Category: Research Outputs

Case studies of inclusive practice in neurodevelopmental research

Introducing neurodiversity terms and concepts for young readers

Autistic women’s/non-male’s experience of adult social care

Autistic women/non-males face disadvantages in social care, including underdiagnosis, misdiagnosis, and lack of support. This study explored their experiences through the lens of intersectionality. With input from a neurodivergent advisor, 19 participants were interviewed. Findings revealed barriers at every stage: male-biased views, lack of rights awareness, and neuronormative support. Many had to reach crisis for help. Masking was misunderstood, and support varied by location. Positive experiences emphasised flexibility, clear communication, and open-minded professionals. Participants recommended Autism-trained specialists, as social care teams often lack training despite a requirement under Autism Act 2009.

This is the PhD work of Jo Clough (School for Policy Studies)

Understanding Neurodiverse Social Play Between Autistic and Non-Autistic Children

Social play supports children to develop important life skills and foster friendships. However, autistic and non-autistic children often do not have equal opportunities to engage in social play.  To better understand the different experiences of children during social play, we conducted interviews with 6 professionals and undertook observation sessions of autistic and non-autistic children during unstructured social play. Our findings build upon the ‘double empathy problem’ to capture and consider the needs of all children in neurodiverse groups (groups of both neurotypical and neurodivergent children together). We believe these findings could be used to guide the design of future social play technologies.

The research team included Brooke Morris (School of Computer Sciences) and Alison Oldfield (School of Education)

To what extent is the contribution of language to learning via instructions modulated by the expression of autism traits?

When we learn new tasks, we often do this by hearing or reading a set of instructions that tell us what we need to do. Previous research has shown that our language skills help us to internalise these instructions, helping us to learn. Other work has indicated that autistic individuals may be less likely to use this form of internalised speech than neurotypical issues, raising the question of whether this would impact learning by instruction. However, in this research we found no evidence that degree of autistic traits within the general population related to the degree of learning by instruction.

The research team included Chris Jarrold (School of Psychological Science)

Post-diagnostic support for adults diagnosed with autism in adulthood in the UK: A systematic review with narrative synthesis

More adults than ever before are seeking an autism diagnosis in adulthood. While receiving a diagnosis may be beneficial, many autistic people struggle to navigate their new diagnosis, and require support. This study conducted a systematic review of previous research on the support available after diagnosis (post-diagnostic support) for autistic adults without intellectual disability who were diagnosed in adulthood in the UK. Although some form of post-diagnostic support is available across most areas in the UK, this mostly consists of providing information and ‘signposting’ the person to other services. These options may not meet the needs of autistic people, who want services such as psychoeducation (therapy whereby an individual receives education about their diagnosis to improve understanding and self-management), and peer support. Findings highlight the need for adequate support to alleviate the post-diagnostic challenges autistic adults face. Research shows that autistic adults would like low-level support services, psychoeducation, and peer support, and may also prefer autistic-led support. Further research is required to develop and evaluate post-diagnostic support programmes which include these elements.

The research team included Jade Norris (Bristol Medical School) and Laura Hull (Bristol Medical School)

No evidence for high inflexible precision of prediction errors in autism during lexical processing

Many autistic people experience difficulties with reading. This study examined whether this might be related to how autistic people process words. Specifically, this research examined whether autistic adults process how letters are positioned and the meaning of words differently to non-autistic people. No differences in word processing were found between autistic and non-autistic people. This suggests that if an autistic adult does experience reading difficulties, it is unlikely to be related to differences in word processing.

The research team included Philippa Howard (School of Education).

Masking by autistic children: In their own words and pictures

Masking (or camouflaging) of autism involves hiding aspects of autism in social situations. Most research into masking has focused on the experiences of autistic adults, and we still don’t know much about whether or how autistic children mask, or the impact it might have. This study used a photo-elicitation approach where autistic children were able to express their experiences of masking by taking photos and talking to interviewers about the photos. The children described a range of experiences of masking, including feeling different to other children, and as if there were multiple ‘versions’ of themselves.

The research team included Laura Hull (Bristol Medical School) and Felicity Sedgewick (School of Education).