A family portrait featuring four adults and a baby, smiling together in a warm and loving environment
Posted inAsk an Autism Researcher

Heritability of autism

The 'fever effect' refers to temporary behavioral changes observed in some Autistic children during a fever. This blog explores the latest findings on the fever effect and its potential links to immune system activity.
A young child smiles while writing in a notebook, showcasing joy and concentration in their creative activity
Posted inOTARC Seminar Series Supports and practices for daily living

Establishing an early transcription skills program for Autistic children – Start Write

Children with developmental disabilities may experience difficulties in the early stages of learning to write, with some failing to become fluent writers over the longer term. In this presentation, Dr Ben Bailey will discuss recent findings on evidence-based writing instruction for Autistic children focusing on early spelling, handwriting and typing skills (transcription). The presentation will also introduce a new research project which aims to develop an early transcription skills program specifically for Autistic children (Start Write) in collaboration with Dr Karen Ray and members of the Autistic community, including Autistic adolescents, parents of Autistic children, educators and allied health professionals.

Person using a laptop doing online checklist survey, filling out digital form checklist.
Posted inOTARC Seminar Series

Autism and self harm: Developing a better assessment tool

This talk contains content about self harm.

Victoria Newell will :

  • review the prevalence of suicidality in Autistic people and self-harm as a risk factor
  • review existing self-harm assessment tools in Autistic and general population adults
  • discuss preliminary findings to develop a self-harm assessment tool with and for Autistic adults using focus groups and cognitive interviews
  • discuss what’s next – exploring measurement properties using an online survey.