Project Description:
Our autism research projects include the following:
Increased access to quality intervention services for children and families in underserved areas. Sally Rogers, PhD, Aubyn Stahmer, PhD, and colleagues have several projects that involve community-based participatory research methods aimed at improving the use of evidence-based practices in underserved / low resource areas. The majority of efficacious interventions for autism have been tested in white, middle class samples seen in clinic settings with communities of color rarely reflected as research participants and few tested in under-resourced communities. During the next five years this will be addressed in the context of three projects 1) Early Start Denver Model (ESDM) for use in in Part C settings that serve lower income, highly diverse families (Aubyn Stahmer and Sally Rogers), 2) Autism Intervention Research Network for Behavioral Health (AIR-B) funded project to develop and disseminate interventions to address autisms core symptoms in underserved children (Connie Kasari at UCLA; Aubyn Stahmer and Peter Mundy at UC Davis; Univ of PA; and Univ of Rochester), and 3) the TADPOLE project, which addresses the question, what is the effect of two core ingredients, dosage and style, on developmental progress of toddlers with ASD enrolled in a rigorous, intensive and empirically supported early intervention trial? (Sally Rogers)
Evidence-based practices in academic, social and adaptive functioning. Dr. Marjorie Solomon is the Director of the MIND social skills training group program, and the ultimate goal of her neuroscience research is to apply what she learns to the development of interventions. She is currently working on a clinic-based pilot test of a potentially scalable, culturally-competent intervention/services model for adults ages 18-38 with a diagnosis of ASD. The goal of the program is to promote social and vocational functioning, community engagement, and self-care (independent living, recreation, and mental and physical health).
Elementary and secondary education for students with autism spectrum disorder. CEDD faculty members Peter Mundy, PhD, and Emily Solari, PhD, are conducting research on educational best practices for elementary and secondary students with ASD. Dr. Mundy continues his work on the use of virtual reality technology (VR) for intervention and assessment of public speaking, social information processing and motivation in school aged students with higher functioning ASD, supporting VR as an intervention strategy in important functional areas that impact children and adults with ASD. Additionally, observations of major impairments in reading comprehension that appear to be chronic for higher functioning children with ASD has motivated new studies in: 1) the cognitive factors involved in reading comprehension learning disability (RCLD) in ASD, and 2) the development of methods for intervention for reading comprehension learning disability.
Childhood Autism Risks from Genetics and the Environment (CHARGE) Project. CHARGE, under the clinical leadership of Robin Hansen, MD as a co-Investigator, is a case-control study of approximately 2,000 children, looking at gene-environment interactions that increase the risk for autism and other DD, and targeting environmental exposures that can be modified so as to reduce risk or actually prevent the development of autism.
Target Audience:
Students/Trainees (long or intermediate trainees), Community Trainees / Short term trainees, Professionals and Para-Professionals, Family Members/Caregivers, Adults with Disabilities, Children/Adolescents with Disabilities/SHCN, Legislators/Policy Makers, General Public
Unserved or Under-served Populations:
Racial or Ethnic Minorities, Disadvantaged Circumstances, Limited English, Geographic Areas, Specific Groups
Primary Target Audience Geographic Descriptor:
Another State, Mulit-County, State, Regional, National, International
