About the author

Elisabeth Casas Forteza-Rey, a Psychologist with a BA from the University of Barcelona, currently pursuing an MSc in Innovation & Entrepreneurship at the ESADE, is an entrepreneur and researcher with a focus on the field of Neurodivergent Disorders. She brings an analytical and creative point of view and a unique vision to the world of research thanks to her condition as a Neurodivergent person, as she has Autism Spectrum Disorder.

About the origin of the research

This article is the result of research conducted by its author during her participation in the initiative created by the Event Management Institute entitled Psicothon. Psicothon is a research “marathon” where young psychologists compete to generate valuable scientific content for the MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Fairs) and events world, always with regard to the behavior of their audiences. The first edition of Psicothon was held in collaboration with the Sitges Town Council via the Sitges Convention Bureau (thank you for supporting research!).

NEURODIVERGENTS: WE’RE NOT SICK, WE’RE DIFFERENT

Neurodivergent people are those who have a Neurodevelopmental Disorder. These disorders are not diseases, ergo they can’t be “cured”; they are conditions that are part of the individual for his or her entire life. Some examples of Neurodevelopmental Disorders are Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Attention Deficit Disorder with or without Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD/ADHD) or Dyslexia. These disorders may appear on their own or may be comorbid (two or more disorders present at the same time) in some individuals, for example, a person with ASD and ADHD. Conversely, Neurotypical individuals are those who have had a normative neurodevelopment throughout their entire lifetime; that is, they do not have any type of Neurodevelopmental Disorder.

Both during childhood and adulthood, there are people who present a high degree of discomfort in the presence of socially accepted sensory stimuli and who present deficits in multisensory integration, to such an extent that it influences their functionality in daily life. This condition is called “Sensory Processing Disorder” (SPD) and is one of the main characteristics of Neurodivergent people (although there are also Neurotypical people with SPD). SPD generates an aversive and avoidant attitude towards stimuli considered noxious by the person called “Sensory Defensiveness”.

Most of the symptoms present in autism are sensory and self-regulatory. Several authors indicate some of the main effects of deterioration in sensory processing in neurodivergent individuals:

• Deficits in communication, motor skills and social skills.
• Hypersensitivity and hyposensitivity to sensory stimuli (and may even perceive them both ways).
• Direct relationship between sensory hypersensitivity and anxiety to physical pain and specific phobias.
• Also a direct, positive relationship between sensory hyposensitivity and social and generalized anxiety.
• Autistic children are hyposensitive to painful stimuli and hypersensitive to innocuous stimuli.

NEURODIVERGENTS AND EVENTS

Due to these characteristics and the fact that Neurodivergent people may be hyposensitive or hypersensitive to pain, it is necessary to take into account the sensory conditions of the environments where the events take place because Neurodivergent people may be exposed to noxious stimuli, without realizing it, generating agitation without understanding what is causing it.

It is commonly known that people with neurodivergent disorders do not tolerate change well. When changes in the environment occur, autistic people tend to quickly change their focus of attention (Gomot et al, 2011). During events, changes are often used to capture the audience’s attention, but in the case of Neurodivergent people (both audience and speakers) the effect can be the opposite, leading to confusion and loss of attention regarding the activities that are taking place.

The purpose of this article is to facilitate the participation of people with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in live communication events and to optimize autistic speakers’ comfort. The study outlines characteristics of sensory perception related to the five senses (sight, hearing, touch, taste and smell) applicable to the venue where events take place in order to achieve a more satisfactory sensory experience.

SIGHT

Color

It has been demonstrated (Heaton, Ludlow and Wilkins, 2006), that for autistic readers, reading texts on colored media makes it easier for them to read. White, on the other hand, makes reading more difficult.

More specifically, children with ASD are more likely than neurotypical children to prefer green and brown colors, but were significantly less likely to prefer yellow, given that autistic children are hypersensitive and perceive yellow as sensory overload (Grandgeorge and Masataka, 2016).

Other studies indicate that people with ADHD perceive the color blue poorly (article by Kim, Al-Haj, Chen, Fuller, Jain et al, 2014).

In the event that materials are needed at an event that require attendees to read (posters, wall panels, slides that require reading, etc.); we must make sure that the reading media are green or brown, avoiding a white, yellow or blue background.

For example, if at an art exhibition the panels where the title, the author or the artistic movement is written are green or brown, reading will be made easier for people with autism.

Facial recognition

Neurotypical individuals’ facial recognition skills improve between adolescence and adulthood. This is not the case in autism, resulting in a stagnation of these skills, generating a facial recognition deficit. Researchers (Lynn, Padmanabhan, Simmonds, Foran, Hallquist et al, 2018) found that the area of the brain responsible for facial recognition (fusiform face area or FFA) was under-connected with other parts of the brain, leading to worse facial processing and social deficits in autism.

In the event that an event features more than one person (a congress, a convention…), it is advisable to show their name on screen while they are speaking or to use name tags that will help to improve facial recognition. Another good practice is to subtitle the speakers’ speeches for a better understanding by neurodivergent audiences.

Another example: In the context of a play, each character could be differentiated by his or her attire, with each actor wearing a color of clothing that is predominantly different from the others.

Shapes: straight vs. curved

Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder show a preference for curvilinear abstract stimuli, while in interior spaces they prefer rooms with rectilinear shapes (Bertamini, Clarke, Palumbo, Rampone, Sinico, & Vartanian, 2020).

If you want to use abstract decorative elements in an event, make sure they are curvilinear. If the event takes place in an interior space, make sure that the rooms have straight walls and corners. A good application of the above theory could be a rectangular interior space decorated with floral drawings and sculptures (which are curvilinear shapes).

HEARING

Background noises

Children with ASD process spoken speech whether there is background noise or silence, just as neurotypical children process spoken speech with background noise (Chen, Krasus, Russo, Trommer, & Zecker, 2009). Autistic subjects’ difficulty when it comes to processing spoken speech is high even in situations with low or non-existent noise pollution.

Individuals with high-functioning ASD (Asperger syndrome) perform less well than neurotypical children during speech discrimination tasks with background noise, if the noise is attention-demanding. On the other hand, this is not the case if it is white noise (all sound frequencies emitted at once, such as the sound of a hair dryer). The results also support the argument that, more than a perceptual deficit, it is an attentional deficit that affects the ability of individuals with ASD to discriminate speech from background noise (Dunlop, Enticott and Rajan, 2016).

Avoid giving talks in outdoor spaces. It is preferable to offer spoken speeches indoors, remind attendees to remain quiet, and optimize the acoustics of the room by isolating it from outside noise.

Pfeiffer et al (2019) state that the use of noise-canceling headphones by individuals with ASD with auditory hypersensitivity improves their well-being in noisy situations or situations requiring a high degree of multisensory integration. In practice, this could be done by providing noise-canceling headphones or by regulating the volume perceived by attendees and speakers at an event.

TOUCH

Sensory reaction

Both autistic children and children with other neurodivergences present self-protective sensory reactions (Tactile Defensiveness) to pleasant stimuli and social physical contact, which is related to deficits in social interaction (Cascio, Lorenzi, & Baranek, 2016).

When an event requires attendees to stay in a certain place in the venue (stalls, a terrace…), we must make sure that this location does not require physical contact between the attendees. For example, an auditorium where the seats are wide and the armrests aren’t shared is perfect.

When an event includes sound transmitted through loudspeakers, the volume and quality of the audio output should be optimized to avoid the vibration it produces when bouncing off the human body. Ideally, the sound from the loudspeakers should not be too loud and should not cause noticeable vibrations affecting the body. A medium level sound distributed throughout the room is preferable to a loud sound at the front only.

Discomfort with temperature changes

Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder experience intense sensitivity to heat and cold, which in many cases is perceived as pain. This cold-induced pain is perceived at higher temperatures and heat-induced pain is perceived at lower temperatures (Baranek, Cascio, Essick, Folguer, McGlone, Pelphrey and Tannan, 2008).

If an event takes place in an outdoor space, avoid scheduling it on days when high or low temperatures (whether extreme or not) are forecast, as the threshold for detecting temperature-induced pain is lower.

TASTE

Salty taste

In an experiment on the recognition of different flavors, it was concluded that children with autism tend to confuse the salty taste with a neutral taste (Baron-Cohen and Tavassoli, 2012).

At an event with gastronomy, it is preferable to include food and beverages with a non-salty taste to promote the active participation of subjects with autism and to avoid the discomfort they may experience by not being able to fully enjoy the activity. Labeling foods with the type of flavor can avoid bad sensory experiences.

SMELL

Pleasant and less pleasant aromas.

Autistic subjects perceive the aroma of cinnamon, pineapple and cloves less pleasantly than neurotypical subjects. An orange scent, on the contrary, acts as the most stimulating scent of all tested (Blatny, Dudova, Havlovicova, Hrdlicka, Urbaneck, Vodicka, 2011).

In enclosed spaces, it is suggested not to use air fresheners containing cinnamon, pineapple or cloves. And it is suggested to use orange scented air fresheners in the room to stimulate ASD subjects and promote their participation in the activity.

THE STIMMING ROOM

Kapp et al (2019) define “Stimming” as stereotyped or repetitive motor movements performed by autistic individuals as an adaptive mechanism that helps them communicate intense emotions or thoughts and cope with them. They also explain there should be no attempt to eliminate these sensation-seeking behaviors, although socially unacceptable, because they are self-regulatory.

In practice, this could be done by creating a room of silence (Stimming Room) that would allow a break from the event. In this space, neurodivergent people could perform “Stimming” behaviors without the pressure of feeling judged, they could have noise-canceling headphones, and even pleasant objects to perform their “Stimming” (such as anti-stress balls or stuffed animals).