Kathryn Williams

Research Assistant: Autism from Menstruation to Menopause

Public Health

kathryn.williams@swansea.ac.uk

Basic Welsh Speaker

Research Links

https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7274-3493

ResearchGate

About

Dr Kathryn Williams is an Autistic early career researcher. Her PhD focused on neuronormative communication, normative expectations and presentations of illness, and how these contribute to epistemic injustices for Autistic adult patients.

Kathryn is currently working as a maternity cover research assistant on the Autism from Menstruation to Menopause project.

Areas Of Expertise

Critical autism studies
Healthcare Access
Neurodiversity
Neuronormative Communication
Epistemic Injustice
Qualitative research

Publications

Research Highlights

Williams, K. (2025). ‘I couldn't describe to you this pain that I've lived with for so long’: How the double empathy problem and hermeneutical injustices contribute to autistic adults’ disparate health care access. The Double Empathy Reader (pp. 239-258). Pavilion Publishing and Media Ltd
SU Repository: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa72863
Williams, K., Grant, A., Griffiths, C., Williams, K., & Brown, A. (2024). “It felt like I had an old fashioned telephone ringing in my breasts”: An online survey of UK Autistic birthing parents' experiences of infant feeding. Maternal and Child Nutrition, 20(1)
https://doi.org/10.1111/mcn.13581, SU Repository: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa65431
Williams, K., Grant, A., Williams, K., Henry, K., Holloway, W., Nicolaidis, C., Kara, H., & Brown, A. (2024). Co-developing an Autism Research Funding Application to Facilitate Ethical and Participatory Research: The Autism from Menstruation to Menopause Project. The Palgrave Handbook of Research Methods and Ethics in Neurodiversity Studies (pp. 61-79). Springer Nature Switzerland
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-66127-3_4, SU Repository: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa67936
Williams, K., Grant, A., Griffiths, C., Williams, K., & Brown, A. (2025). “I felt belittled and ridiculed for being in pain”: An online survey of Autistic people's experience of care for pregnancy loss (perinatal loss) in the United Kingdom✰. Midwifery, 141, 104266
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.midw.2024.104266, SU Repository: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa68563
Williams, K., Grant, A., Griffiths, C., Williams, K., & Brown, A. (2025). “I Just Gritted My Teeth to Get Through It All”: An Online Survey of Autistic People’s Experiences of Maternity Care in the United Kingdom. Autism in Adulthood, 0
https://doi.org/10.1089/aut.2024.0275, SU Repository: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa68895
Williams, K., Ellis, R., Williams, G., Caemawr, S., CRAINE, M., Holloway, W., Williams, K., Shaw, S., & Grant, A. (2025). Menstruation and Autism: A Qualitative Systematic Review. Autism in Adulthood, 0
https://doi.org/10.1089/aut.2024.0307, SU Repository: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa69327
Woods, R., Williams, K., & Watts, C. (2023). “Profound autism”: The dire consequences of diagnostic overshadowing. Autism Research, 16(9), 1656-1657.
https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.2985, SU Repository: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa72862
https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.2985
Williams, K., Ellis, R., Williams, K., Brown, A., Healer, E., & Grant, A. (2023). A realist review of health passports for Autistic adults. PLOS ONE, 18(9), e0279214
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0279214, SU Repository: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa64505
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0279214
Grant, A., Williams, G., Williams, K., & Woods, R. (2023). Unmet need, epistemic injustice and early death: how social policy for Autistic adults in England and Wales fails to slay Beveridge’s Five Giants. Social Policy Review 35 (pp. 239-257). Policy Press
https://doi.org/10.51952/9781447369219.ch012, SU Repository: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa72861
https://doi.org/10.51952/9781447369219.ch012
Williams, K., Grant, A., Jones, S., Williams, K., Leigh, J., & Brown, A. (2022). Autistic women’s views and experiences of infant feeding: A systematic review of qualitative evidence. Autism, 26(6), 1341-1352.
https://doi.org/10.1177/13623613221089374, SU Repository: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa59898

All Research

Journal Articles

Williams, K., Pearson, A., Grant, A., Leigh, J., Macdonald, S., Williams, K., Williams, G., Spaeth, E., Rose, K., Memmott, A., & Botha, M. (2026). ‘It's like calling short people vertically challenged’: Language and terminology preferences among neurodivergent adults in the United Kingdom. Neurodiversity, 4
https://doi.org/10.1177/27546330261428235, SU Repository: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa71747
Williams, K., Grant, A., Leigh, J., Botha, M., Macdonald, S., Williams, K., Williams, G., Rose, K., Memmott, A., & Pearson, A. (2025). ‘A Lovely Safe Umbrella to Describe Yourself With’ or ‘Meaningless’: An Online Survey of UK-Based Neurodivergent Adults’ Views of Neurodiversity-Related Terminology. Neurodiversity, 3
https://doi.org/10.1177/27546330251390590, SU Repository: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa70619
Williams, K., Abnett, H., Williams, K., Holloway, W., & Grant, A. (2025). Expert organisations with "challenging" and "complex" service users: Representation in English and Welsh autism charity reports and accounts. PLOS One, 20(10), e0335132
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0335132, SU Repository: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa70823
Williams, K., Williams, G., Ellis, R., Holloway, W., Caemawr, S., CRAINE, M., Williams, K., & Grant, A. (2025). ‘Building our own house’ as an insider-only Community-Partnered Participatory Research Council: Co-creating a safe space for Autistic knowledge production. Autism, 29(9), 2205-2215.
https://doi.org/10.1177/13623613241253014, SU Repository: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa66078
Williams, K., Ellis, R., Williams, G., Caemawr, S., CRAINE, M., Holloway, W., Williams, K., Shaw, S., & Grant, A. (2025). Menstruation and Autism: A Qualitative Systematic Review. Autism in Adulthood, 0
https://doi.org/10.1089/aut.2024.0307, SU Repository: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa69327
Williams, K., Grant, A., Griffiths, C., Williams, K., & Brown, A. (2025). “I Just Gritted My Teeth to Get Through It All”: An Online Survey of Autistic People’s Experiences of Maternity Care in the United Kingdom. Autism in Adulthood, 0
https://doi.org/10.1089/aut.2024.0275, SU Repository: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa68895
Williams, K., Grant, A., Griffiths, C., Williams, K., & Brown, A. (2025). “I felt belittled and ridiculed for being in pain”: An online survey of Autistic people's experience of care for pregnancy loss (perinatal loss) in the United Kingdom✰. Midwifery, 141, 104266
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.midw.2024.104266, SU Repository: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa68563
Williams, K., Grant, A., Griffiths, C., Williams, K., & Brown, A. (2024). “It felt like I had an old fashioned telephone ringing in my breasts”: An online survey of UK Autistic birthing parents' experiences of infant feeding. Maternal and Child Nutrition, 20(1)
https://doi.org/10.1111/mcn.13581, SU Repository: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa65431
Williams, K., Ellis, R., Williams, K., Brown, A., Healer, E., & Grant, A. (2023). A realist review of health passports for Autistic adults. PLOS ONE, 18(9), e0279214
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0279214, SU Repository: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa64505
http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0279214
Woods, R., Williams, K., & Watts, C. (2023). “Profound autism”: The dire consequences of diagnostic overshadowing. Autism Research, 16(9), 1656-1657.
https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.2985, SU Repository: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa72862
https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.2985
Williams, K., Grant, A., Jones, S., Williams, K., Leigh, J., & Brown, A. (2022). Autistic women’s views and experiences of infant feeding: A systematic review of qualitative evidence. Autism, 26(6), 1341-1352.
https://doi.org/10.1177/13623613221089374, SU Repository: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa59898

Book Chapters

Williams, K. (2025). ‘I couldn't describe to you this pain that I've lived with for so long’: How the double empathy problem and hermeneutical injustices contribute to autistic adults’ disparate health care access. The Double Empathy Reader (pp. 239-258). Pavilion Publishing and Media Ltd
SU Repository: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa72863
Williams, K., Grant, A., Williams, K., Henry, K., Holloway, W., Nicolaidis, C., Kara, H., & Brown, A. (2024). Co-developing an Autism Research Funding Application to Facilitate Ethical and Participatory Research: The Autism from Menstruation to Menopause Project. The Palgrave Handbook of Research Methods and Ethics in Neurodiversity Studies (pp. 61-79). Springer Nature Switzerland
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-66127-3_4, SU Repository: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa67936
Grant, A., Williams, G., Williams, K., & Woods, R. (2023). Unmet need, epistemic injustice and early death: how social policy for Autistic adults in England and Wales fails to slay Beveridge’s Five Giants. Social Policy Review 35 (pp. 239-257). Policy Press
https://doi.org/10.51952/9781447369219.ch012, SU Repository: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa72861
https://doi.org/10.51952/9781447369219.ch012