Can Tik-Tok trends be educational or are they creating further barriers to inclusion and achievement?

By Toni Whittle, Behaviour Consultant, Behaviour Smart Ltd

The popularity of Tik-Tok (and other social media) amongst children and young people is hard to deny. Over the last few years we have seen teenagers creating inventive dances, jumping on trends and using social media to connect with other people. No doubt this was a saving grace to many young people’s mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic. Social media can be such a useful tool to remain connected to other people and it can also be quite enlightening and educational at times. There are many people raising awareness on social media platforms of living with conditions, disabilities and mental health issues. It is great we can use these platforms to raise an awareness of conditions, to promote inclusion, diversity and come more aware of other people’s unique experiences. But can there be a down side to this?

Recently a 16 year-old close to me said she has been watching Tik-Tok and learning a lot about Autism, this has then lead her to consider if she could be autistic. She can struggle with anxiety at times and especially in social situations. If she does pursue a diagnosis how helpful would this be? Would it help her to understand herself better or could it re-enforce her own self-perception that she is anxious, leading to more anxiety? Is she autistic or is this a typical experience of adolescence?

When I view my own Tik-Tok ‘for you’ page, it is flooded with people suggesting that they have ADHD because sometimes they can appear forgetful, hyper or disorganised. More than enough people close to me have commented over the years on my apparent ADHD. Again, do I need this label and would it help me to understand myself better or would it be unhelpful?

If we explore the diagnostic criteria of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), to receive a diagnosis it should be observed a persistent pattern of inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity that interferes with functioning or development (DSM-5, 2013).

Let’s look at inattention, at least five of the following symptoms are required to be present to meet the diagnosis:

·       failing to give close attention to detail.

·       difficulty sustaining attention in tasks.

·       often doesn't seem to listen.

·       often does not follow through on instructions.

·       often has difficulty organising tasks and activities.

·       often avoids, dislikes, or is reluctant to engage in tasks that requires sustained mental effort.

·       often loses things necessary for tasks or activities.

·       often easily distracted by extraneous stimuli.

·       often forgetful in daily activities.

Now anyone who knows me well, would state that I do not listen well to others. I can’t follow through on instructions, because I failed to listen, or I’ve forgotten the instruction in the first place. I cannot organise or plan. It is now 4pm on Sunday and I still haven’t got round to booking my train for tomorrow. I’ll only engage in activities that require mental effort - if I am interested in the topic and am always loosing my glasses or banks cards. I get distracted by the spring lambs whilst driving down the country road and can’t even remember to take the washing out of the machine for days, meaning when I get round to it, it is musty and requires washing again and again, before I remember to remove it! I think you get the point….

So, let’s move on to hyperactivity and impulsivity:

·       often fidgets with or taps hands or feet or squirms in seats.

·       often leaves in situations where remaining seated is expected.

·       runs about or climbs in situations where it is inappropriate

·       often unable to play or engage in that leisure activities quietly

·       is often “on the go”.

·       unable to be comfortable being still for extended time

·       often talks excessively.

·       often blurts out an answer before questions been completed

·       cannot wait for turning conversation.

·       often has difficulty waiting their turn.

·       often interrupts or intrudes on others.

I’m sure reading this set of criteria, you can find ways in which you would could live up to this label. Let’s revisit me – my legs never stay still, I am always moving, squirming and even in my sleep I am never actually still and restful. I am loud, chatty and according to my high school teachers in my school report; “Antonia is a most able pupil, but she would make work easier for herself and for others if she could resist the temptation to talk”. My targets were to “concentrate harder in order to avoid distracting other people”. Furthermore, “she needs to spend some serious time really listening.” ADHD was relatively uncommon when I was at school and the rates of diagnosis began to gather speed throughout the late 1990s and 2000s, but I think my teachers could have been alluding to something here.

At the time of the publication of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5, 2013), population surveys suggest that ADHD occurs in most cultures in about 5% of children and around 2.5% of adults. However, now it seems everyone on social media has something to say about ADHD, most recently news articles are claiming Prince Harry to have the condition. But can this be doing more harm than good? Can there be a damaging aspect of trying to label everyone with some condition or other?

I am not taking away from the fact that having a diagnosis can be really beneficial to some people, it can help with access to support services, medication, therapy and understanding. There is no doubt that in following the medical model of disability, can bring benefits to some people, they can get the support that they require to help them overcome difficulties. In schools this can support children with one to one tuition and increased funding for support.

But on the flip side, can this be damaging to equality, diversity and inclusion. At Team Teach, we promote to “look beyond the behaviour”. So, is it then right to see the child as a set of criteria to meet a diagnosis? To fit neatly into a box, to explain the behaviour as a condition that they have limited control over?

When we label a child, they can then become seen only by the label. We will look for reasons why the child may live up to that label, which can be damaging to their wellbeing. Worse then, the child will adopt the label themselves, loose control and re-enforce it further. This is known in psychology, as the self-fulfilling prophecy.

One teacher referred to me as “erratic”.

Again, I am not denying that supporting a child to get a diagnosis can be useful, but we also need to be really careful to ensure that they are not then seen as “the kid with ADHD”, or the “autistic child”, reducing the child to a set of behaviours, a diagnosis, a label - rather than a person. Children with any diagnosis, can still be warm, caring, compassionate, fun, creative and achieve. But when we label someone, they can easily then become seen by only the flaws. I would argue that my “erratic” behaviour is actually quite positive, I’m spontaneous and live life to the full. My “chatty” nature serves me well as a Team Teach Tutor, otherwise training would be quite boring if I wasn’t chatty.

The problem comes when we try to medicalise everything and everyone. The medical model of disability says people are disabled by their impairments or differences. Surely we need to move way from medicalising and trying to look at what is 'wrong' with the person. It can be damaging, as it can create low expectations of people. In comparison, lets embrace our differences, isn’t variety the spice of life after all? Let celebrate our uniqueness, our quirks, our different perceptions.

I may or may not have ADHD, but what I refuse to be is defined by a label and a diagnosis. I will embrace and promote a way of viewing the world that actually we are all individuals, with different experiences, feelings, thoughts and behaviours. We can choose our response, and I’ll choose not to live up to a label.

It’s a good job my ADHD didn’t allow me to listen to my teachers when they said I’m “erratic“ and “a most able pupil, but one who rarely gives her best at all times”, or I might not have achieved my Master’s Degree and psychological research.  :P

(Move away from labelling and I think it might also be time for me to delete Tik-Tok)

References

American Psychiatric Association (2013) Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edn, London, American Psychiatric Publishing.