Hari Srinivasan

Perception isn’t just about what your senses pick up it’s about how your brain stitches it all together. I dive into sensory illusions, timing, and why autistic/ADHD brains often see/ feel the world differently.

Think you “perceive” reality? Think again.

www.psychologytoday.com/us/contribut...

Thanks, NIEPID for hosting and to everyone who joined the conversation today. Lovely to see so many MPhil students joining from all over India. @ youtu.be/q0ctpgproS4

Thanks, Chico State for hosting and to everyone who joined the conversation on nuance in autism.

Talk at. youtu.be/h70I6msB7rA

New Preprint

My article in @psychologytoday.com challenges the common assumption around headphones as a simple sensory fix; they can even backfire and can sometimes make sensory distress worse. www.psychologytoday.com/us/contribut...

My article in @psychologytoday.com explores why sensory comfort depends more on predictability, coherence, and structure than simply less noise, and why well-intended solutions like quiet spaces don’t always relieve sensory strain.
www.psychologytoday.com/us/contribut...

PsyArXiv Preprint: Possibility Mindset: A Theory of Motivation under constraint with neurodivergence as a revealing interpretive case.
doi.org/10.31234/osf...
Motivation depends on whether systems offer room to move and flexible pathways for effort to matter.

Honored to be nominated and featured on DNS 2026 Leadership Wall this week.

My new preprint

Possibility Mindset: A Theory of Motivation Under Constraint, with Neurodivergence as a Revealing Interpretive Case: https://osf.io/x7jru

My next upcoming talk:
Title: Neurodiversity 2.0: Contemporary Research, Evolving Frameworks, and Practice Implications.
When: 7th February 2025
7:00 PM (Indian Standard Time)
(6:30AM EST/ 7:30AM CST/9:30AM PST)
Where: NIEPID (online)
Link(meet.google.com/ocp-mozi-vrf)

Why Sensory Overload Isn’t About “Too Much” Sensory overload is often about uncertainty and how long the brain has to stay engaged—especially in autism and ADHD.

Article in Psychology Today. Why Sensory Overload isn’t always about “Too Much” --- Sensory overload is often about uncertainty and how long the brain has to stay engaged—especially in autism and ADHD.

www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/givi...

Masking as an Evolutionary Advantage Autistic masking may be an evolved survival response to social risk: useful for belonging, but costly when sustained over a lifetime.

www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/givi... My article in @psychologytoday.com on Masking as an Evolutionary Advantage

YouTube video by Awe-tistic Neuroscientist Autism Neuroscience and Everyday life

I’m sharing a recent talk on autism, sensory neuroscience, and everyday life. The ideas are broadly relevant across regions, and I also contextualize them for non-Western settings youtu.be/illW5FvveN8 Channel: www.youtube.com/@neuroscient...

“This topic isn’t just academic to me; it’s lived experience.” There’s no doubt that Hari Srinivasan’s professional credentials speak for themselves. As a neuroscience PhD student at Vanderbilt University, Srinivasan has written extensively for outlets like Ti…

Appreciate Wiki Education for featuring my role as a Wiki Scientist. I wrote a new Wikipedia page on diagnostic overshadowing in autism—an underrepresented but critical issue where scholarship and lived experience intersect.

👉 wikiedu.org/blog/2025/09...

please email me. www.vumc.org/lasr/person/...

Featured in this article by Dennis Tran for Cold Tea Collective on 10 Pan-Asian disabled change makers.

"It’s about claiming space that recognizes autism is both an ability and a disability […] not either-or,"

coldteacollective.com/disability-p...

We were all in awe and thrilled to have Holden Throp visit the Wallace Multisensory Lab.

And he got to try out my VR research task too. Seriously, how cool is that!

Thank you Holden Thorp

@wallacelab.bsky.social

Beyond Common Reassurances of “It’s OK”—The Reality of Anxiety in Autism | Autism in Adulthood Anxiety in autism is often misunderstood when compared with neurotypical experiences. It is not as simple as saying, “It’s okay, everyone gets anxious.” Anxiety in autism is not merely a transient exp...

Publication Alert: A new paper on Anxiety in Autism. www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1177/...

Neurodiversity 2.0 - Harnessing cross-disciplinary disability insights The neurodiversity movement has reframed cognitive and behavioral differences as natural variations rather than deficits, advocating for social inclus…

Too often, disability discourse gets stuck in binaries: Medical vs. Social. Autonomy vs. Dependence. Strengths vs. Deficits.

Real inclusion means opportunities and solutions—together.

Neurodiversity 2.0 maps the barriers and the path forward.
www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

#Neurodiversity

Promoting Classroom Engagement of Autistic Students Using Focused Interests - Sarah C. Bayoumi, Gospel Y. Kim, Patrick Dwyer, Hari Srinivasan, Kelsey Smith, 2025

New co-author publication! ✨
How can educators harness autistic students’ focused interests; like Ancient Greece or sharks, to boost classroom engagement?

We offer strategies to turn passions into pathways for learning.
doi.org/10.1177/0040...

#Autism #Education #Neurodiversity #FocusedInterests

Amplifying Autistic Wellbeing (AAW)

Join us Sept 15 (Portsmouth, UK + Zoom) for a global symposium centering autistic youth with high support needs.

Featuring creative work from voices too often excluded.

RSVP: www.amplifyingautisticwellbeing.com

Our project was selected for the UNESCO x SEVENTEEN Youth Grant—1 of 100 globally.

Neurodiversity 2.0 - Harnessing cross-disciplinary disability insights The neurodiversity movement has reframed cognitive and behavioral differences as natural variations rather than deficits, advocating for social inclus…

New Publication Alert. Neurodiversity 2.0

www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

My article made it to the print edition of TIME magazine.
Page 64-67
How cool is this!

Finished my first thesis committee meeting today. Prepped really hard for it. It went well. Got very positive comments and great feedback. I do get to do some super cool research.

My 5th Article in Psychology Today.

NISE Fellow Hari Srinivasan Co-Authors Foreword with Temple Grandin in Autism for Dummies We want to extend our deepest congratulations to Hari Srinivasan, one of our Neurodiversity Inspired Science and Engineering (NISE) fellows. Hari co-authored the foreword for the new book Autism for D...

🚀 Exciting news from our lab! PhD candidate Hari Srinivasan co‑wrote the foreword to the newly released Autism For Dummies with the legendary Dr. Temple Grandin. 🎉

You can read Hari's foreword at www.vanderbilt.edu/autismandinn...

@neuroscientist.bsky.social

This is kinda ultra cool news.
Co-wrote the foreword with Dr Temple Grandin for the newly released Autism for Dummies book.

Thx Ranga Jayaraman, John Marble, Khushboo Chabria, Wiley

FCAI Spotlight: The Many Layers of Zack Williams by Hari Srinivasan This article is part of a series highlighting the work and people associated with the Frist Center for Autism and Innovation (FCAI) at Vanderbilt University. The Frist Center brings together engineers...

"Doctor-Doctor" Zack Williams shares insights into his research and his view of the world, in this spotlight interview with me. Check out the link below.

Wishing you lots of luck Zack in the next chapter of your life.
www.vanderbilt.edu/autismandinn...

@quantpsychiatry.bsky.social

Just completed a peer review for JADD (Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders). Good to get to contribute to the scientific process from the other side. It’s unexpectedly empowering to get to evaluate work in your field.

@wallacelab.bsky.social