Most autism research has been conducted in high-income countries, with participants typically from White, upper-middle-income families. Given the disparities experienced by autistic individuals living in underserved communities globally, there is a critical need for research to include individuals from culturally, linguistically,…

More than half the global population is estimated to be multilingual, yet research on autistic children who grow up in multilingual environments remains scant. We conducted a systematic review of peer-reviewed studies on multilingualism in autistic children and its impact on children's language and communication skills. Following Preferred…

Caregivers are increasingly recognised as significant in providing naturalistic interventions for children with autism spectrum disorder in high-income countries and low- and middle-income countries including Sri Lanka. It is imperative to assess the impact of programmes targeting desired parenting skills within cultural boundaries. A preliminary…

Early support should help autistic children lead flourishing lives. We sought to understand parents' experiences of their children's involvement in early intervention and associated research, through focus groups with 23 parents (of 22 children) enrolled in a university-affiliated service. Reflexive thematic analysis revealed four themes. Parents…

Emerging research shows that Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) may improve mental health for caregivers. Parents of autistic children, adolescents, and adults (N = 54) were randomly assigned to either complete a brief group-based ACT intervention or remain on the waitlist. Participants completed surveys immediately prior to randomization,…

Low breastfeeding rates are driven by multiple bio-psycho-social factors. Experience of breastfeeding is known to differ by maternal demographic factors (age, education and ethnicity) but there is less recognition of factors such as neurodivergence. This review, prospectively registered with PROSPERO (registration number: CRD42021271465),…

Parents of children with autism spectrum disorder appear to experience high levels of psychological distress, yet little is known about the prevalence of psychological disorders in this population. The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to estimate the proportion of these parents who experience clinically significant…

This study reports child and family outcomes from a community-based, quasi-experimental pilot trial of "Project ImPACT for Toddlers" that is a parent-mediated, naturalistic, developmental behavioral intervention for children with or at-risk for autism spectrum disorder developed through a research-community partnership. Community early…

In 2017, the Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee, a federal advisory panel consisting of autism researchers and community members, recommended that funders of autism research prioritize research projects on: (1) treatments/interventions, (2) evidence-based services, and (3) lifespan issues. We sought to describe research funding since this…

We report the feasibility of a novel, school-based intervention, coined 'Imagining Autism', in which children with autism engage with drama practitioners though participatory play and improvisation in a themed multi-sensory 'pod' resembling a portable, tent-like structure. A total of 22 children, aged 7-12 years, from three UK schools engaged in…

Identifying effective, community-based specialized interventions for young children with autism spectrum disorder is an international clinical and research priority. We evaluated the effectiveness of the Early Start Denver Model intervention in a group of young children with autism spectrum disorder living in an Italian community compared to a…

Video modeling using applied behavior analysis techniques is one of the most promising and cost-effective ways to improve social skills for parents with autism spectrum disorder children. The main objectives were: (1) To elaborate/describe videos to improve eye contact and joint attention, and to decrease disruptive behaviors of autism spectrum…

It is well established that neurotypical individuals generally show better memory for actions they have performed than actions they have observed others perform or merely read about, a so-called "enactment effect." Strikingly, research has also shown that neurotypical individuals demonstrate superior memory for actions they…

Little has been reported about how to improve health care access and delivery for adolescents and adults with autism spectrum disorder. To understand the contributions to the health disparities in the autism spectrum disorder population, we conducted two independent research approaches to learn about current medical needs. A retrospective chart…

Systematic reviews show some evidence for the efficacy of group-based social skills group training in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder, but more rigorous research is needed to endorse generalizability. In addition, little is known about the perspectives of autistic individuals participating in social skills group training.…