Ep. 52 - Narratives, Nostalgia, & Neuroaffirmative Research (with Mishel Alexandrovsky)
Bruce and Kara sit down with autistic autism researcher Mishel Alexandrovsky to talk about problems with existing research on/about autistic people, diagnostic tools, epistemological framing of autism in the media, and more. For fun, we talk about collections, crayons, and things that elicit nostalgia!
Guest Bio: Mishel Alexandrovsky is an autistic autism researcher at the University of Toronto and the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health. She is conducting participatory work that critiques cognitive tasks commonly used in autism research. She also collaborates on studies of neuroaffirmative care, camouflaging, and cross-neurotype evaluation. The overarching goal of her research is to improve the understanding of autistic people, and through that, help foster greater acceptance, better supports, and autistic flourishing. Alongside her research, Mishel enjoys curating collections, travelling to new and familiar places, and listening to the same songs on repeat.
Social Media:
X: @MishAlexan
BlueSky: @mishalex.bsky.social
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mishel-alexandrovsky/
Thing(s) of the Day: What is autism? Identity in jeopardy and the collaborative way ahead - Mishel Alexandrovsky, Margot Frayne, Meng-Chuan Lai, 2025Goblin Tools - Goblin Tools
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/josp.12456
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Autistic Tidbits & Tangents is a biweekly podcast, co-hosted by Kara Dymond, Bruce Petherick, & Maja Toudal, centered around topics relevant to autism and the lives of autistic people. We are autistic professionals with a passion for broadening and advancing accessibility for autistic people and understanding of autism and neurodiversity. We approach our work with the combination of our personal and professional experiences.
Each person’s viewpoints on this podcast reflect their backgrounds and temporal perspectives at the time of recording, and do not necessarily reflect the views of everyone else. We believe that personal growth comes from listening and reacting to multiple perspectives, and that conversations can be catalysts for change, connection, and greater understanding. Thanks for being part of our community!
Episodes can be found on Spotify, Google Podcasts, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube.
Social Media:
Kara: www.karadymond.com
Youtube - Dr. Kara Dymond
Facebook - @drkaradymond
Bluesky - @drkaradymond
Instagram - @drkaradymond
Bruce:
YouTube - Bruce Petherick
Facebook - @BrucePetherickMusic
Bluesky - @brucepetherick
Instagram - @bpetherick
Maja: www.majatoudal.com
Youtube - An Autistic Psychologist
Facebook - @majatoudal
Bluesky - @majatoudal
Instagram - @majatoudal
SPECIAL THANKS:
-Theme composed by Bruce Petherick
-Today’s guest, Mishel!
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