Monotropism is an attention-based theory of autism that is gaining increasing recognition among the autistic community, researchers and practitioners within education and workplace settings. 

Developed by autistic researchers, Dr Dinah Murray, Dr Wenn Lawson and Mike Lesser in the late 1990s, the theory offers a strengths-based and neuroaffirmative way of understanding autistic cognition. Rather than viewing autism as a disorder of deficits, monotropism reframes it as a difference in attention and information processing, one that has both strengths and challenges. 

What is monotropism? 

Monotropism describes a tendency for a person’s attention to concentrate deeply on a small number of interests at a time, rather than distributing attention across many things (a mode called ‘polytropism’). This intense focus can lead to a real depth of interest, expertise and immersive sensory experiences, but may also make it harder to switch tasks, process multiple inputs at once or cope with interruptions. 

As Murray, Lesser and Lawson (2005) stated: 

“At any one moment, the amount of attention available to a conscious individual is limited. There is competition between mental processes for this scarce resource.” 

These finite limits of attention mean that, for monotropic individuals, only a few ‘attention tunnels’ are accessible at any time. These tunnels shape how autistic people experience, process and interact with the world, what they notice, what feels meaningful and what causes stress and anxiety. 

Monotropism and autism 

The theory of monotropism was developed specifically to explain key characteristics of autism. ‘Autistic traits’ may be better understood through the lens of monotropic attentional resources. Reframing autistic experiences in an affirmative way helps us shift the narrative from autistic people being described as having a “restricted range of interests” and being perceived as socially disinterested or disordered, towards a reframing of how attention resources are used. 

Monotropic people may struggle more with the rapid shifts in attention that social interaction often demands (eg juggling understanding facial expressions, tone of voice and unspoken rules), all while trying to formulate their response. 

Monotropism also helps to explain how the environment and sensory stimuli may impact autistic people. If an autistic person is being pulled deeply towards one or a few interests, then splitting attentional resources is going to lead to dysregulation and overload and can help explain meltdowns and shutdowns. 

Monotropism and flow 

One of the positive aspects of being monotropic is the capacity to enter a ‘flow state’ – a term used to describe deep immersion in an activity, heightened focus, creativity and satisfaction. 

For Autistic individuals, engaging in activities aligned with their special interests and passions can lead to such flow states, contributing to wellbeing and a sense of fulfilment. 

Building upon the concept of monotropism, recent research by Heasman et al. (2024) has explored the idea of ‘Autistic flow theory’. Understanding autistic flow can provide valuable insights into the strengths and challenges associated with monotropism, highlighting the importance of creating environments that support attention tunnelling and deep focus and minimise unnecessary disruptions. 

However, monotropism also brings challenges if a person is not in the right supportive environment, such as: 

• Transitions: Shifting attention from one task to another, especially when interrupted or when there is an unexpected event, can feel painful or disorienting. 
• Sensory overload: Competing sensory stimuli can be overwhelming when the brain is already deeply focused elsewhere.
• Burnout: Continually being forced to divide attention or function and mask in environments that don’t meet needs can contribute towards autistic burnout. 

The monotropism questionnaire 

In 2023, Garau et al. created the monotropism questionnaire. This is a 47-item self-assessment tool designed to explore monotropic attention styles. While it is not intended to be a diagnostic tool for autism, the questionnaire provides insight into how a person processes information and how much they resonate with monotropic traits. 

Importantly, the research from the monotropism questionnaire showed that people with the highest scores from the questionnaire were those who identified as autistic and ADHD (AuDHD). This shows that the theory of monotropism is not exclusive to autism and that other people also identify with monotropism. 

This demonstrates how varied and personal attention styles can be and that we need more research to look into how the theory of monotropism may support a better understanding of other neurodivergences (eg OCD, Dyspraxia, Dyslexia etc). 

A neuroaffirming lens 

Understanding monotropism offers a neuroaffirmative, validating way to support autistic people, grounded in how their minds naturally work. Rather than pathologising differences, monotropism encourages people to: 

• Respect deep interests: Special interests and passions are not obsessions to be redirected but can be vital sources of joy, learning and motivation. 
• Design accessible environments: Reduce unnecessary sensory input, avoid forced multitasking and allow time for transitions. 
• Support agency and authenticity: Celebrate autistic ways of being and relating, including non-linear thought processes, conversations and passionate focus. 

Why monotropism matters 

Monotropism is a reflection of how many autistic people experience life. It validates the depth, creativity and intensity of monotropic people while making sense of common challenges without blaming, shaming or stigmatising people. 

As more people discover and resonate with the theory of monotropism, it is becoming a powerful framework for advocacy and self-understanding. It offers a way of supporting people in education, work and healthcare settings. It helps to shift the narrative from needing to ‘fix’ autistic people to thinking about ‘how can we help your attention to flow? How can we create supportive environments for autistic people to thrive?’ 

Explore further

• Monotropism.org: Theory and Explanations 
• Autistic Realms: Monotropism Resources 
• Take the monotropism questionnaire