Advances in Autism is unique in its focus on the health and care aspects and outcomes for people with autism.    The journal's content is international in focus and peer-reviewed. It includes the following:    research-based articles  evidence-based clinical and support articles  articles on policy and advances in services where these can be internationally applied.  Key areas of research covered include:    clinical developments  people's experience through qualitative research  policy debates and outcomes  inclusion and quality of life  developmental issues  population and epidemiological studies  services developments  evidence-based reviews of key practice issues.

Advances in Autism is unique in its focus on the health and care aspects and outcomes for individuals with autism. The journal's content is international in scope and peer-reviewed. It includes research-based articles, evidence-based clinical and support articles, and articles on policy and service advancements that can be applied internationally. Key areas of research covered include clinical developments, individuals' experiences through qualitative research, policy debates and outcomes, inclusion and quality of life, developmental issues, population and epidemiological studies, service developments, and evidence-based reviews of key practice issues.

《Advances in Autism》专注于自闭症患者的健康和护理方面及其结果，具有独特性。该期刊的内容具有国际视野，并经过同行评审。包括以下内容：基于研究的文章、循证临床和支持文章、政策及服务进展的文章，这些内容具有国际适用性。研究的关键领域包括：临床发展、通过定性研究了解人们的经历、政策辩论及其结果、包容性与生活质量、发展问题、人口和流行病学研究、服务发展、关键实践问题的循证评审。

Advances in Autism

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the prevalence of posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) in adults and children who were exposed to applied behavior analysis (ABA) autism early childhood intervention. Using an online questionnaire to survey autistic adults and caregivers of autistic children, the author collected data from 460 respondents on demographics, intervention types, and current pathological behaviors with symptom severity scales. This study noted PTSS in nearly half of ABA-exposed participants, while non-exposed controls had a 72 percent chance of being asymptomatic. ABA satisfaction ratings for caregivers averaged neutral or mild satisfaction. In contrast, adult satisfaction with ABA was lower on average and also tended to take on either extremely low or extremely high ratings. Exposure to ABA predicted a higher rate and more severe PTSS in participants, but the duration of exposure did not affect satisfaction with the intervention in caregivers. Design/methodology/approach Participants were recruited for an online survey through social media networks, adult gatherings, social skills groups, and autism support groups nationwide. Adult inclusion criteria consisted of autism – diagnosed or self-diagnosed – and an age of 18 or older. A total of 460 respondents, consisting of autistic adults and caregivers of autistic children, completed an online survey. The caregiver entries ( n =217) concerned 79 percent male children, 21 percent female children (male to female 3.80:1), and one MtF transgender child, ages 1-38, with an average age at diagnosis of 4.69 years. The adult entries ( n =243) concerned 30 percent males, 55 percent females (male to female 0.55:1), and 14 percent other gender, ages 18-73, with an average age at diagnosis of 25.38 years. Findings Nearly half (46 percent) of the ABA-exposed respondents met the diagnostic threshold for PTSD, and extreme levels of severity were recorded in 47 percent of the affected subgroup. Respondents of all ages who were exposed to ABA were 86 percent more likely to meet the PTSD criteria than respondents who were not exposed to ABA. Adults and children both had increased chances (41 and 130 percent, respectively) of meeting the PTSD criteria if they were exposed to ABA. Both adults and children without ABA exposure had a 72 percent chance of reporting no PTSS (see Figure 1). At the time of the study, 41 percent of the caregivers reported using ABA-based interventions. Originality/value The majority of adult respondents were female, raising questions about the population of online autistic survey respondents. Further, the high numbers of reported gender other than male or female in the adult respondents, as well as at least on MtF child from the caregiver respondents indicates that future studies should consider these intersections. These accompanied significant discrepancies in reporting bias between caregivers and ABA-exposed individuals, which highlight the need for the inclusion of the adult autistic voice in future intervention design. Based on the findings, the author predicts that nearly half of ABA-exposed autistic children will be expected to meet the PTSD criteria four weeks after commencing the intervention; if ABA intervention persists, there will tend to be an increase in parent satisfaction despite no decrease in PTSS severity.

Henny Kupferstein

Evidence of increased PTSD symptoms in autistics exposed to applied behavior analysis

应用行为分析暴露下自闭症患者创伤后应激障碍症状增加的证据

Purpose Because of social interaction difficulties, cognitive characteristics and sensory sensitivity, people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) may struggle with independence and active participation in urban contexts. Through understanding how people with ASDs experience and perceive urban spaces, the Personalized Interactive Urban Maps for Autism (PIUMA) project’s purpose is to create a useful platform to support persons with ASD in their movements in the city, helping them in managing their daily lives, promoting their autonomy and active participation in urban contexts, taking in to account their direct point of view. This paper aim to present a user-centered approach involving autistic people. Design/methodology/approach The authors involved researchers with different backgrounds applying mixed research techniques such as semi-structured qualitative interviews, participatory design, exploiting user-adapted systems techniques, human–computer interaction techniques and interviews. The authors involved people with autism (PWA) from the beginning of the project to gain user requirements, as well as to assess the acceptability and effectiveness of our solution in the final stage. In specific phases of the project, the authors involved a group of parents of PWA and a group of neurotypical individuals as a control group. Findings The authors collected various data and created an App taking into account PWA needs, suggestions and points of view. Research limitations/implications Choosing different methodologies to allow participants to express their point of view, their needs and suggestions, the authors limited the quantitative data collected. The male-to-female ratio in the study, along with the sample size and participants’ age, can also be considered limitations. Practical implications The authors collected information about how autistic people move in urban contexts, represent the space of their cities, move independently and use technological devices. The data the author collected also provides suggestions about how to improve computer systems designed for them. Social implications The results suggest how to improve computer systems designed for autistic people and how to encourage their full participation in community life according to their cognitive and sensory characteristics. Originality/value The PIUMA project takes into account the direct input of PWA in all the different stages from conception and design to deployment of the device in a human-centered design approach.

Stefania Brighenti

Federica Cena

Roberto Keller

Personalized interactive urban maps for autism: an innovative approach involving persons with Level 1 autism spectrum disorder to user-centered design

为自闭症患者量身定制的互动城市地图：一种创新方法，将一级自闭症谱系障碍患者纳入以用户为中心的设计

Purpose This study aims to examine the concurrent influence of parental stress, executive functions and communication skills on challenging behaviors in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). These behaviors are frequently exhibited by children with ASD and can be attributed to a variety of factors, including the child’s environment and their own level of development. Design/methodology/approach The current investigation was cross-sectional. Based on the inclusion criteria, 74 children with ASD were chosen, including those aged 4–7 years and 11 months, those with a moderate level of ASD and those without medical conditions or accompanying issues. Convenience sampling was implemented. Findings In children with ASD, challenging behaviors were observed to be significantly correlated with all three factors of parental stress, executive functions and communication skills ( p &lt; 0.05). Additionally, the executive functions were the most effective predictor of the frequency of challenging behaviors in these children. Furthermore, parental stress was the most effective predictor of the severity of challenging behaviors. Originality/value In previous research, the examination of the concurrent impact of factors that influence challenging behaviors demonstrated by children with ASD was restricted to the child’s level (executive functions and communication skills), whereas environmental factors such as parental stress were disregarded. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first research to look at the concurrent influence of three crucial factors: parental stress, executive functioning and communication abilities on challenging behaviors in children with ASD. The findings suggest that interventions targeting challenging behaviors in children with ASD may benefit from addressing the child’s executive function difficulties and parental stress.

Fatemeh Ranjbar

Hooshang Dadgar

Masoud Azizi

Hamid Dalvand

The impact of parental stress, executive function and communication skills on challenging behaviors in children with autism spectrum disorder

父母压力、执行功能和沟通技能对孤独症谱系障碍儿童挑战性行为的影响

Purpose The purpose of this study is to analyse recent empirical research that has explored the field of telepractice in early intervention for families of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Design/methodology/approach The systematic review included 16 studies from 2012 and 2022 that examined the field of telepractice in early intervention for families of children with ASD. Analyses focused on the accessibility of telepractice and comparison with traditional treatment, the effectiveness of telepractice for parents in learning strategies in the home environment and the effectiveness of telepractice for children with ASD. What are the differences related to formats of telepractice and whether telepractice presents some technical challenges for families? Findings The results indicate that telepractice can make an important contribution to more intensive and better quality treatment. The review of studies shows positive effects in terms of parental satisfaction and the effectiveness of telecare interventions for children. Some early intervention telepractice programmes also report improvements in parents’ use of strategies, communication skills, imitation skills and interaction with children. Research limitations/implications The studies reviewed were conducted on relatively small samples. Many of them did not include a control group. Only three studies compared traditional formats with distance treatments. Some studies did not include professional support for parents. Some studies had shorter time periods of distance treatment. Some studies had a high lack of feedback from parents on the use of telepractice. In the future, more randomized controlled trials should be conducted in the field of telepractice in early intervention, based on larger samples and including a control group. It would be advisable to compare the different types of distance treatments with each other and with the traditional face-to-face format. Further research should examine the impact of participant characteristics, socioeconomic status and participant demographics, together with individual needs, perceptions and treatment responses to telepractice. Given the mixed results regarding the impact of early distance treatment in reducing stress in parents, further research in this area is recommended. Practical implications From this systematic review, the authors can conclude that the optimal early intervention would be a hybrid training, i.e. the implementation of both approaches so that the family has the opportunity to have a traditional contact with a specialist and the use of telepractice, which can increase the number of treatments and reduce costs. The authors suggest that parents and telepractice providers be educated about the safe and appropriate use of telepractice. Professionals should also have coaching skills to conduct telepractice and adapt some strategies (such as prompting and modelling) taking into account the specific needs of parents and children and be frequently available to the family. There should also be higher levels of support for parents’ well-being. Social implications Policy proposals include raising the level of early intervention for children with ASD, as this can have more lasting effects for families of children with ASD. This may have an impact by reducing the costs of support for families later on. Funding is recommended for developers of online platforms that create a safe and effective basis for telecoaching practice, for appropriate technical equipment for professionals and families and for education for professionals in the use of telepractice. Originality/value Based on the analysis of the recent research, suggestions and guidelines for the effective use of telepractice in early intervention for children with ASD and their families are presented.

Maša Orel

Marta Licardo

Systematic review of telepractice for early intervention with families of children with autism spectrum disorder

孤独症谱系障碍儿童家庭早期干预远程实践的系统综述

Purpose Over the past decade, many studies have investigated peer support between neurotypical and neurodivergent children. Less is known about how autistic children support each other in educational contexts, especially in basic education, where child-adult interactions are still predominant. This study aims to investigate whether and how autistic children supported each other in small-group discussions in the first years of basic education. This paper focused on unraveling the communication structures of these supportive events, aiming to understand further how autistic children make sense of social interactions and intersubjective processes that require peer support. Design/methodology/approach Building on conversation analysis methods, this paper analyzed the transcripts of the small-group discussions, identifying and analyzing the construction of support in children’s dialogues. Nine Finnish children (7–10 years old) attending mainstream school in Finland under intensified support in part-time special classrooms participated in this study. The study adopted a specific method called Idea Diary to frame the small-group discussions. The teacher guided the conversations, providing a dynamic structure for children’s interactions, but students were encouraged to interact among themselves. This paper recorded 11 sessions within the six-month implementation of the Idea Diary, totaling 240 min of data. Findings Results show that the children recognized situations where other children needed support in interactions and intervened in ways that promoted the continuation of the conversation and the clarification of ideas. Autistic children were sensitive to peers’ unspoken needs, capable of identifying subtle nuances of conversation dynamics and able to express support through comments and questions during the small-group discussions. Originality/value This study provides insights into the understudied phenomenon of peer support among autistic children in small-group discussions. It contributes to the growing corpus of research dedicated to exploring and revealing social competencies among autistic people. It discusses implications for developing educational practices that foster social interactions respecting the quality of autistic interactions and the interests of autistic students.

Senja Mankinen

Juliene Madureira Ferreira

Arttu Mykkänen

Peer support amongst autistic children: an examination of the communication structure in small-group discussions

自闭症儿童之间的同伴支持：小群体讨论中沟通结构的考察

Purpose The negative effects of loneliness and isolation on mental health and wellbeing on the neurotypical population are well documented. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the effects of isolation on the mental health and wellbeing of autistic adults who were separated from friends and family for an extended period. Design/methodology/approach Semi-structured interviews were conducted shortly after the lifting of the third UK lockdown of the Covid-19 pandemic with a sample of 7 people (mean age, 35) formally diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder. Findings The study explored effects stemming from the absence of social interaction. Thematic analysis led to the creation of three themes: The first, “Context affects perception of isolation: I’m going to continue on with my life as much as I possibly can” shows a negative impact on wellbeing, perceived through the filter of larger issues resulting from lockdown and the necessity of isolation. The second, “Being alone can be comfortable: Lockdown has been good for me” discusses the mental health benefits of isolation and participants feeling of being “primed” for that isolation. The third, “Challenges from isolation: ‘Changing routine’” explores the changes people made while isolated, with a focus on coping strategies and communication. Originality/value Findings reveal the importance of supporting autistic adults to maintain social contact during and after isolation and contradict research suggesting autistic people are not motivated to seek social interaction.

Abbreviation	AIA
Journal Impact	1.04
Quartiles(Global)	PSYCHOLOGY, DEVELOPMENTAL(Q4)

ISSN	2056-3868, 2056-3876
h-index	15

Publication Information	Publisher: Emerald Group Publishing Ltd.，Publishing cycle: ，Journal Type: journal，Open Access Journals: No
Basic data	Year of publication: 2015，Proportion of original research papers: 92.31%，Self Citation Rate:0.00%， Gold OA Rate: 1.37%

Advances in Autism

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Share Submission Experience

Evidence of increased PTSD symptoms in autistics exposed to applied behavior analysis

Personalized interactive urban maps for autism: an innovative approach involving persons with Level 1 autism spectrum disorder to user-centered design

The impact of parental stress, executive function and communication skills on challenging behaviors in children with autism spectrum disorder

Systematic review of telepractice for early intervention with families of children with autism spectrum disorder

Peer support amongst autistic children: an examination of the communication structure in small-group discussions

Personalized interactive urban maps for autism: an innovative approach involving persons with Level 1 autism spectrum disorder to user-centered design

The impact of parental stress, executive function and communication skills on challenging behaviors in children with autism spectrum disorder

Systematic review of telepractice for early intervention with families of children with autism spectrum disorder

Peer support amongst autistic children: an examination of the communication structure in small-group discussions

Mental health, wellbeing and coping strategies of autistic adults during isolation