Disclosure Dances in Doctoral Education

This article reports on a qualitative embodied inquiry that was undertaken to explore the lived experience of disclosure amongst disabled, chronically ill, and/or neurodivergent doctoral researchers. Previous research has shown that disabled, chronically ill, and/or neurodivergent academics apply a cost–benefit analysis to help them decide whether to disclose their needs. This study specifically focused on doctoral researchers and how doctoral researchers navigate the process of disclosure. Twelve participants from the United Kingdom took part. Data collection was via interviews and additional creative submissions. Data was analyzed using reflexive, thematic analysis. The themes generated were disclosure experiences, career considerations, and navigating spaces and academic buildings. The findings show that doctoral researchers’ decisions of whether to disclose depends on their individual situations and factors rather than it being a linear, either-or matter.