This dissertation explores the firsthand experiences of autistic and neurodiverse individuals in social and extracurricular settings. Grounded in symbolic interactionism and disability studies, this study leveraged qualitative interviews to provide greater insight into the extracurricular lives of autistic persons and the quality of preparation and education provided to said participants to successfully navigate those experiences. Due to the limited number of studies on this topic, and the tendency of programs to focus on general skill development for this population, significant attention was also given to investigating the activity-specific skills needed for various social and extracurricular activities.
Understanding the intricacies in how neurodiverse individuals navigate said interactions has historically proven difficult to capture in clinical studies that mainly focus on third-person accounts. Coupled with the wide range of disability policies, practices, and curriculum, dedicated to servicing the needs of neurodiverse individuals, current understanding of the lived realities of neurodiverse populations in extracurricular activities is minimal. Therefore, leveraging our learnings from the in-depth interviews about the personal experiences, triumphs, and challenges of the study participants in the social and extracurricular realm, the study seeks to provide greater input on how social skills programs can be better equipped and updated to conform to current neurodiverse standards and experience.
","abstract_html":"<p>This dissertation explores the firsthand experiences of autistic and neurodiverse individuals in social and extracurricular settings. Grounded in symbolic interactionism and disability studies, this study leveraged qualitative interviews to provide greater insight into the extracurricular lives of autistic persons and the quality of preparation and education provided to said participants to successfully navigate those experiences. Due to the limited number of studies on this topic, and the tendency of programs to focus on general skill development for this population, significant attention was also given to investigating the activity-specific skills needed for various social and extracurricular activities.</p> <p>Understanding the intricacies in how neurodiverse individuals navigate said interactions has historically proven difficult to capture in clinical studies that mainly focus on third-person accounts. Coupled with the wide range of disability policies, practices, and curriculum, dedicated to servicing the needs of neurodiverse individuals, current understanding of the lived realities of neurodiverse populations in extracurricular activities is minimal. Therefore, leveraging our learnings from the in-depth interviews about the personal experiences, triumphs, and challenges of the study participants in the social and extracurricular realm, the study seeks to provide greater input on how social skills programs can be better equipped and updated to conform to current neurodiverse standards and experience.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Hinkle, Stephen M."],"institution":null,"degree_name":"Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)","degree_level":"Dissertation","degree_discipline":"Education","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Scot Danforth","Jennifer Kong","Dawn Hunter","LouAnne Boyd"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2025,"date_issued":"2025-12-01T08:00:00Z","date_published":"2025-12-01T08:00:00Z","updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:38:43Z","subjects":["Disability and Equity in Education","Disability Studies","Other Education","Special Education and Teaching"],"languages":[],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://digitalcommons.chapman.edu/education_dissertations/105","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Scot Danforth","Jennifer Kong","Dawn Hunter","LouAnne Boyd"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Hinkle, Stephen M."]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Education"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Disability and Equity in Education","Disability Studies","Other Education","Special Education and Teaching"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://digitalcommons.chapman.edu/education_dissertations/105"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["This dissertation explores the firsthand experiences of autistic and neurodiverse individuals in social and extracurricular settings. Grounded in symbolic interactionism and disability studies, this study leveraged qualitative interviews to provide greater insight into the extracurricular lives of autistic persons and the quality of preparation and education provided to said participants to successfully navigate those experiences. Due to the limited number of studies on this topic, and the tendency of programs to focus on general skill development for this population, significant attention was also given to investigating the activity-specific skills needed for various social and extracurricular activities.
Understanding the intricacies in how neurodiverse individuals navigate said interactions has historically proven difficult to capture in clinical studies that mainly focus on third-person accounts. Coupled with the wide range of disability policies, practices, and curriculum, dedicated to servicing the needs of neurodiverse individuals, current understanding of the lived realities of neurodiverse populations in extracurricular activities is minimal. Therefore, leveraging our learnings from the in-depth interviews about the personal experiences, triumphs, and challenges of the study participants in the social and extracurricular realm, the study seeks to provide greater input on how social skills programs can be better equipped and updated to conform to current neurodiverse standards and experience.
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Understanding the intricacies in how neurodiverse individuals navigate said interactions has historically proven difficult to capture in clinical studies that mainly focus on third-person accounts. Coupled with the wide range of disability policies, practices, and curriculum, dedicated to servicing the needs of neurodiverse individuals, current understanding of the lived realities of neurodiverse populations in extracurricular activities is minimal. Therefore, leveraging our learnings from the in-depth interviews about the personal experiences, triumphs, and challenges of the study participants in the social and extracurricular realm, the study seeks to provide greater input on how social skills programs can be better equipped and updated to conform to current neurodiverse standards and experience.
"],"dc:identifier":["https://digitalcommons.chapman.edu/education_dissertations/105"],"dc:source":["Hinkle, S. M. (2025). First-hand perspectives of autistic and neurodiverse individuals in social and extracurricular settings [Doctoral dissertation, Chapman University]. Chapman University Digital Commons. https://doi.org/10.36837/chapman.000711"],"dc:subject":["Disability and Equity in Education","Disability Studies","Other Education","Special Education and Teaching"],"dc:title":["First-Hand Perspectives of Autistic and Neurodiverse Individuals in Social and Extracurricular Settings"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Education"],"thesis:degree_level":["Dissertation"],"thesis:degree_name":["Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:38:43Z"}