Individuals with autism spectrum disorder commonly exhibit vocal stereotypy, and this behavior may be targeted for treatment when it competes with daily tasks, disrupts the environment, or leads to reduced independence. Previous research has shown that access to music reduces vocal stereotypy. However, treatment evaluations typically occur during…

Children on the autism spectrum tend to consume fewer healthy foods than typically developing children. Given the negative effects of unhealthy eating, it is important to increase healthy food selection. The current study examined whether manipulating the delay to reinforcement would increase healthy food selection in a concurrent-operants…

An increasing number of people receive autism diagnoses in adulthood, and there are few studies investigating autistic adults' experiences of disclosing their diagnosis. This study sought to understand autistic adults' experiences of diagnostic disclosure using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Twelve autistic adults, who received their…

Purpose: Peer network interventions support social interaction among students with autism and their peers and may be able to support reciprocal friendship development. However, little research has attempted to examine the nature of relationships that form within them. This study utilized a convergent parallel mixed methods design to explore how…

Introduction: The present study aimed to understand the experiences of speech-language pathologists (SLPs) on the use of telepractice for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in India. Method: Data were collected through in-depth interviews with 16 SLPs who were practising in India. The data were analyzed using an inductive thematic…

A minority of patients with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are offered genetic testing by their providers or referred for genetics evaluation despite published guidelines and consensus statements supporting genetics-informed care for this population. This study aimed to investigate the ordering habits of providers of different specialties and to…

This mixed methods paper reports findings from three studies examining the overlap between autism and hobbyist board gaming. The first was a quantitative survey of over 1600 board gamers, showing that autistic individuals are overrepresented in this hobby compared to the general population and that autistic traits measured by the AQ are…

Purpose: Predictive coding theories posit that autism is characterized by an over-adjustment to prediction errors, resulting in frequent updates of prior beliefs. Atypical weighting of prediction errors is generally considered to negatively impact the construction of stable models of the world, but may also yield beneficial effects. In a novel…

Individuals diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) may fail to acquire interactive play and leisure skills due to deficits associated with the diagnosis. Through interactive play, individuals gain more opportunities to develop proficiency in areas such as communication, social skills, and emotional development. In an effort to inform…

Autism is a prevalent neurodevelopmental condition, highly heterogenous in both genotype and phenotype. This communication adds to existing discussion of the heterogeneity of clinical sequencing tests, "gene panels", marketed for application in autism. We evaluate the clinical utility of available gene panels based on existing genetic…

This study adds to the existing pool of knowledge regarding the imitative behavior of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Methods: The over-imitation behaviors of preschool children with ASD were compared to age-matched typically developing (TD) children. Results: The hypothesis was that the TD children would over-imitate to a much…

The gut microbiota was reported to differ between children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and typically developing (TD) children, and dysbiosis of the gut microbiota in preterm infants is common. Here, we explored the characteristics of gut microbiota in children born preterm with ASD. We performed 16S rRNA gene sequencing using stool samples…

Although anxiety is commonly researched in autism, the focus has predominantly been on anxiety disorders and not upon general levels of anxiousness or trait anxiety. This review summarises research investigating trait anxiety in autism. Systematic searches yielded 1099 records, with 23 studies meeting inclusion criteria. Study participants were…

Increasing evidence highlights the role of disrupted circadian rhythms in the neural dysfunctions and sleep disturbances observed in autism spectrum disorder and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. However, the causality and directionality of these associations remain unclear. In this study, we employed a bidirectional two-sample Mendelian…

Purpose: Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and food selectivity are at increased risk for nutritional deficiencies which could affect bone health. Methods: We report on four male patients with ASD and avoidant restrictive food intake disorder (ARFID) with significant bone conditions including rickets, vertebral compression fractures,…