TikTok and the Shaping of Neurodivergent Collective Identity

Abstract

This research analyzes how neurodivergent individuals, their support networks, and health professionals use TikTok as a space for visibility, learning, and symbolic transformation regarding neurodivergence. From a qualitative approach and a critical paradigm, a netnography based on participant observation was conducted on 29 videos published with the hashtags #neurodivergent, #TDAHadulto, and #actuallyautistic, produced by 13 Spanish-speaking content creators. The analysis combines Thematic Analysis and Critical Discourse Analysis, which allowed for the identification of three main effects: the visibilization of neurodivergence, the interpretation of experiences, and the symbolic and social transformation of digital discourse. Findings show that TikTok functions as a social field where the meanings and legitimacy of neurological differences are debated. Neurodivergent creators integrate technical knowledge and lived experience, generating a hybrid knowledge that democratizes psychological knowledge and promotes an empathetic digital pedagogy. However, tensions derived from the trivialization and superficial appropriation of neurodivergent discourse are also observed. It is concluded that communicative practices on TikTok constitute processes of symbolic emancipation and communicative justice, from which cognitive diversity is redefined as a legitimate form of identity, agency, and collective learning.