2025 Research Report
The hidden realities of family life and neurodiversity.
From therapy coordination to school meetings, NDIS navigation to wardrobe routines, the 2025 Making the Invisible Visible report reveals what 1,091 Australian families experience every day. Families where 93% say their experience feels misunderstood or invisible, yet carry profound strength, hope, and love. This research helps you see what has been hidden.
Research conducted by Understanding Zoe in partnership with Sunday Insights and PureSpectrum.
Why parents of neurodivergent children carry a heavier mental and emotional load, and what helps lighten it.
Research showing that strengths-based, identity-respecting support outperforms deficit-focused models.
Evidence that connection between caregivers and children predicts better long-term outcomes than behavioural interventions alone.
What parents, educators and therapists told us about the support gaps they hit, and what would actually help.
This groundbreaking research explores what it truly means to parent neurodivergent children: the invisible labour, the emotional paradox, and the strength it takes to keep families and systems running.
The invisible labour, emotional toll, and strength of neurodivergent caregiving.
School experiences, advocacy burden, and systemic gaps in support.
Employment challenges, disclosure fears, and the case for structured support.
This study was commissioned by Understanding Zoe in partnership with Sunday Insights and PureSpectrum. It combines qualitative and quantitative research to build a fuller picture of what it means to parent neurodivergent children in Australia.
“When we began this research, I wanted to make the invisible visible. For years, parents like me have been holding together worlds that don’t quite fit -- balancing therapy sessions, school meetings, work calls and emotional meltdowns, while trying to keep our children’s light intact.”
-- Laetitia Andrac, Co-Founder & CEO, Understanding Zoe
Understanding Zoe is the first AI-powered platform for collaborative care that’s strength-based and designed for everyone supporting a neurodivergent child.
We turn overwhelm into clarity by bringing together expert knowledge, family insights, and the whole care village in one secure space.
Bring Pip into your support village and turn the research insights into daily, personalised guidance for your family.
Forward-thinking employers partner with Understanding Zoe to support neurodivergent caregivers -- turning retention risk into competitive advantage.