The A-Z of strengths-building through neurodiversity community innovation: From leveraging AI to creating Zines

Strengths-based approaches offer a way to move beyond deficit-focused understandings of autism by recognising how autistic young people use their strengths in everyday life and how these strengths can be supported across family, education and healthcare contexts. This talk will present a programme of co-produced research drawing on the Character Strengths framework and positive psychology. It will explore how zineography—a creative method combining zine-making and biographical storytelling—can support autistic young people to share personal accounts of strengths use and challenge stereotypes represented in mainstream media. The talk will also describe the co-production of a strengths-spotting chatbot with parents and carers, designed to scaffold reflection on everyday interactions and support these experiences to be reframed through a strengths-focused lens. Throughout, I will consider how collaboration with autistic young people and parent/carer advisory groups has shaped the study designs, research processes and resulting tools, alongside the opportunities and challenges involved in translating strengths-based ideas into meaningful everyday practice.

Teams link: https://teams.microsoft.com/meet/376523372553325?p=RPBkPUuYLKDUOojtxl