Neurodivergent and Neurotypical Students in a First-Year Engineering Design Course: Identity, Self-Efficacy, and Experiences

This Complete Research paper explores the attitudes and experiences of neurodivergent (ND) and neurotypical (NT) students in the context of a first-year engineering design (FYED) course where students work in teams on open-ended projects. The data set includes post-survey data from Spring 2023 and pre- and post-survey data from Fall 2023. The end of the survey asked if students self-identified as neurodivergent (having one or more of the following: ADHD, ASD, dyslexia, etc.) with the response options of yes, maybe, or no. There were 63-67% of the students who self-identified as NT. On the Fall 2023 pre-survey, confidence in technical skills, confidence in non-technical skills, public/private regard for engineering, group identification with engineering, engineering self-efficacy, and engineering commitment were similar among ND and NT students. ND students had a higher centrality of engineering to their identity than NT students. The maybe ND students had lower group identification, engineering self-efficacy, and engineering commitment compared to the NT students. On the Spring 2023 post-survey, the NT students had somewhat more positive team experiences on average compared to ND and maybe ND students. Other course experiences and self-reported learning gains did not differ significantly between ND and NT students. On the Fall 2023 post-survey, the ND student responses were generally similar to those of their NT peers. In FYED courses with significant team-based work, extra attention to team formation and/or facilitation may be beneficial. Engineering faculty should consider both the assets and the challenges that neurodivergent students face.