Cultural diversity and neurodiversity – avoiding a communication meltdown

I recently attended a workshop for coaches for a Japanese company operating across Europe. One of the topics we covered was how to respond to neurodiversity in people attending our training and coaching sessions.

Neurodiversity is a relatively new term, emerging first in the 1990s, popularized by the Australian sociologist Judy Singer. It covers various ways that people experience the external world – how they think and process information and emotions. It includes autism, attention deficit, hyperactivity, dyspraxia and learning difficulties such as dyslexia and dyscalculia.

I realise I had fallen into some stereotypical thinking about neurodiversity – assuming that people with the condition would require medication, or that it was just an excuse for bad behaviour or not enough effort.

Medication may not be the answer

But the more I have read around the subject and reflected, the more I have understood my own neurodiversity and those of the people around me. It is estimated that around 15 to 20% of the population in Europe are neurodivergent. Amongst young people in the UK, nearly 40% self-diagnose as neurodivergent.

Clearly offering medication to all who are neurodivergent is not the right solution. Instead, the trend in the UK is for workplaces and educational institutions to provide support to those who are neurodiverse in how to manage their lives in a practical way.

Support for neurodiversity and culture shock

Much of the support offered is very similar to the recommendations I make on how to deal with cultural diversity. For example, use a clear communication style, avoiding sarcasm and implied messages. Conversely, try not to get upset when someone seems offensively direct or critical. Preparation of meetings and projects, with clear agendas, time lines and advance notice is also essential.

When these recommendations are not followed, it can lead to meltdown (tears or tantrums) or shutdown (withdrawal and refusal to engage) in neurodiverse people. Culture shock can also be caused when people do not react or behave the way they do in your own country, and can lead to anger and depression.

The software of the mind

The good news is that our brains are very adaptable. As Geert Hofstede, one of the most influential cross cultural researchers once said, culture is the software, not the hardware of the mind. So apart from severe neurodiverse conditions where medication is effective, mutual awareness and understanding, training on practical communication tips and adjustments to the work environment can go a long way to avoid conflict in the workplace.

This article originally appeared in Japanese in the Teikoku Databank News on 13th November 2024