Society

Part 7: Autism and Geert Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions Theory - Long Term Orientation

After Hofstede’s initial research various researchers explored his findings and looked for areas that might have been overlooked. In 1985 a group of primarily Chinese educators administered a test t... [Read More]

on 08/16/11 | No Comments | Read More

Why Introverted Nerds Like Fantasy and Sci Fi

It’s perfectly Ok and respectable to have seen some trek and wars. However, you’re crossing way over the line if you know who Salacious Crumb is or know just how Shaka felt when the walls fell. Th... [Read More]

on 08/15/11 | No Comments | Read More

Part 6: Autism and Geert Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions Theory - Masculinity v Femininity

The dichotomy I will be addressing in this post is bit problematic because the naming of it is challenging in its sexist titles. Hofstede decided that countries that show competitiveness, assertivenes... [Read More]

on 08/11/11 | No Comments | Read More

Part 5: Autism and Geert Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions Theory - Uncertainty Avoidance Index

The Uncertainty Avoidance Index (UAI) from Hofstede measures how a culture handles ambiguity, uncertainty and change. Those groups that measure high on the UAI tend to experience high anxiety regardin... [Read More]

on 08/9/11 | 1 Comment | Read More

Introverts and Sports

Sports in their most popular form are just another social venue. The minority players are involved in an intricate group activity and the majority spectators are involved in a mass cult of fandom. A ... [Read More]

on 08/8/11 | 1 Comment | Read More

Part 4: Autism and Geert Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions Theory - Individualism v Collectivism

Next up for Hofstede’s dichotomies is Individualism v. Collectivism. This measures the degree to which individuals are integrated into groups and how they perceive themselves in that group. Individu... [Read More]

on 08/4/11 | No Comments | Read More

Part 3: Autism and Geert Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions Theory - Working well with those in authority

Hofstede’s Power Distance Index (PDI) measures how we perceive the hierarchical authority in a given situation (family, work, etc.). On one end you have more autocratic and/or authoritative expectat... [Read More]

on 08/2/11 | No Comments | Read More

Introvert Survival: Handling Extrovert Interrogations

When a Loud person asks you a question it is best to give a quick, snappy, truthful answer. Directly stonewalling or displaying reluctance to answer personal questions from someone you don’t trust y... [Read More]

on 08/1/11 | No Comments | Read More

Part 2: Autism and Geert Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions Theory

Before I jump into Hofstede’s dimensions it is worth taking a look at the concept of people with autism as a culture unto themselves. There certainly has been enough discussion on the concept of tho... [Read More]

on 07/28/11 | No Comments | Read More

Introduction to Autism and Geert Hofstede’s Cultural Dimensions Theory

This is the introduction to a series of articles I will be producing on Hofstede’s Cultural Dimension Theory and how it relates to ASD. Cultural theory is a complex subject and when mixing cultures ... [Read More]

on 07/26/11 | 1 Comment | Read More

The Tragedy of the Lords

A tragedy of the commons is said to occur when a resource available to everyone becomes overused until it becomes available to no one.  Everyone loses in the end. A tragedy of the lords is how I refe... [Read More]

on 07/25/11 | No Comments | Read More

The World Needs Autism (redux)

The world needs autism. Of this, I am convinced. The world needs autism now more than ever. Don’t believe me? Look around…look closely and carefully. Contemplate a global awareness. Consider... [Read More]

on 07/25/11 | No Comments | Read More

Snapshots: Mutual Reciprocity and Empathy Erosion

Two sometime Shift contributors reflecting on current events and recent publication in the autism world, and giving hard looks at under-examined assumptions about social behavior and empathy: Lili Mar... [Read More]

on 07/21/11 | No Comments | Read More

Unity Does Not Mean Uniformity

Society and social interaction are helpful tools for the introvert. Society does not just happen for its own sake in our point of view. It requires justification, for from proper justification comes... [Read More]

on 07/18/11 | No Comments | Read More

(Yet Another) Top Ten Myths About Introverts

The overlap in the way both the social and physical worlds are experienced by autistics and introverts is one I continue to find fascinating. The question of whether the two conditions ought to be equ... [Read More]

on 07/12/11 | No Comments | Read More

Extrovert Malfunction in Foreign Societies

Extroverts are extremely specialized and well adapted to the standards of their society. They are so attached to their ways that encountering other customs and world views is extremely uncomfortable ... [Read More]

on 07/11/11 | No Comments | Read More

Thank You, Mr. Sauer, You’ll Be Missed

Late last week, a local friend posted on Facebook that retired Central High School teacher Jim Sauer had passed away. This made me more than a little sad because Jim had become a daily fixture at the... [Read More]

on 07/5/11 | 4 Comments | Read More

Can Extroverts Be Beaten at Their Own Game?

Not likely. Extroverts are very, very good at what they do. Competitive social interaction is what they have a talent for, what they’re passionate about, and what they put all of their time and ene... [Read More]

on 06/27/11 | No Comments | Read More

Introvert vs. Extrovert: Mental Health

As an introvert I have been made to feel many times that my ways are unhealthy or that I am even borderline mentally ill. My values and priorities are so alien to them that they naturally assume some... [Read More]

on 06/20/11 | 2 Comments | Read More

A Strange Encounter

A stranger observed the playground. The scene was perfectly normal and just a little bit odd at the same time. It was a bit too quiet for a playground filled with so many children. A nine year old ... [Read More]

on 06/16/11 | No Comments | Read More

Normal? No Thanks.

When we try to push our ASD kids into normal or NT behaviours, what does that mean? After all there’s plenty of NT kids and adults I don’t want my children to act like. Rude, aggressive, selfish... [Read More]

on 06/14/11 | 3 Comments | Read More

The Myth of Introvert Weakness

Weak, shy, sheltered, spineless, head in the clouds, detached from ‘reality.’ These are the things extroverts tend to assume about someone who does not immediately compete for attention. All such... [Read More]

on 06/13/11 | 3 Comments | Read More

Neurodiversity, Grief, and the Normal Minority, Part Two

Leaving behind one’s own normality Having an autistic child means that an able-bodied parent can no longer lay claim to being normal. I don’t care if that autistic child grows up to win the Nobel ... [Read More]

on 06/10/11 | 2 Comments | Read More

Neurodiversity, Grief, and the Normal Minority, Part One

“The worlds created by the human imagination are far more coherent and structured than the real social systems in which we live, and the mental constructs by which we make sense of society are only ... [Read More]

on 06/9/11 | No Comments | Read More

Friction of Association and Social Selectivity

According to present tendencies: -The more people in society, the less personal it becomes. -The more mechanical it becomes, the more sophisticated formal rules and red tape required to maintain order... [Read More]

on 06/6/11 | No Comments | Read More

It Is Never Okay

What does this have to do with autistic advocacy? Well, nothing, except in that autistic children are at a higher risk of sexual abuse than neurotypical children (not because they are “damaged” by... [Read More]

on 05/31/11 | No Comments | Read More

Disorder in Society, Disorder in Self

Some years ago, I took a two-year training course in Jewish shamanic healing. I came away understanding a great deal about the many ways in which ancient Jewish culture was similar to many other indig... [Read More]

on 05/27/11 | 2 Comments | Read More

Redundancy Cushioning

Most Westerners hold mass society as the self evident highest virtue. Yet mass society is a force of nature independent of human needs and desires. Mass society can be considered independent from thes... [Read More]

on 05/16/11 | 3 Comments | Read More

Autism, Disability, and the Obligation to Get Well, Part Two

As a result, we find ourselves in the vortex of a great deal of distortion for wanting to simply be at peace with ourselves and carve out a meaningful life. It’s as though, having given up our “p... [Read More]

on 05/13/11 | No Comments | Read More

Autism, Disability, and the Obligation to Get Well, Part One

I’ve recently begun reading Robert Murphy’s The Body Silent, one of the great books on the social and cultural context of disability. Murphy, a professor of anthropology at Columbia, became a qua... [Read More]

on 05/13/11 | No Comments | Read More

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