Overcoming Stigma in Neurodiversity: Toward Stigma-Informed ABA Practice

Stigma, a social and cultural phenomenon, profoundly impacts the quality of life and mental health of neurodivergent individuals and their families. It often prevents individuals from seeking support or implementing evidence-based intervention recommendations and interferes with establishing trusting relationships with professionals. Therefore, applied behavior analysis (ABA) practitioners and researchers should understand and address stigma in our practice and research. In this article, I describe several forms of stigma-such as public, experienced, self, and affiliate stigma-that neurodivergent individuals and their families face, as well as the implicit stigma that ABA practitioners might have. Furthermore, recommendations for ABA practitioners to address stigma are discussed, including increasing awareness, assessing stigma, addressing implicit biases, and developing stigma-informed interventions to serve neurodivergent individuals and their families better.