‘I think autism is like running on Windows while everyone else is a Mac’: using a participatory action research approach with students on the autistic spectrum to rearticulate autism and the lived experience of university

Abstract

This co-authored article outlines the research process and key findings from the Stratus Writers Project, a participatory action research project with a group of seven students on the autistic spectrum at a university in the North of England. The project explores their experiences of university through critical autobiographies and offers unique insider perspectives into some of the key issues, challenges and successes. Building on a participatory action research approach, the data were collected by the participants themselves; however, this study departs from traditional research in that the participants also analysed the data, thus offering rich and potentially overlooked theoretical knowledge. The article concludes by demonstrating the strength of participatory action research approaches by identifying the impact that our project and its findings have had so far.

Keywords:

• Autism
• participatory action research
• higher education
• data analysis
• critical autobiography

Acknowledgements

The authors wish to thank Prof Carol Munn-Giddings, Anglia Ruskin University, and Prof Tina Cook, Northumbria University, for their critical reads and constructive criticism. Thanks also to Prof Carolyn Jackson, Centre for Social Justice and Wellbeing in Education at Lancaster University, for her helpful comments on an earlier version of this text. Finally, the authors wish to extend their gratitude to the anonymous reviewers for their insightful and valuable feedback.