Neurodiversity and Multimodal Meaning-Making

Texts that combine different semiotic resources are now a pervasive form of communication, from teaching materials and public information campaigns to digital media (Jewitt et al., 2016; Silva et al., 2020). Research on multimodality has traditionally examined meaning-making through design principles built around assumptions about a typical reader. Research on neurodivergence, meanwhile, has shown that people differ in how they process sensory and semiotic information, for example in attention allocation (Tullo et al., 2024), figurative language comprehension (Kalandadze et al., 2016), and sensory responsivity (Lane & Reynolds, 2019). In addition, recent evidence challenges the common assumption that multimodal formats are more accessible to neurodivergent individuals (Cohn, 2020), pointing instead to the relevance of individuals’ neurocognitive profiles and their familiarity with semiotic modes and associated conventions. Taken together, these findings indicate that multimodal artifacts may not be processed, comprehended, and experienced in the same way by neurodivergent and neurotypical individuals (Bailey, 2023; Cohn, 2020; Ma & Hashemifardnia, 2026). Despite their clear intersection, multimodality research and neurodivergence research have yet to be brought into systematic dialogue, leaving a significant gap in our understanding of how multimodality is experienced across neurocognitive profiles.This Research Topic aims to address this gap by examining how neurodivergent and neurotypical individuals differ in their processing of multimodal materials, their construction of mental representations from and with them, and their design of such materials. We also seek to examine how educators and designers take these differences into account in their professional practice. Work of this kind is likely to shed light on when, and for whom, multimodal approaches contribute to inclusion, particularly in literacy education, and can help generate evidence to improve engagement, accessibility, and learning across diverse contexts (Doore et al., 2023; Karki et al., 2026; Xu, 2025).We welcome contributions that foreground the connections between multimodality and neurodivergence, on themes including, but not limited to:• differences in how neurodivergent and neurotypical individuals process, comprehend, and/or design multimodal texts• the conditions under which multimodal texts support learning in an inclusive classroom• design choices concerning, e.g., layout, images, typography, and color in relation to neurodiversity• participatory and co-designed approaches to multimodal materials and research• AI-generated multimodal materials and their effects on inclusion• inclusive approaches and strategies for developing multimodal literacy• representation of neurodivergence in and through multimodal texts• empirical studies exploring intersemiotic relations and their effects on neurodivergent and neurotypical individuals.ReferencesBailey, C. (2023) ‘Neurodivergent literacies’: exploring autistic adults’ ‘ruling passions’ and embracing neurodiversity through classroom literacies. Literacy, 57(2), pp. 120-131. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1111/lit.12320Cohn, N. (2020) Who understands comics? Questioning the universality of visual language comprehension. Bloomsbury.Doore, S. A., Dimmel, J., Kaplan, T. M., Guenther, B. A. and Guidice, N. A. (2023) Multimodality as universality: designing inclusive accessibility to graphical information. Frontiers in Education, 7. Available at: https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2023.1071759Jewitt, J., Bezemer, J. and O’Halloran, K. (2016) Introducing multimodality. Routledge.Kalandadze, T., Norbury, C., Nærland, T. and Næss, K-A. B. (2016) Figurative language comprehension in individuals with autism spectrum disorder: a meta-analytic review. Autism, 22(2), pp. 99-117. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1177/1362361316668652Karki, J., Barros, S. and Ohja, L. P. (2026) Fostering linguistic and epistemic inclusion among multilingual students through translanguaging and multimodal composition. The Language Learning Journal, 54(2), pp. 282-301. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/09571736.2025.2598286Lane, S. J. and Reynolds, S. (2019) Sensory over-responsivity as an added dimension in ADHD. Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience, 13. Available at: https://doi.org/10.3389/fnint.2019.00040Ma, Y. and Hashemifardnia, A. (2026) Multimodal storytelling for neurodiverse learners: effects on engagement, social belonging, and oral communication skills. BMC Psychology, 14(1), 423. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-026-04175-4Tullo, D., Levy, B., Faubert, J. and Bertone, A. (2023) Characterizing attention resource capacity in autism: a multiple object tracking study. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 54(8), pp. 2802-2815. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-023-05974-zXu, Y. and Chen, J. (2025) From multimodal making to meaning: transmedia storytelling and interdisciplinary assessment in higher education. Innovations in Education and Teaching International. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/14703297.2025.2582597Information and Instructions for AuthorsManuscript summariesManuscript summaries (Frontiers' name for abstracts) of up to 500 words will be considered until 11 December. Authors are encouraged to submit a manuscript summary before submitting a full manuscript.Article typesThis Research Topic accepts all the article types listed below, though Original Research, Review, and Systematic Review are particularly encouraged. Topic editors: Benjamin Carcamo, Eleni Peristeri Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/85853/neurodiversity-and-multimodal-meaning-making