HOMESTUDY: Neurodiversity-Affirming Assessment: Intake, Testing, Feedback, & Reports - Liz Angoff, Ph.D. 3 CEs

Over the past few years, the concept of neurodiversity has become critical for how we think about neurodevelopmental diagnoses. However, there is still a significant disconnect between our evolving understanding of neurodiversity and the way we communicate with families, assess children, and write our reports. Building on the APA guidelines for addressing cultural diversity, this talk will introduce tools and strategies for incorporating responsive practices for neurodiverse children and their families, considering a variety of diagnostic profiles. Since many biological parents have similar processing profiles to their children (whether or not they have been diagnosed), we will not only examine affirming testing practices with our child clients, but also intake, feedback, and report-writing practices that are responsive to neurodiverse families and their lived-experiences. Level of Activity: Advanced Objectives: Name specific, neurodiversity-responsive strategies to engage families as authentic collaborators in the assessment process. Create real-world examples and relatable metaphors for explaining testing results to families and children. Practice writing neurodiversity-affirming report summaries.