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News & Events
World Autism Day: Championing inclusion through research, resources, and supportToday, on World Autism Day, we embrace the theme Celebrating Differences, recognising the unique strengths, perspectives, and contributions of autistic individuals.
News & Events
The Kids welcomes support for autistic studentsThe Kids Research Institute Australia has welcomed the recommendations to come out of the State Government’s inquiry into support for autistic children and young people in schools, released last week.
News & Events
Neuro-affirming waiting roomsIn this blog, Occupational Therapy Clinical Lead Marie Rodatz discusses the elements needed to create a neuro-affirming environment that supports neurodiverse individuals.
News & Events
Healthy and happy toiletingIn this blog, Occupational Therapist Ally Raphael offers tips for successful toilet training.
Research
A pilot randomised controlled trial of a telehealth-delivered brief ‘Sleeping Sound Autism’ intervention for autistic childrenAccess to behavioural sleep intervention is beneficial for autistic children, yet many families face barriers to access associated with location and time. Preliminary evidence supports telehealth-delivered sleep intervention. However, no studies have evaluated brief telehealth sleep intervention.
Research
Influences of bilingual input on English vocabulary size and academic outcomes: a large-scale longitudinal study following children in Australia from five to ten yearsResearch from large population-based studies investigating the language and academic outcomes for bilingual children is rare. The current study aimed to investigate the influence of dual language exposure on (i) English vocabulary outcomes at 5 years (126 bilinguals, 1675 monolinguals), and 10 years (vocabulary: 92 bilinguals, 1413 monolinguals:), and (ii) academic outcomes at 10 years (107 bilinguals, 1746 monolinguals).
Research
Which emerging autism features at 12 months of age are associated with later parent-child interaction?Parent-child interactions (PCI) in infants with an elevated likelihood (EL) of autism start to diverge from other infants toward the end of the first year. This divergence is often attributed to emerging features of autism impacting infant social interactions in ways that become increasingly amplified. The aim was to identify which, if any, 12-month autism features were associated with later PCI qualities.
Research
Interactions between the lipidome and genetic and environmental factors in autismAutism omics research has historically been reductionist and diagnosis centric, with little attention paid to common co-occurring conditions (for example, sleep and feeding disorders) and the complex interplay between molecular profiles and neurodevelopment, genetics, environmental factors and health. Here we explored the plasma lipidome in 765 children (485 diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD)) within the Australian Autism Biobank.
Research
The Utility of Natural Language Samples for Assessing Communication and Language in Infants Referred with Early Signs of AutismNatural Language Sampling (NLS) offers clear potential for communication and language assessment, where other data might be difficult to interpret. We leveraged existing primary data for 18-month-olds showing early signs of autism, to examine the reliability and concurrent construct validity of NLS-derived measures coded from video-of child language, parent linguistic input, and dyadic balance of communicative interaction-against standardised assessment scores. Using Systematic Analysis of Language Transcripts (SALT) software and coding conventions, masked coders achieved good-to-excellent inter-rater agreement across all measures.
Research
An Evaluation of the Overall Utility of Measures of Functioning Suitable for School-Aged Children on the Autism Spectrum: A Scoping ReviewA diagnosis of an autism spectrum condition (autism) provides limited information regarding an individual’s level of functioning, information key in determining support and funding needs.