The Neurodiversity Affirmative Child Autism Assessment Handbook

By: Dr Maeve Kavanagh, Dr Anna Day, Davida Hartman, Tara O'Donnell-Killen, Jessica K Doyle

Based on new and emerging clinical research, this book is here to guide you through creating a neuro-affirmative child autism assessment process for your practice.

Moving away from a deficit-based medical approach to child autism assessment (identification), this comprehensive and detailed handbook covers the most up to date research and best practice. Created to encourage and empower clinicians to make a paradigm shift to a more neurodiversity-affirmative approach, this book acknowledges the challenges of working within a system that is inherently deficit based and provides practice points and clinical reflections on how to embed neurodiversity-affirmative principles in their individual practice. This handbook is essential reading for those involved in assessing, as well as for those working with Autistic children more generally.

Including helpful tips and methods that can be used during the identification process, this handbook also includes lived experiences of Autistic children and case studies, and perspectives from an OT and SLT, so clinicians can gain a much deeper understanding of the young people they are working with. It also includes guidance for post-identification support and provides a clear roadmap for what happens next.©2025 Dr Maeve Kavanagh, Dr Anna Day, Davida Hartman, Tara O’Donnell-Killen, Jessica K Doyle (P)2026 Jessica Kingsley Publishers