Autism is increasingly seen as a social identity, as well as a clinical diagnosis. Evidence suggests that autistic adults who have stronger autism social identification have better psychological well-being. Autism is a condition which impacts on social interactions, and so one's sense of autism identification may be particularly important for…

To retrospectively explore the characteristics of plasma amino acids (PAAs) in children with autism spectrum disorder and their clinical association via case-control study. A total of 110 autistic and 55 healthy children were recruited from 2014 to 2018. The clinical phenotypes included severity of autism, cognition, adaptability, and regression.…

Pre- and post-term children show increased autism risk. Little is known about gestational age (GA) prevalence among autistic children, and their respective autism phenotype. We compared prevalence of pre-, full- and post-term birth between a population-derived sample of N = 606 (137 females, 22.61%) autistic children and adolescents (mean age =…

We examined associations between prenatal oxidative stress (OS) and child autism-related outcomes. Women with an autistic child were followed through a subsequent pregnancy and that younger sibling's childhood. Associations between glutathione (GSH), glutathione disulfide (GSSG), 8-oxo-deoxyguanine (8-OHdG), and nitrotyrosine and younger sibling…

A survey asked autistic and non-autistic people about the driving difficulties they experience and their autistic traits. Principle components analysis was used to identify how reported difficulties clustered together in each group, and regression was used to determine which subscales of the Autism Spectrum Quotient predict these factors. For…

Autistic people experience heightened rates of physical health problems but may also experience elevated levels of somatic symptoms (e.g. pain, headache, gastrointestinal symptoms) due to psychological factors which are common in autism. This online study sought to compare rates of somatic symptoms (Patient Health Questionnaire-15) in older…

Social support has a positive impact on quality of life (QoL) in neurotypical older adults and young autistic adults, but the association for older autistic adults is unclear. Autistic adults (n = 388; mean age = 40-83 years) were recruited via Simons Powering Autism Research for Knowledge (SPARK) Research Match. Participants completed…

This study examines autistic and non-autistic college students' experiences of discrimination and harassment and identifies protective and risk factors. A nationwide survey was used to match autistic students (N = 290) and non-autistic students (N = 290) on co-occurring diagnoses and demographic characteristics. Multiple regression and interaction…

The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted a range of health services for children across the United States. Autistic children have well-documented deficits in health-related services compared to nonautistic children. Parents of autistic children reported an increase in mental health and behavior problems with the onset of the pandemic, increasing the need…

Purpose: This study evaluates the extent to which automated indices of vocal development are stable and valid for predicting language in infants at increased familial likelihood for autism and/or language impairment and relatively lower likelihood infants. Method: A group of infants with autistic siblings (Sibs-autism; 20 infants) and a comparison…

Background: Autistic individuals show differences in social and behavioral performances. Autism-related stigma affects autistic children as well as their caregivers (e.g., parents). Research has shown that stigmatizing reactions from others toward caregivers of autistic children are common and that these caregivers suffer from affiliate stigma.…

Appreciating autistic neurodiversity is important when supporting autistic people who experience distress. Specifically, use of a profiling model can reveal less visible autistic differences, including strengths and abilities. Binary logistic regressions showed that the likelihood of extreme distress responses could be interpreted based on…

Recent evidence suggests that, contrary to traditional views, empathy difficulties may not be a core feature of autism; but are rather due to co-occurring alexithymia. Empathy, alexithymia and autistic traits have yet to be examined concurrently in children. Therefore, we examined the co-occurrence of empathy difficulties and alexithymia in 59…

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) usually appears associated with other comorbid psychopathology. For this reason, the present research aimed to study the comorbid conditions in ASD paying more attention to depressive symptoms. The investigation included a sample of 37 adults with ASD and intellectual disability (M = 27.49; SD = 9.2), users of…

Disability support office (DSO) staff are responsible for providing appropriate support for an increasing population of undergraduate students with autism. A total of 153 DSO staff members in higher education institutions in the United States completed an online survey on their autism attitudes and knowledge, previous contact with autistic people,…