“Hidden Athletes”: Understanding and Enhancing the Participation and Engagement of Neurodiverse Girls in Sport and Physical Activity (HHS-2026-14)

About the Project

Most neurodiversity research still focuses on boys, leaving the experiences of girls largely invisible. This invisibility is amplified in sport, where gendered expectations, and social norms create unique barriers to participation. Participation in sport supports neurodiverse individuals’ physical health, emotional regulation, executive functioning, and social connectedness. Yet neurodiverse girls often disengage early or avoid sport altogether due to sensory sensitivities, social anxiety, masking, negative school PE experiences, or exclusionary cultures and practices.

Research Aim:

To explore how neurodiverse girls experience participation and engagement in sport.

Research Questions:

1. How do neurodiverse girls describe their experiences of sport across school, community, and competitive settings?
2. What personal, social, and institutional factors support or hinder their engagement?
3. How do gendered expectations, masking, and late diagnosis shape their sporting identities and participation trajectories?
4. What inclusive practices can enhance engagement for girls?

Methodology:

A multiple methods exploratory sequential design.

Phase 1: Interviews, focus groups, world café approach, or participatory workshops to inform the intervention design

• Participants: girls (11–16) and their families
• Focus: experiences of PE, school sport, community sport, barriers and enablers
• Aim: identify what inclusive sport feels like from their perspective to inform and co-design an intervention

Phase 2: Design and deliver an intervention to an experimental group and a comparator group

• Aim: identify how an inclusive environment (experimental group) impacts participation and retention.
• Data collected during the intervention from girls and their families.

Phase 3: Narrative interviews, focus groups, world café approach, or participatory workshops

• Participants: girls (11–16) and their families
• Focus: experiences of the intervention from experimental and comparator perspectives.
• Aim: to establish the importance of additional support and types of support to the inclusion of neurodiverse girls in sport

Phase 4: Thematic analysis to synthesise the findings.

For subject specific enquiries please contact: l.horner@hud.ac.uk

How to Apply

You must submit your application in full by Friday 19th June 2026, including the following documents:

• A motivational email as to why you wish to apply for the scholarship, stating which project you are applying for.
• A 2,000-word research proposal outlining how you plan to undertake for the research topic you are applying for. For further guidance on writing a research proposal, please refer to the following webpage: https://www.hud.ac.uk/postgraduate/research/writing-a-research-proposal/
• Full CV
• Provide copies of transcripts and certificates of all relevant academic and/or any professional qualifications.
• Provide references from two individuals – (at least one to be an academic reference) please contact your referees and ask them to send your references directly to pgrscholarships@hud.ac.uk from their work email address. (references can be submitted late but must be received by 29th June 2026).
• Proof of eligibility – e.g. scan of passport photo page
• Please state the research topic number and title in the subject area of the email

Please email pgrscholarships@hud.ac.uk with queries regarding eligibility and submitting documents. Informal enquiries about individual projects should be directed to the lead supervisor listed for each project.

Type of Award: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Eligibility: Applications are welcome from UK applicants only; ideally with an MSc in a relevant subject area, applicants with a First-Class Honours degree may also be considered.

Location: Huddersfield/Online

Funding: Fee waiver

Duration: 3 years full-time / 6 years part-time