For the academic year 24/25, the Measurement Lab of the Discovery Research Platform will be co-led by Dr Louise Creechan (English Studies) and Dr Robert Chapman (Philosophy).
Creechan and Chapman are leading scholars in the emergent field of Critical Neurodiversity Studies. As part of their lab takeover, they will be launching an exciting programme of events to increase the visibility of this field and to establish the place of the ‘critical’ in neurodiversity studies.
Using frameworks from the arts, humanities, and social sciences, critical neurodiversity studies rejects biomedical models of neurological difference to position neurodiversity as a currently overlooked intersection of identity and critique.
In addition to its intellectual contribution, critical neurodiversity studies is invested in exploring how we do research and how our research practices might evolve to support a greater diversity of researchers.
Lab Leads
Dr Louise Creechan is a specialist in Victorian literature, neurodiversity, and the history of (not) reading. She is an AHRC/BBC New Generation Thinker, the PI of the international Neurodivergent Humanities network, and has been awarded a Wellcome Early Career Award for her project, ‘Neurodiversifying the Academy’.
Dr Robert Chapman is a philosopher and social theorist focusing on neurodiversity, Madness, and disability. They are the world’s first Assistant Professor of Critical Neurodiversity Studies and the author of the field-defining Empire of Normality (2023) that was shortlisted for the Bread and Roses Award.
Activities
The lab will host ‘Critical Neurodiversity Studies: Directions/Intersections’ on 24-26th June 2025. The event will be the first arts/humanities neurodiversity studies conference conducted at this scale. A full CfP and information about our suite of conference bursaries and fellowships will be announced in due course.
Alongside the conference, the lab will be undertaking a cross-sectoral review of existing conference accessibility to identify and address any gaps in provision.
In the meantime, Creechan and Chapman will be hosting a ‘Neurodiversity-Curious Durham Scoping Event’ for Durham staff on 13th November 2-4pm. The workshop, facilitated by Bentley Crudgington (CFU), will be an opportunity to connect with other scholars interested in neurodiversity from across disciplines, plan for future collaborations, and learn more about the current research being done in this field at Durham.
During the Critical Neurodiversity Studies takeover, the lab will maintain some of its focus on measurement by co-hosting the ‘Measurement in Medicine’ seminar series, organised by Dr Emily Webster (Philosophy).
