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Difference not Deficit: Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Sense-making
Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2026.
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| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English |
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Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University
2026
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| _version_ | 1867613868409225216 |
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| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author | Marais, Charl Marius |
| author2 | De Villiers-Botha, Tanya |
| author_browse | De Villiers-Botha, Tanya Marais, Charl Marius |
| author_facet | De Villiers-Botha, Tanya Marais, Charl Marius |
| author_sort | Marais, Charl Marius |
| collection | Thesis |
| dc_rights_str_mv | Stellenbosch University |
| description | Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2026. |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/136041 |
| institution | Stellenbosch University (South Africa) |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:42:59.065Z |
| license_str | Other — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from SUNScholar — Stellenbosch University Repository |
| publishDate | 2026 |
| publishDateRange | 2026 |
| publishDateSort | 2026 |
| publisher | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| publisherStr | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | SUNScholar — Stellenbosch University Repository |
| spelling | oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/136041 Difference not Deficit: Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Sense-making Marais, Charl Marius De Villiers-Botha, Tanya Preiser, Rika Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. Dept. of Philosophy. Thesis (MA)--Stellenbosch University, 2026. Marais, C. M. 2026. Difference not Deficit: Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Sense-making. Unpublished masters thesis. Stellenbosch: Stellenbosch University [online]. Available: https://scholar.sun.ac.za/items/4be24bf3-b09a-43bd-8a6f-96c162a6f7d2 This thesis explores Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) through the lens of enactivist cognitive theory, offering a philosophical and conceptual reframing of autism as a meaningful way of being in the world rather than a deficit or dysfunction. Grounded in the guiding question “What is autism really?”, the study critically engages with the historical, clinical, and theoretical development of autism research—from early diagnostic framings by Kanner and Asperger to the evolution of ASD as a spectrum disorder within contemporary clinical discourse. After outlining the limitations of traditional cognitivist models such as Theory of Mind, Executive Dysfunction Theory, and Weak Central Coherence Theory, the thesis proposes that these frameworks often overlook the lived, embodied, and relational dimensions of autistic experience. In response, the enactivist paradigm—drawing on phenomenology, embodied cognition, and complex systems theory—offers a more holistic and dynamic account. Enactivism emphasises autonomy, sense-making, and participatory social interaction as key to understanding cognitive life, including neurodiverse forms of it. The core argument is that autism reflects a different mode of embodied sense-making, rather than a failure of normative cognition. This view challenges deficit-based models by highlighting the rich sensorimotor, emotional, and social worlds of autistic individuals. Key concepts such as sensorimotor profiles, embodied difference, and participatory sense-making are explored in detail, revealing the value of a relational, embodied, and non-reductive approach. Ultimately, this thesis contributes to emerging philosophical and interdisciplinary conversations that seek to destigmatise autism and reframe it as a valid and meaningful form of life. In doing so, it opens up new pathways for understanding autism not just as a clinical category, but as an invitation to rethink cognition, interaction, and human diversity more broadly. Masters 2026-04-21T08:21:42Z 2026-04-21T08:21:42Z 2026-03 Thesis https://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/136041 en Stellenbosch University 104 pages application/pdf Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| spellingShingle | Marais, Charl Marius Difference not Deficit: Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Sense-making |
| title | Difference not Deficit: Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Sense-making |
| title_full | Difference not Deficit: Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Sense-making |
| title_fullStr | Difference not Deficit: Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Sense-making |
| title_full_unstemmed | Difference not Deficit: Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Sense-making |
| title_short | Difference not Deficit: Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and Sense-making |
| title_sort | difference not deficit autistic spectrum disorder asd and sense making |
| url | https://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/136041 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT maraischarlmarius differencenotdeficitautisticspectrumdisorderasdandsensemaking |