful term that celebrates the unique and varied experiences of neurodivergent individuals.

😶🌫️ Masking: the practice of individuals with neurodivergence using strategies to hide or suppress their natural behaviours and preferences in order to conform to societal norms. The concept is primarily used in the context of autism, but it can apply to ADHD and other mental health conditions as well.

🔓 Accommodation/Reasonable Adjustments: A term used to describe the adjustments that can reasonably be made to meet the needs of a neurodivergent person in the workplace.

🤖 Assistive Technology: an umbrella term for physical tools, products, and digital systems that help people with disabilities to carry out tasks. World Health Organization suggests 2.5 billion people currently need support from AT which will rise to 3.5 billion by 2050.

💙 Lived experience: You might have encountered this new term among the neurodivergent community and inclusion professionals. It refers to the personal experiences and insights of neurodivergent individuals and is often used instead of the phrase "personal experience.”

🎯 Looking for the perfect guide to add to your toolkit? Check out our free guide!

Have a look at our ✨ FREE ✨ guide to learn more about neuro-inclusive language and how to empower your neurodivergent employees from day one. For detailed insights into the neurodivergent spectrum and tailored solutions for organisations of all sizes, get your free copy here!

Practical Steps for Inclusive Communication

Creating a neuro-inclusive culture starts with everyday interactions. Here are some actionable tips for using inclusive language in the workplace:

🖐 Be people-first and ask preferences

Always ask individuals how they would like to be described and represented acknowledging their autonomy and being heard.

In a recent survey, people with dyslexia oppose the term ‘dyslexics’ and prefer to be referred to as ‘people with dyslexia’, similarly people preferred ‘dyspraxia’ over ‘developmental coordination disorder’ (DCD).

However, neurodivergence can include a broad range of differences, and many people have their own identifier they’d prefer to use. If in doubt, ask.

“Try and not use disability, because day-to-day people don’t understand that it doesn’t necessarily hold people back. Unfortunately, disability has a negative connotation. They also assume it’s physical rather than potentially being cognitive, so then you’re treated badly for saying you're disabled when they think you're not. There are preconceived ideas about what disabled means, and cognitive, for day-to-day people, is not part of it.”

A respondent’s insights on the word disability, Exceptional Individuals Language Consultation Report.

“Personally, my issue with person-first language is only that it sounds euphemistic, which I think is patronising. The exception would be ADHD as there isn't really an adjective for this disorder like there is with autism.”

A respondent’s insights on person-first language, Exceptional Individuals Language Consultation Report.

💬 Use plain language

Avoid jargon, acronyms, and idioms that might be confusing. Clear communication benefits everyone, including individuals with neurodiversity.

Instead of: "We need to drill down into the data."

✅ Use: "We need to examine the data closely."

Instead of: "FYI, the meeting is rescheduled."

✅ Use: "For your information, the meeting is rescheduled."

Instead of: "This project is in the pipeline."

✅ Use: "This project is being planned."

There is a great example of this during this year's Neurodiversity Celebration Week webinar, ‘Neuro-inclusive Language & Communications’, where Anne D. Ferguson used the idiom "throwing yourself under the bus." She immediately caught herself (skip to 1:06 to watch this moment) and explained the meaning of the idiom. Later, the panellists discussed the use of idioms and how they should be avoided for clearer communication.

🧠 Avoid ableist language

Refrain from using terms that imply disability is negative or undesirable. Focus on abilities and contributions instead. Survey data indicates a strong preference for terms like “neurodivergence” (40%) over “condition” (34%), “difference” (20%), or “disorder” (6%). In the survey, a respondent states: “I use ADHD because people understand what that is. However, I really hate the word disorder.”

Creating Lasting Change

Creating a neuro-inclusive culture requires more than just an initial effort; it demands a sustained commitment to learning, growth, and adaptation. To effectively embed inclusive practices within your organisation, consider the following strategies:

🫂 Promoting respect

Up to 75% of employees engage in ‘masking’ at work, hiding their differences or downplaying their needs, often due to fear of being misunderstood or discriminated against. By correcting insensitive language and encouraging inclusive dialogue, you can foster a culture of respect and understanding in your organisation.

🎓 Training and education

Regular training sessions on inclusive language and neurodiversity can help raise awareness and build skills among employees. The Exceptional Individuals Language Consultation Report found that respondents with ADHD, dyspraxia, and dyslexia favoured person-first language by 88.9%, 65.5%, and 71% respectively.

At CareScribe , we include a neuro-inclusive language guideline in our brand guidelines to help our team members on how we talk about disability and which wording we use, such as people-first language. This could be one of the practical solutions for your newly joined team members to adjust and improve their language not only externally but internally too. Check out this Neurodivergent Affirming Language Guide by Neurodiverse Connection to give you an easy start.

Remember though — inclusive language is not just about removing specific words from your vocabulary and it applies to more than disability.

”Helping team members understand how to communicate about disability and neurodiversity is important. We build this into our brand voice guide at CareScribe because we want our team to understand the significant impact language can have for people from those communities. Of course, we’re not perfect all the time, and there will always be lessons learned or feedback to take on board. However, by covering the topic of inclusive language in our brand voice guide, we make something very clear: which is our intent to communicate with respect.”

Claire Dibben, Marketing Director at CareScribe .

✍️ Policy updates

Review and update company policies to reflect inclusive language practices. Ensure job descriptions, performance reviews, and other official documents use respectful and inclusive terminology.

🏆 Leadership commitment

Leaders play a crucial role in setting the tone for inclusion. Encourage leaders to model inclusive language and behaviour. CIPD reports that only 56% of senior managers with decision-making influence believe their leaders appreciate the value of neurodiversity and the importance of a neuro-inclusive organisation and 53% said leaders show commitment to neurodiversity inclusion through their actions and behaviour.

In our recent Skill Session, Danielle Cudjoe-Michalski (ICF ACC) , founder of Thinking Light Coach and co-founder of the Neurodiversity Network at GSK , shared her journey and expertise in creating a neuro-inclusive workplace culture. Her insights offer practical strategies for working with teams and leaders to support your mission of fostering an inclusive environment within your organisation. Listen to the conversation to gain valuable knowledge on implementing these practices effectively.

💌 You're invited!

Join our next Skill Sessions webinar to hear from experts as they share key learnings and success stories on embracing neurodiversity and creating inclusive workplaces. Don’t miss this opportunity to gain practical insights you can apply to your own organisation.

Book your ✨ free ✨ place now for our upcoming Skill Sessions webinar:

Our webinars are completely free and hosted online. You can check out all our upcoming and previous webinars here.

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CareScribe is on a mission to make the world more accessible. We build assistive technology which levels the playing field for people with disabilities and enables users to be more independent in their studies and at work. Our small but mighty team builds software that thousands of people love: lightning-fast dictation software, TalkType, and our live-captioning and note-taking product, Caption.Ed. Explore how CareScribe can help you create a more inclusive workplace.