Parent advocacy is important for the transition outcomes of autistic youth. However, it is unclear whether parent advocacy efforts support or stifle youths' self-determination. This study examined concurrent (n = 180) and longitudinal (n = 134) associations between parent advocacy and transition-aged autistic youths' self-determination (as…

Only one in every five children with autism is diagnosed before the age of 3 years. As a result, tens of thousands of children every year in the United States miss benefiting from early interventions and supports that could potentially optimize their lifetime outcomes. A major obstacle is the extremely limited access to high quality diagnosis. To…

Executive function is an area of challenge for both children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) and children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Parent ratings of everyday executive function relate to a range of outcomes, including social functioning in ASD. Comparisons between FASD and ASD have revealed both overlapping and distinct…

Due to the unique social cognitive profiles of individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) with and without intellectual disability (ID) sharing coherent and complex personal narratives can be challenging. To address these challenges research has focused on teaching macrostructure components using visual supports and repeated opportunities to…

Autism is heterogeneous at many levels, including clinical symptoms and etiology. A key strategy in studying heterogeneous conditions is having large enough sample sizes to stratify into smaller groups that are more homogeneous. SPARK and Simons Searchlight are large and growing research cohorts of individuals with autism in the United States and…

Various intervention usage is associated with positive outcomes for children with autism. However, the intensity of these interventions tends to be below recommendations, especially for minoritized children. This study aimed to examine how average weekly intervention hours among children vary by sociodemographic factors. Regression analyses were…

Despite the strong evidence basis for the treatment of anxiety in autistic youth, accessibility remains a significant challenge. Stepped care addresses this gap, although there is limited research into its broad effects in autistic youth with anxiety. In this project, 76 autistic youth with anxiety entered parent-led-bibliotherapy for 12 weeks; 44…

The present study examined the associations between networks of social relationships and psychological well-being among mothers of adolescents and adults with autism (n = 352) over a 12-year period of time. A structural equation modeling approach was used to delineate the relative impacts of network size and relationship diversity on maternal…

People with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) experience high rates of psychotropic medication utilization and barriers to psychosocial services, yet limited literature explores use of these services and the association between a mental health condition (MH) and use. Using national multipayer claims data, this study estimates a multinomial logistic…

The literature has yet to review the differential effects of Natural Environment Teaching (NET) and Discrete Trial Teaching (DTT) on adaptive skills. A sample of 142 children diagnosed with ASD between the ages of 16 and 35 months received either DTT, NET, or both interventions (NET+ DTT). The Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development (BSID)…

The use of self-report to assess anxiety in adolescents with intellectual disability (ID) is notably underexplored. This study examined the impact of youth-level factors (i.e., age, verbal and cognitive ability, adaptive skills) on anxiety self-report completion and parent-youth agreement among 72 autistic adolescents with ID. We also examined if…

Past research shows that individuals with Williams syndrome (WS) have heightened and prolonged eye contact. Using parent report measures, we examined not only the presence of eye contact but also its qualitative features. Study 1 included individuals with WS (n = 22, ages 6.0-36.3). Study 2 included children with different neurodevelopmental (ND)…

Individuals with fragile X syndrome (FXS) and their parents have a range of experiences navigating the crucial transition period between adolescence and adulthood. Semi structured interviews of 47 mothers of adolescents with FXS (mean child age = 15.89 years) were analyzed to identify mothers' changing expectations during the adolescent period and…

We examined potential phenotypic differences in eye gaze avoidance exhibited by boys with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and boys with fragile X syndrome (FXS). In Study 1, the Eye Contact Avoidance Scale (ECAS) was administered to caregivers of boys aged 7-18 years with FXS (n = 148), ASD (n = 168), and mixed developmental disabilities (MDD; n =…

Parenting styles and practices are crucial in promoting the self-determination of children. The purpose of the current study was to investigate the role of parenting styles and practices in enhancing the self-determination of children with/without intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). The present study was carried out with a sample of…