Crossroads: The Impact of Neurodivergence on Racial Identity Formation

Time Commitment: I commit roughly 8-10 hours each week to the research process for this project. It lasted from August 2025 to December 2025. ​

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Research Focus: The overarching foci of this paper are around cognitive rigidity as a representative symptom of neurodivergence and how this symptom influences racial identity formation. Notable interactions included a prevalence of race-blindness, differences in racial identity formation among white and non-white participants, early exposure to racial identity as a concept among people of color, plateaus in racial identity development among people of color, and a desire to progress past these plateaus in the future. ​

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Context: Recent drawbacks to ‘Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion’ initiatives and disability benefits have placed marginalization in the media spotlight, prompting several discussions on disability and race by journalists and readers alike. However, despite the large impact that race has on American social dynamism, the general public holds a very warped perception of racial identity and its formation. Outside of academic fields, racial categorization is often overly simplified and presented as unaffected by social structure. As a result, the average person does not delve deeply into how they’ve developed their racial identity. Additionally, the majority of the population is neurotypical and expresses standard cognitive processes. It is rare to find neurotypicals who understand just how impactful cognitive rigidity can be on one’s thought processes and behavior. Given this, the perspectives of neurodivergent people of color are vastly underexplored, leaving large gaps that exclude those with multiple intersectional identities from conversations that directly impact their lives. In order to properly address the issue of discrimination and its solution through policy, a thorough understanding of race, disability, and their intersection is necessary. 
This essay explores how cognitive rigidity as a symptom of neurodivergence influences the formation of racial identity within young adults. Due to the subjective and evolving nature of racial identity, one might theorize that the dichotomous nature of cognitive rigidity may cause delays in the progression of racial identity formation among neurodivergent racial minorities, especially considering how openly displaying a dual identity can subject a person to multiple modes of oppression. A second hypothesis is posited here, where dual identity as intersectionally non-white and neurodivergent will be undesirable. 

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Project Responsibilities: I completed a 44-page standard senior thesis project by designing and executing an independent research design,  literature review, semi-structured interviews, and data synthesis by means of data triangulation. I intend to publish my findings as well. Additionally, I attended meetings with the Writing Studio at the University of Florida to ensure my writing meets my highest standard and is on par with graduate-level study. ​

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