I think my friend just sees me as an anxious introvert, and didn't consider I may be autistic. But she's now diagnosing half the women she knows :))
Shoe, you weren't a fanny, but it was funny.
Ok, I am at a computer now, so I shall explain some (probably boring) PhD stuff. The title is T.hreshold C.oncepts A.cross K.nowledge L.evels, With a Focus on Autism Spectrum Disorders. The knowledge levels are from a model that my first supervisor made, whereby you start at novice level, and progress through (usually some of) the remaining four. It's based on an earlier psychology model, so covers cognitive schemata and how many you need to develop to progress to the next level. It's a bit more understandable to think of the schemata as building blocks so you start at 0, then move to the next level at 1,000, the next at 10,000 etc. The top level is grandmaster, like chess grandmasters, and it's very rare for people to reach this stage, and it's unheard of to reach it in more than one field. Grandmaster level is Nobel Laureate type stuff. I don't fully agree with the model, but that's a different story.
Threshold concepts are a fairly new education thing, like a magnified version of the penny dropping. The kind of thing that, once you've learned it, you can't unlearn it, and it changes your view of everything you learned before. It also makes everything fall into place, things that you have struggled to get to grips with before, so is more of an identity change than just learning something. Say the change from an accounting student to an accountant or something. Anyway, these are also based on cognitive schemata.
My dissertation last year focused on bringing the two together, and I basically came to the conclusion that a threshold concept is the last schema needed to switch from one knowledge level to the next. Sorry, I know this is all incredibly wanky and pretentious :)) Anyway, the PhD topic was my supervisors' idea, and is looking at whether this process is different in those with ASD and neurotypical people. As I'm doing the PhD in a business school, it will focus a bit on learning organisations and organisational learning too - I suppose possibly helping with careers etc and making it all more accommodating for those on the spectrum. It's very early days though, and I'm very much winging it still.
The issue I've got now is, this was all proposed assuming I am NT, so it would be helpful to know what perspective I'm actually looking at this from :lol:
If any of that doesn't make sense, and anyone can be bothered, I am happy to answer any questions. I have put . in the title because I'm paranoid in case someone ever googles it and finds me
), during which he did the AQ test and scored quite highly himself :)) The last one was one of my closest friends, who wasn't massivley surprised, but hadn't guessed either. All different responses, and I didn't find any rude, if that helps.
