Disordered, Deficient, and Dehumanised: Live Science Talk With Brett Scholz on Aphantasia and Language
Aphantasia isn't classified as a mental health disorder or a cognitive disability — but it's increasingly being talked about as though it is. From "deficit of mental imagery" to questions about whether people with aphantasia can truly learn or love, the language used in research and media is shaping how aphantasia is understood, often without input from those who actually live with it.
💻Virtual🏁Completed🔒Members Only
How Biomedical Framing Is Shaping — and Limiting — Our Understanding of Aphantasia
Join us for a conversation with Brett Scholz, researcher at The Australian National University, as we explore findings from his recent paper published in the International Mad Studies Journal. Brett examined how published research, science communication, and social media posts position people with aphantasia — and what he found raises important questions about who gets to define what aphantasia means.
What We'll Explore
During this conversation, we'll discuss:
- The language problem — How terms like "deficit," "disorder," and "suffering" have become embedded in aphantasia research, and what that framing does to people who experience it
- Biomedical and cognitive dominance — Why most aphantasia research comes from biomedical and cognitive perspectives, and what gets lost when those are the only lenses applied
- The missing voices — How lived experience has been largely excluded from shaping the research agenda around aphantasia, and why that matters
- Parallels with Mad and Crip studies — What decades of pushback against pathologizing difference can teach us about the direction aphantasia research is heading
- The "fix it" impulse — How a pattern is emerging in the literature that seeks to control or cure aphantasia, despite no evidence that such an approach is needed
- Epistemic injustice — Who holds authority in conversations about aphantasia, and how that authority shapes what counts as knowledge
What to Expect
Conversation: This will be an informal, in-depth discussion rather than a formal presentation. Brett will share insights from his research and reflect on what it means when a field of study is built primarily by people outside the community it studies.
Live Q&A: Ask Brett directly about his findings, methodology, and what he thinks the aphantasia community and research field should do differently going forward.
Duration: Approximately 1 hour (including Q&A)
How to Attend
🎥 Live Session (Members Only): Join the live conversation and participate in the Q&A in real-time. This interactive experience is exclusive to Aphantasia Network members. Not a member? Join today to participate!
📺 Recording (Free for Everyone): Can't make it live or not a member? No problem! A full recording will be posted under Resources > Videos & Interviews and available free to everyone after the event.
Perfect For:
- People with aphantasia who have encountered deficit-based language and wondered whether it reflects their own experience
- Researchers working in aphantasia studies who want to reflect on how framing shapes their field
- Anyone interested in how lived experience can and should inform research about cognitive differences
- People curious about Mad Studies, Crip Studies, or epistemic justice as they relate to neurodiversity
- Educators, clinicians, or communicators who talk about aphantasia and want to be thoughtful about the language they use
About the Researcher
Brett Scholz is a researcher at the School of Medicine and Psychology at The Australian National University. His work examines how dominant frameworks shape understanding of mental health and cognitive difference, with a focus on epistemic justice and the inclusion of lived experience perspectives. This paper was co-authored with Heather Scholz, an independent researcher, and both authors bring their own lived experiences of aphantasia to the work.
Event Details
Tue, Mar 31, 2026 • 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM (America/Toronto)
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Organizer
Hosted by
Jennifer McDougall@jmcdougall