Neurodiversity & Sound Design Research
MA Sound - Research Paper
HOW CAN SOUND DESIGN BE USED TO BETTER REPRESENT THE NEURODIVERSE SONIC EXPERIENCE IN FILM AND TV?
Nikki Crowley, April 2024
Media’s influence on our understanding and perception is extensive, yet a rising number of diagnosed neurodiverse individuals are left disappointed with how neurodiverse characters and their experiences are depicted in media; through extensive research I identified how this neurodiverse representation is often manipulated for entertainment purposes, exaggerated, comically-represented or through stereotypes, with sound design playing a big part in how these characters and their experience are perceived.
As a neurodiverse sound designer, I am working to contribute positively to the effect and impact of sound design on our perception, and investigate how sound impacts neurodiverse individuals daily. As a sensory challenge, everyday sound and experiences can be painful, unbearable or impact one's ability to complete ‘simple’ tasks. Juxtaposed to this, sensitivity to sound can lead to audio detailing, creativity and problem solving, with many neurodiverse people being creatives, including many sound and music professionals.
Gathering first-person accounts from neurodiverse individuals gives an insight into the ‘real’ sound experience. By combining this knowledge with current and adapted sound design practice, it’s possible to better represent neurodiverse experiences, create more awareness and then use this knowledge to build foundations for a world more sonically accessible.
Audio representations of first person experiences created based on first person inverviews with neurodiverse individuals.
01
Bus journey
A. The ambisonic recording of the experience
B. Natural sounds and Foley manipulated
C. B with added outward conversations and internal monologues/thoughts
02
Uni Lecture
A. The ambisonic recording of the experience
B. Natural sounds and Foley manipulated
C. B with added outward conversations and internal monologues/thoughts
Feedback from findings
03
Feedback from neurodiverse participants
Focusing in and out on different sounds, highlighting the growing prominence of the sub bass of the engine, irritating high frequencies and background sound scape of voices and chewing as relatable, the first round of feedback highlighted a need for a second sound design recreation.
B was too ‘relaxed’ and missing the busy-ness of their mind, there was an expectation the internal monologue and surrounding conversations would become overpowering, including unwillingly overhearing surround conversations - often to the point of frustration.
The majority of the neurodiverse participants - those who had offered their personal experiences said that B - the sound design representation with natural sounds and Foley manipulated without added outward conversations and internal monologues/thoughts was in their opinion the best representation.
Participants said the sound in representation B was ‘enough’ in terms of the sounds that ‘irritate’, ‘frustrate’ or ‘distract’ them. One participant said they couldn’t listen to the full representation because the ‘breathing’ and ‘nails tapping’ were too grating, similar to how they feel when experiencing this in real life. Some participants said that the sounds weren’t painful enough, specifically the bus sounds, suggesting the replacement of the sounds with something more annoying and adding distortion without it being too obvious to represent the ‘painfulness’ and just how ‘angry’ they make you.
Another participant described how they would have focused on one sound at a time in the Lecture recreation, the ‘new’ sound distracting them from the last, with dialogue of the tutor speaking that they wanted to listen to, coming back into focus as they tried to concentrate.
33% said the ‘busy-ness’ of the conversations and internal monologue is more representative of their experience, whereas some said they don’t know how they hear their inner thoughts, so the voices weren’t relatable to them.
Some participants also mentioned the musicality and rhythm of some of the sounds, for example the air sounds on the bus, and placement of the voices, were actually engaging and enjoyable for them, and in reality some sounds would be musical for them, but others would be much more irrational which would enraging, so less rhythmic sounds and more processing would be need to represent this.
04
Feedback from undiagnosed participants
Sound design representation with natural sounds and Foley manipulated, plus outward conversations and internal monologues/thoughts’ was, in their opinion, the best representation of the neurodiverse experience, whilst 25% assumed the original recording would be how the neurodiverse person would experience the environment.
Non-neurodiverse (or non diagnosed) participants, in some cases, identified their sound experience to be similar to that of neurodiverse people, identifying with the B and C representations and leading some to say ‘Unsure’ when asked if they were neurodiverse, where they had previously said they weren’t. This could suggest some of the non-diagnosed participants are in fact neurodiverse, which is something that cannot be determined without input from a qualified professional.
The expert research confirms the complex neurodiverse-sound relationship, but also having professional expert input during any future feedback processes, or earlier in the process when obtaining participants could allow this experiment to be more controlled. It’s also a consideration that, with refinement, this process could become or contribute to practical testing of sound perception to assist in diagnosing neurodiversity.
Next Steps
Nikki Crowley, August 2024
Based on finds from my paper, I am using sound in developing a platform to raise awareness of both everyday, and professional challenges, faced by those who are neurodiverse and experience sound or work in sound: By helping others gain a deeper understanding of the auditory effect and challenges we can make a change by not only better representing the neurodiverse, but also considering sound and it's impact to help create a more neurodiverse friendly every day life and a professional environment, for those working in music and sound. More to come January 2025.
Imagine what we can do in a world built for these brilliant minds?