The Neurodiversity Movement Invites Us to Consider Why We Work the Way Do as Music Therapists.

Neurodiversity, a term, associated with a rights-based disability agenda (Silverman, 2015), proposes that people's neurologically-based differences are no different to other social classifications such as gender and race (Singer, 2017). The Neurodiversity movement challenges systems and interventions with “normalization” as the core agenda (Bascom, 2012). Instead, “maximization” of strengths and resources is encouraged, with advocates seeking to influence all levels of society, from policy to interpersonal, everyday practices. The deep humanistic inheritance of the music therapy profession (Abrams 2015), along with ecological and community paradigms that have become more prevalent in recent times are perhaps well aligned with the principles of neurodiversity. However, disability scholars have critiqued music therapy as supporting the medical model of disability and therefore risk contributing to oppression (Cameron, 2014; Straus, 2011).
During a roundtable at the European Congress of Music therapy, 2019, we are planning to discuss the possible contributions of the neurodiversity movement to music therapy. Important questions will be raised about definitions and ethics in music therapy, and on the personhood of less advocated individuals. In the present roundtable we will further discuss these topics as well as the role of music and the music therapist as viewed through the neurodiversity perspective.