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Wrexham Nexus Volume 1, Issue 1, 2026
Online ISSN 2977-6341
Editor-in-Chief: Prof. Mandy Robbins
Managing Editor: Dr Emma Harrison
- Editorial
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Autism as Disorder, Difference, and Identity: The Structural Incoherence of a Hybrid Framework
Abstract
Background: Contemporary understandings of autism combine elements of disorder, disability, difference, and identity. In the UK, autism is diagnosed using clinical tools, recognised in law as a disability, celebrated publicly as a difference, and explicitly rejected as a disease. This hybrid framing is presented as inclusive, but generates tensions in diagnosis, access to support, and public discourse. Aim: This article examines how this hybrid framing emerged and how the simultaneous use of medical, legal, social, and identity-based logics produces structural incoherence in how autism is organised and supported. Method: A conceptual review synthesising diagnostic manuals, legal and policy frameworks, and sociocultural literatures, with reference to other areas of psychiatry and disability. Key findings: The analysis shows that hybrid framing operates as a layered compromise across clinical, legal, and cultural domains, allowing institutions to alternate between disorder, disability, difference, and identity as needed, preserving diagnostic authority while appearing inclusive. Diagnosis functions less as a neutral description and more as a rationing device, even as self-diagnosis and identity-based claims gain prominence. Celebratory strengths-based narratives and spectrum rhetoric tend to centre more independent autistic people, while those with higher support needs remain marginalised, medicalised, or structurally invisible. Implications: Addressing these contradictions requires structural honesty about what autism is taken to be, what counts as harm, and what outcomes systems aim to pursue. Without such clarity, autism policy and practice risk remaining rhetorically progressive but structurally unaccountable, sustaining inequitable provision across the spectrum of need.
Keywords: Autism; neurodiversity; disability; diagnosis; identity; policy; conceptual review
Monty Kennard and Catrin Street-Mattox
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Understanding the ‘Preparedness’ of Physiotherapy Graduates in Wales: A Pilot Qualitative Study
Abstract
This paper presents a pilot study of three experienced physiotherapists who supervise recent graduates in musculoskeletal settings in Wales. It was conducted to explore the level of ‘preparedness’ of recent physiotherapy graduates by seeking their perspectives and of those who work alongside or supervise physiotherapy graduates in Wales. Following a literature review, questions were developed to undertake semi-structured interviews. The interviews were analysed through a Reflexive Thematic Analysis. The three themes identified during the process of the Reflexive Thematic Analysis were Prepared for practice, Bridging the gap, and Welcome to the real world! The findings of this study have been contextualized within the body of literature and will help to inform the design of larger scale research on this topic which could also be performed longitudinally to evaluate the preparedness of physiotherapy graduates as well as graduates of other Allied Health Professions.
Keywords: Preparedness, Physiotherapy, Graduates, Placement
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Exploring the Overmedicalisation of Antidepressant Medication: A Mixed-Methods Study
Abstract
The medicalisation of mental health has contributed to increasing reliance on antidepressant medication across the United Kingdom, with Wales exhibiting particularly high prescribing rates. This mixed-methods study explores how future mental health practitioners perceive antidepressant use in relation to Welsh Government policy. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with four psychology students (N = 4) recruited via purposive sampling, and data were analysed using thematic analysis alongside a manifest content analysis of policy documents. Findings suggest partial convergence between policy and participant perspectives in valuing holistic, trauma-informed care; however, differences were identified in perceived implementation. Participants anticipated continued reliance on pharmacological approaches due to systemic pressures, limited psychoeducation, and restricted access to psychological interventions. These findings are exploratory and reflect perceptions rather than direct clinical experience. The study is limited by a small sample size, which, although appropriate for the depth required in thematic analysis conducted alongside content analysis within the given timeframe, restricts generalisability. Additionally, direct prescriber perspectives were not included due to challenges in obtaining NHS ethical approval. To address this limitation, a publicly available open letter authored by Dr Davis and fellow general practitioners was incorporated to contextualise contemporary practitioner concerns regarding the overmedicalisation of mental health in Wales. Future research would benefit from recruiting a larger, medically oriented sample, including practising prescribers, to enhance the applicability and depth of the findings.
Keywords: Antidepressants, Overmedicalisation, Mixed-methods, Wales, Psychology, Policy
Morgaine Jeffreys-Evans
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Breaking Down Cheer: Unveiling Common Injuries Among Adult Allstar Cheerleading Athletes
Abstract
The physical demands and participation of Allstar cheerleading have increased over the last two decades and so has the risk of injury. However, little is known about injury epidemiology in adult Allstar cheerleaders within the United Kingdom. The purpose of this study was to identify the most common injury site, mechanism, and positions susceptible to injury among adult Allstar cheerleading athletes in the United Kingdom and explore common treatment and management. A descriptive cross-sectional quantitative study was conducted using an electronic questionnaire distributed to adult cheerleaders in the United Kingdom. Data collected included demographics, training history, injury characteristics, and treatment and management with frequency analysis performed. A total of 130 cheerleaders participated. The most common injury site was head/face (15.99%). Basing/stunting was the most common mechanism of injury (28.03%), with main bases and tumblers reporting the highest median injury rates (~4). Cheerleaders were mostly advised on complete rest from training (63.39%) and the use of ice application for treatment (23.14%). Upper limb injuries were more common than lower limb injuries among adult Allstar cheerleaders, with a large number to the head/face, which differs to the current literature. Further research is needed to help healthcare professionals develop specific injury prevention programs and explore sex differences.
Keywords: Allstar, Injuries, Epidemiology, Cheerleading
Kristian Weaver and Ella Dyke
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Sage Research Methods by Sage Publications
Sage Research Methods Book Review
Reviewed by Jacqui Maung and Sam Thomas, Learning and Digital Support
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Messy Methods in Researching Religion by Oxford University Press
Messy Research Methods Book Review
Reviewed by Prof. Mandy Robbins.
