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Recent research has proposed a specific female phenotype within autism spectrum disorder (ASD). It suggests females exhibit differences in social communication styles with higher levels of camouflaging and compensatory strategies, as well as variance in restrictive repetitive behaviours (RRBs); however, many existing studies have been based on either small, disproportionate or child and adolescent samples, leaving questions about the specific phenotype. This study aims to explore the sex difference and phenotype in a clinic sample of individuals diagnosed with autism.

A service evaluation of sex/ gender differences on 150 historical ASD assessment reports (75 males, 75 females) using a 103-item questionnaire developed from a quantitative review of existing literature was undertaken.

Females camouflaged more significantly than males in five different areas (thinking how to act next, preparing conversation in advance, making lists of prompts/social responses, wearing a mask/acting, less monotone voice); however, these were not maintained in post-analysis correction.

This study points the evidence towards a different phenotype of Autism that is more common in women than men rather than a unique female phenotype.

From the authors’ personal and professional experiences, they have observed that autistic women are uniquely at risk of interpersonal trauma. Given the tendency for autistic women to be overlooked in research and practice, this study aims to rectify this by exploring the relevant literature and including the voices of autistic women throughout this paper.

This study completed a literature review of quantitative and qualitative data relating to exposure to interpersonal trauma in autistic women. This study also reviewed relevant discursive evidence available on in memoirs and reports. This study also included dialogue between us as authors from an auto/“Autie”-ethnographic position.

Both clinical literature and discursive evidence support the idea that autistic women are uniquely at risk of interpersonal trauma, in particular, sexual victimisation. Explanatory factors are considered. Studies exploring rates of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) were less consistent. Further evidence is required to better understand how autistic women experience and express PTSD and to inform assessment and treatment modifications.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first paper to integrate clinical literature and discursive evidence on the topic of interpersonal trauma in autistic women. It provides useful insights into the experiences of autistic women in this space, directions for urgently needed future research and modifications to clinical practice.

Some individuals with autism may engage in violent behaviour. Research into autism specific factors (ASFs) that may contribute to violence is limited. The purpose of this paper is to explore the feasibility of use of an ASF framework which was developed to inform risk formulation and treatment needs.

Retrospective identification and evaluation of ASFs in offenders with autism (N = 13) at childhood, time of index offence and in current risk behaviours. The ASFs described in the framework were repetitive behaviours and circumscribed interests; poor social understanding and empathy; sensitivity to sensory stimulation; and disruption to rigid behavioural routines or difficulties coping with change.

There was evidence for all four ASFs being consistently present in childhood, contributing to violent behaviour at the index offence and current risk behaviours in at least one case. Poor social understanding and empathy was often present at both childhood and index offence in all cases. Of the seven cases with offence paralleling behaviour, five had at least one ASF present at each timepoint.

This proof-of-concept study provides initial support that ASFs play a role in offending behaviour of individuals with autism. Clinicians working in specialist and generic forensic services, with an in-depth knowledge of autism, could use the ASF framework to enhance risk assessments and facilitate more targeted treatment planning for offenders with autism in specialist and general forensic services.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to test the application of the ASF framework in an autistic offending population.

This study aims to describe the experiences and barriers to care for women with autistic spectrum condition (ASC) under the care of the Brighton and Hove Specialist Perinatal Mental Health Service (BHSPMHS) and provide recommendations to improve the service.

Patients with an ASC diagnosis or suspected diagnosis and awaiting assessment under the care of BHSPMHS were offered to take part in the study. Five patients were interviewed to explore their experiences.

Participants had a mix of positive and negative experiences of services. Positives included the continuous support and allowing flexibility around appointments. Dialectical behavioural therapy groups running online instead of in-person was highlighted as a universal negative as well as delays in diagnosing ASC.

Those likely to meet the criteria for ASC but are awaiting formal diagnosis should be treated with appropriate adjustments to service provision as those who have received a diagnosis. Recommendations for service improvements include the provision of smaller, in-person therapy groups. Adjustments to treatments may include flexibility around appointment times and location.

There is little research into the experiences of people with ASC under the care of perinatal mental health teams. As specialist perinatal services expand, it is important to understand the experiences of women with ASC being cared for by these services, to ensure they are accessible and inclusive. The results of this study will be used to guide service development and act as a model for other services, with the intention of improving care for this patient group.

The purpose of this paper is to interrogate and develop the conceptualisation of discriminatory abuse in safeguarding adults policy and practice beyond the current interpersonal definition. The paper draws on Safeguarding Adults Reviews (SARs) that refer to discriminatory abuse or safeguarding practice with adults who have care and support needs and protected characteristics.

A search of the national network repository of SARs identified 27 published reviews for inclusion. The contents were thematically analysed to understand how discrimination was experienced in these cases. Fricker’s “Epistemic Injustice” theory was adopted as a conceptual framework, informing the analysis of findings.

Evidence from SARs provides a challenge to the interpersonal emphasis on language and behaviour in national policy. Although the reviews acknowledge that interpersonal abuse occurs, a close reading spotlights practitioner and institutional bias, and inattention to social, structural and contextual factors. The silence on these matters in policy provides a narrow frame for interpreting such abuse. This suggests significant potential for epistemic injustice and signals a need to acknowledge these social, structural and contextual factors in safeguarding practice.

Discriminatory abuse is an under-researched and under-utilised category of abuse in safeguarding adults practice. The paper adopts Fricker’s theory of “Epistemic Injustice” to highlight the silencing potential of current policy approaches to discriminatory abuse to suggest a more inclusive and structural framing for safeguarding practice with those targeted due to their protected characteristics.

People with autism and their families struggle with travel because of its complexity. This study aims to promote travel participation by exploring the travel needs and patterns of people with autism and their families.

A total of 28 participants were interviewed. Data were analyzed via constructivist grounded theory.

People with autism and their families displayed five travel patterns: mutual support, relatives’ visitation, independent travel, expanded socialization and package tours. These patterns were adopted in a stepwise fashion as the autistic individuals’ abilities improved. The travel challenges and support needs of Chinese autistic people and their families were identified.

The findings can inform accessibility tourism, promote an understanding of autistic people’s tourism activities among the public and industry marketers and offer strategic guidance about family travel for this population.

This effort responds to a call to investigate disability-related issues. The study evaluated the travel behavior of people with autism and their families, from a developmental perspective, presenting a new angle in research on accessibility tourism.

Although increased social time is associated with healthier lifestyles, autistic people often present in therapy with social time difficulties. Given the growing interest in digital interventions and their applicability for autistic individuals, a social time app could be beneficial to support autistic people to manage social time, but there is limited research in this field, especially that which involves people with lived experience. The purpose of this study was to use co-production to conduct consultations with expert clinicians about the relationship between autism and social time, and the future development of a smartphone app to monitor and support social time in autistic people.

A qualitative methodology investigated clinicians’ views on the relationship between autism and social time and potential development of a social time app. Clinicians (N = 8) participated in semi-structured interviews facilitated by a researcher with lived experience of autism.

Participants were psychologists and psychotherapists from a specialist autism service. Thematic analysis identified factors associated with social time, such as differences with neurotypical populations, need for balance with non-social time and gender differences. According to participants, advantages of social time were connecting with people and forming relationships, whereas challenges were limited social skills, anxiety and anger and frustration. Suggested features of an app were a user-friendly design, psychoeducational components and prompts and reminders. Potential advantages of the app were support outside of therapy, support in therapy and monitoring emotional responses, whereas challenges were task completion and personalising content.

Findings reinforce the importance of a balance between social and non-social time for autistic people, which could be monitored and supported using a social time app. Clinicians could incorporate use of this app within psychological therapies to support emotional regulation and general functioning.

Twelve percent of families in the United States have a child with a disability, yet little is known about the long-term consequences of growing up with a disabled sibling. This study builds on previous research regarding disability effects on families and offers an additional view on the linked lives of families and, in particular, siblings. Using secondary data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 Children and Young Adults, this study examines the odds of college completion among young adults with a disabled sibling during childhood. Specifically, I examine the gender differences among those who had a sibling with a disability. Women are more than 35% less likely to complete college if they had a disabled sibling during childhood; there is no significant difference by sibling disability status for boys. To understand whether children in low-resourced families are particularly penalized by having a disabled sibling, I examine whether various family resources attenuate the low graduation odds among those who had a disabled sibling. I find that having stably married parents during childhood largely eliminates the college completion gap between those with and without a disabled sibling. However, increases in mothers' education or family income do not attenuate the college completion gap. By identifying this gender disadvantage in college completion, this study shows that disabilities have consequences not just for disabled individuals but for their siblings as well, shining a light on a hidden cost of disability on families.

The present paper answers two significant questions: (1) What are the relative consumer and firm-level effects of marketing through metaverse compared to conventional marketing endeavors? (2) What are the current trends in utilizing the metaverse as reported in the recent literature?

This study employs a systematic literature review methodology, utilizing a Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) flowchart to synthesize existing research. Thirty-five articles written in English were selected and analyzed from two databases, Web of Science and EBSCO Host.

The findings indicate that consumer-level effects of the metaverse include consumer loyalty and brand attachment. The firm-level benefits are decentralization and cost reductions. The paper proposes a framework indicating variables that could attenuate or enhance the association between immersive components of the metaverse and their resultant effects.

This study contributes to understanding the role of metaverse in marketing practices related to the marketing mix components. The study conceptualizes a novel framework for the metaverse and its resultant effects.

Recent evidence indicates an improving effect of the co-occurrence of autistic traits and psychotic symptoms on social cognition, but there is no agreement on the effect of the interaction between autistic traits and psychotic proneness on empathy. The aim of this study is to examine the effect of the interaction between autistic traits and positive psychotic experiences on cognitive and affective empathy.

The sample consisted of 420 adults aged between 18 and 60. Assessments were administered anonymously online. Empathic abilities were evaluated by the Interpersonal Reactivity Index (IRI). While Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ) was applied to measure autistic traits, The Community Assessment of Psychic Experience (CAPE) was used as a measurement of positive psychotic experiences.

A series of regression analyses showed that although AQ and CAPE scores were not correlated with cognitive-IRI, the interaction between these scores predicted cognitive-IRI scores. It was found that the personal distress subscale of IRI was significantly associated with AQ, but this relationship was moderated by CAPE scores.

These findings provide a different perspective on understanding social cognitive impairments in autism, which may have potential clinical implications. Findings also contribute to explaining the individual differences in empathic abilities.