A brief musical autoethnography of autistic leisure�or how monotropism may not even include restricted interests

Caio Prestes Góes Rocha

PhD student of Ethnomusicology

Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul

Porto Alegre, Brazil

Autism, Disability and Society

• Autism as disability (Brasil, 2012)
• Rejecting the medical model (Shakespeare, 2013)
• In particular as part of neurodiversity (Walker, 2021)

The Ethnomusicology of Autism

“The values, priorities, and epistemological foundations of ethnomusicology, neurodiversity, and autistic self-advocacy are eminently compatible, in many ways nearly identical. They are linked by a common, overarching humanistic imperative, which holds that working from a template of mutual acceptance, respect, support, inclusion, and listening is always a good idea.” (Bakan, 2015, 138)

Autoethnography

• Experiencial, embodied, emotional and reflexive, therefore transgressive, indisciplined and political (Gama, 2020, 191)
• Auto and Ethno simultaneously, in relation (Versiani, 2005, 213)
• “We will not know if others’ intimate experiences are similar or different until we offer our own stories and pay attention to how others respond” (Ellis, 1993, 725)
• No fixed answers, constant change, multiple levels of consciousness, critical thinking, dialogue (Santos, 2022, 16)

Monotropism

• Focused attention, deep interests, extreme emotions (Murray et al, 2005)
• “Difficulties with shifting cognitive set except where the target is a strong attractor” (143)
• Skills as either “fired into monotropic superdrive” or not at all (143)
• “Shortage of attention is key to the lack of simultaneous activity” (144)
• “If greater numbers of interests are in play connections may be made or strengthened” (144)

My everyday autistic musicking leisure, pt. 1

Music as:

• Embodied listening: autistic joy and stress
• Relating to oneself, others and the world
• Relaxation and neverending research
• Meticulous structure and long-term planning

My everyday autistic musicking leisure, pt. 2

Music as:

• Overall loneliness with occasional brief glimpes of connectedness(?)
• Overall uselessness and goalessness but slowly reshaping identities and desires(?)
• Faithful yet everexpanding interests, as long as Crip time (Kafer, 2013) and deep dives are not too rarely available

References, pt. 1

Bakan, M. B. (2015). “Don’t Go Changing to Try and Please Me”: Combating Essentialism through Ethnography in the Ethnomusicology of Autism. Ethnomusicology, 59(1), 116-144.

Bakan, M. B., Chaser, M., Gibson, G., Grace, E. J., Hamelson, Z., Nitzberg, D., Peterson G., Pytlik, M., Rindale, D., Sequenzia, A., & Silar, A. (2018). Speaking for ourselves: Conversations on life, music, and autism. Oxford University Press.

Brasil. (2012). Lei nº. 12.764, de 27 de dezembro de 2012. Institui a política nacional de proteção dos direitos da pessoa com transtorno do espectro autista e altera o §38 do art. 98 da Lei nº. 8.112, de 11 de dezembro de 1990. Diário Oficial da União.

Ellis, C. (1993). "There are Survivors": Telling a Story of Sudden Death. The Sociological Quarterly, 34(4), 711-730.

Gama, F. (2020). A autoetnografia como método criativo: experimentações com a esclerose múltipla. Anuário Antropológico, 45(2), 188-208.

Grant, A. (2014). Inaugural Conference of British Autoethnography Keynote. Autoethnography:

threat and promise. Brighton Journal of Research in Health Sciences, 1(1).

Ingram, R. A. (2016). Doing Mad Studies: Making (Non)sense Together. Intersectionalities, 5(3), 11- 17.

References, pt. 2

Kafer, A. (2013). Feminist, Queer, Crip. Indiana University Press.

Kanner, L. (1943). Autistic Disturbances of Affective Contact. Nervous Child, 2, 217–50.

Meekosha, H. (2011). Decolonising Disability: Thinking and acting globally. Disability & Society, 26(6), 667–682.

Murray, D., Lesser, M., & Lawson, W. (2005). Attention, monotropism and the diagnostic criteria for

autism. Autism, 9(2), 139-156.

Santos, G. F. (2022). Políticas deficientes, pessoas públicas: Uma autoetnografia "brocada". [Undergraduate thesis]. Universidade Federal do Rio Grane do Sul.

Shakespeare, T. (2013). The social model of disability. In L. J. Davis (ed.), The Disability Studies Reader (214-221). Routledge.

Singh, J., & Bunyak, G. (2019). Autism Disparities: A Systematic Review and Meta-Ethnography of Qualitative Research. Qualitative Health Research, 29(6), 796–808.

Small, C. (1998). Musicking: The Meanings of Performing and Listening. Wesleyan University Press.

Versiani, D. (2005). Autoetnografias: conceitos alternativos em construção. 7 Letras.

Walker, N. (2021). Neuroqueer Heresies: Notes on the neurodiversity paradigm, autistic empowerment, and postnormal possibilities. Autonomous Press.