# 1.2 Purpose and Goals

## 1.2 Purpose and Goals

This paper is driven by a multi-faceted purpose, deeply informed by my own experiences as an autistic individual seeking to articulate a cognitive framework that resonates with my internal reality, challenges the prevailing deficit-based understanding of autism, and ultimately empowers autistic individuals:

* **Personal Cohesion**: To articulate a cognitive framework that resonates with my own lived experience, fostering a more integrated and positive sense of self.
* **Professional Transformation**: To challenge and reshape the prevailing understanding of autistic cognition within the field, moving beyond deficit-based models toward a neurologically grounded, strengths-based perspective.
* **Interpersonal Empathy**: To cultivate greater clarity, understanding, and empathy between autistic and non-autistic individuals by illuminating the structural differences in cognitive processing.
* **Individual Empowerment**: To provide autistic individuals with a robust model for self-understanding, enabling them to navigate a world built for a different cognitive style, advocate for their needs, and ultimately enhance their well-being.
