TOPIC

Autism spectrum research

Everything we have read on autism spectrum. Each paper is summarised from the full article rather than its abstract, so the limitations are in there too, and the funding wherever the paper declares it.

2,764 PAPERS · PAGE 45 OF 56 · NEWEST FIRST

• SLPRCT2024Impact of chronic intranasal oxytocin administration on face expression processing in autistic children: a randomized controlled trial using fMRI.Molecular autismFour weeks of daily intranasal oxytocin did not significantly change face-processing brain activity in autistic children compared to placebo. The primary outcome was null. Only uncorrected, exploratory analyses showed reduced activity in some regions.
• SLPOther2024Stick with Static: Unexpected Detrimental Effects of Visual Movement in a Looking-While-Listening Task.Journal of autism and developmental disordersAdding movement to the correct image in a word recognition task did not improve accuracy in autistic children and slowed recognition compared to static images. Use static images for looking-while-listening tasks; movement is not a valid aid for this population.
• SLPOther2025Acoustic Exaggeration Enhances Speech Discrimination in Young Autistic Children.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism ResearchIn young autistic children with speech delay, brain responses to syllables were easier to distinguish when pitch range or consonant timing was exaggerated. This was a passive EEG finding, not proof that speaking this way improves speech or language.
• SLPOther2025Type, content, and triggers for self-injurious thoughts and behaviors in autistic youth and their disclosure to caregivers.Autism : the international journal of research and practiceIn autistic youth seeking therapy, half did not tell caregivers about suicidal thoughts. Common triggers were sadness and bullying for suicide risk, but anger was the top trigger for self-harm. Clinicians must screen directly, as many patients cannot identify what causes their distress.
• SLPCohort2025Preserved but Un-Sustained Responses to Bids for Dyadic Engagement in School-Age Children with Autism.Journal of autism and developmental disordersAutistic children looked at faces less than peers overall, but responded to direct bids for attention just as strongly. They did, however, drop attention faster when the bid ended and conversation resumed.
• SLPOther2025Atypical Regional Accent in Autistic Children: A Perception Study.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism ResearchAdults from Northern Italy heard autistic children's speech as coming from their own region, while Southern adults did not. Autistic children's speech lacked local dialect features, sounding more like standard media Italian. Adults judged these recordings as atypical, regardless of the listener's region.
• PTOTSLPCohort2025Atypical development of sequential manual motor planning and visuomotor integration in children with autism at early school-age: A longitudinal kinematic study.Autism : the international journal of research and practiceChildren with autism showed less benefit from seeing the goal in advance. Their motor planning relied more on feedback than prediction. This atypical visuomotor integration became more pronounced as they aged from 7 to 10 years.
• SLPCohort2025Reports of Echolalia and Related Behaviors in Autism From Parents, Teachers, and Clinicians: Evidence From the Simon Simplex Collection.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism ResearchParents reported echolalia in 96% of autistic youth, far higher than the 75% seen by teachers or 87% by clinicians. Repetitive speech is extremely common. It decreases with age and higher verbal ability but stays frequent in older children with limited speech.
• SLPCohort2025Demographic Correlates of Autism: How Do Associations Compare Between Diagnosis and a Quantitative Trait Measure?Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism ResearchBlack children had lower odds of receiving an autism diagnosis than White children, but their parent-reported autism traits were similar. Higher maternal education linked to lower trait scores. This suggests diagnostic disparities exist even when symptoms are present, so low diagnosis rates in marginalized groups may reflect access barriers rather than lower need.
• SLPCohort2025Longitudinal Symptom Burden and Pharmacologic Management of Catatonia in Autism With Intellectual Disability: An Observational Study.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism ResearchCatatonia symptoms improved on two rating scales but not the third. Most patients stayed on high-dose benzodiazepines because tapering caused symptoms to return. This describes real-world care, not proof that any single drug or therapy worked.
• SLPQualitative2025'It Feels Very Weird and Normal at the Same Time': Sibling Perceptions of Their Relationships With an Autistic Brother or Sister With Complex Care Needs.Journal of applied research in intellectual disabilities : JARIDSiblings of autistic children with complex needs described joy in shared play, even without reciprocal interaction. Conflict was rare among siblings of non-verbal children but higher when the autistic sibling had spoken language. Siblings kept friendships separate from home life.
• SLPSurvey2025How can we make therapy better for autistic adults? Autistic adults' ratings of helpfulness of adaptations to therapy.Autism : the international journal of research and practiceAutistic adults rated no therapy adaptation as helpful for everyone. The most valued changes were neurodiversity-affirming practices, clear information beforehand, and sensory adjustments. Shorter sessions, telephone therapy, and involving family were rated least helpful. Ask each client what they need.
• PTOTSLPCohort2025Gross Motor Development in Children With Autism: Longitudinal Trajectories From the Growing Up in New Zealand Study.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism ResearchGross motor delays emerged between 9 and 24 months in children with autism, persisting to 54 months. Children with parent-reported autism concerns had similar motor delays to those with formal diagnoses, suggesting motor issues are an early marker regardless of diagnosis status.
• PTOTSLPSurvey2025Autistic and transgender/gender diverse people's experiences of health and healthcare.Molecular autismAutistic adults, especially those who are transgender or gender diverse, report far worse healthcare experiences and much higher rates of physical and mental health conditions than non-autistic adults. They struggle with communication, sensory overload, and accessing care.
• OTSLPSurvey2024Services in Minoritized Autistic Adolescents and Adults Varying in Language Skills.Seminars in speech and languageMinoritized autistic teens and adults averaged 3.67 services, 3.32 unmet needs, and 5.52 barriers. More services were tied to language impairment and program enrollment; unmet needs rose with higher autism traits and lower community belonging.
• OTSLPCohort2025Psychosocial factors associated with the trajectories of interparental conflict for Australian fathers of autistic children: A longitudinal study across 10 years of child development.Autism : the international journal of research and practiceMost fathers of autistic children reported low conflict, but 18% had persistently elevated conflict over 10 years. This group had less co-parenting support and more distressed partners. Screening for these factors during diagnosis may help identify families needing support.
• SLPOther2025The Childhood Autism Rating Scale Second Edition (CARS2) and Its Applicability in an Iranian Sample.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism ResearchThe CARS2 accurately identified autism in Iranian children, but the standard cut-off score missed many cases. Lowering the threshold to 27 for the standard version and 22 for the high-functioning version caught more autistic individuals, though it also flagged some children with intellectual disabilities as having autism.
• SLPSurvey2025Understanding the Association Between Neighborhood Resources and Trauma-Informed Care Among Providers Who Serve Autistic Youth.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism ResearchProviders in poorer neighborhoods screened autistic youth for trauma more often than those in wealthier areas. This suggests affluent settings may underestimate trauma risk. Screen all patients regardless of neighborhood wealth to avoid missing maltreatment or household dysfunction in high-opportunity areas.
• SLPCohort2025Atypical early neural responses to native and non-native language in infants at high likelihood for developing autism.Molecular autismInfants with a family history of autism showed weaker left temporal brain responses to speech and did not separate English from Japanese, unlike typical-likelihood infants. This is a research finding, not a diagnostic test.
• SLPOther2025"What does 'often' even mean?" Revising and validating the Comprehensive Autistic Trait Inventory in partnership with autistic people.Molecular autismA revised autism trait questionnaire, co-designed by autistic people to remove stigmatising language and improve accessibility, showed strong reliability and validity in 1439 adults. It allows meaningful comparison of scores between male and female participants.
• SLPRCT2025Short report: Associations of family characteristics and clinicians' use of caregiver coaching in early intervention.Autism : the international journal of research and practiceClinicians' coaching fidelity varied with family income and language. Fidelity was lower for the poorest and wealthiest families compared to middle-income households. Unexpectedly, clinicians showed higher fidelity with English-only speaking families than those speaking other languages.
• SLPCase-Control2025Vocal and Facial Behavior During Affect Production in Autism Spectrum Disorder.Journal of speech, language, and hearing research : JSLHRChildren with autism showed reduced facial expressivity, particularly smaller eye opening and lip width during happy and afraid speech, compared to controls. Human raters were less accurate in identifying emotions from these children's faces, though vocal accuracy did not differ significantly overall.
• SLPOther2025Parent Outcomes Following Participation in Cognitive Behavior Therapy for Autistic Children in a Community Setting: Parent Mental Health, Mindful Parenting, and Parenting Practices.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism ResearchParents of autistic children showed no improvement in anxiety, depression or stress after their child's community CBT program, likely because most started in the normal range. They did become less reactive and more encouraging in their parenting, and these changes tracked with the children's improved emotion regulation.
• OTSLPCohort2025Understanding depression in autism: the role of subjective perception and anterior cingulate cortex volume.Molecular autismDepression in adults with autism was linked to how they perceived their own symptoms and social life, not to what clinicians observed. Larger anterior cingulate cortex volume associated with both self-reported depression and subjective social difficulties.
• PTOTSLPOther2025The Relationships, Employment, Autonomy, and Life Satisfaction (REALS) Measures for Autistic Adults and Adults With Other Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities: Psychometric Testing of the Self-Report and Proxy Versions.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism ResearchNew brief questionnaires let therapists measure autistic adults' actual life activities and support needs, not just skills. They separate how often a person does something from how much help they need. This gives a clearer picture of independence than standard adaptive behavior tests.
• SLPRCT2025Deciphering the genetic basis of developmental language disorder in children without intellectual disability, autism or apraxia of speech.Molecular autismGenetic testing found pathogenic copy number changes in two families and a pathogenic ZNF292 variant in one sporadic case among 27 children with severe developmental language disorder. Most familial cases were unresolved, so no single genetic cause applies to most families.
• PTOTSLPQualitative2025'Like it's making my heart run': A strengths-based understanding of the play of autistic children.Autism : the international journal of research and practiceAutistic children defined play by how it felt, not just what they did. They valued fun, social connection, and deep focus on interests. They also highlighted the need for autonomy, stating that play is only play if they can control what happens.
• SLPOther2025The Impact of Affective Theory of Mind on Autistic Individual's Perception of Remorse.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism ResearchAutistic traits were not linked to how well people rated remorse from static faces. Understanding others' minds did not explain remorse ratings. The study did not test real conversations or actual remorse expression.
• PTOTSLPCase Series2025Pathogenic variants in chromatin-related genes: Linking immune dysregulation to neuroregression and acute neuropsychiatric disorders.Developmental medicine and child neurologyEight children with rare chromatin gene variants experienced sudden loss of skills after infections. Clinicians noted that antibiotics and immune treatments helped some children recover previous abilities, though this is not proof that these treatments work for other patients.
• OTSLPCohort2025Fine Motor Ability and Executive Function in Autistic and Non-autistic Toddlers.Journal of autism and developmental disordersAutistic toddlers showed more difficulty with inhibition and shifting than non-autistic peers, but working memory was similar. Better fine motor skills predicted better shifting in all children, regardless of diagnosis. This suggests fine motor delays may limit the flexible exploration needed for shifting development.
• SLPCohort2025Bilingualism Effects in Metaphor and Simile Comprehension and Production in Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism ResearchBilingual autistic children produced more accurate metaphors than monolingual peers, linked to higher non-verbal intelligence. Monolingual children understood similes better, linked to working memory. Literal errors were common in both groups, suggesting bilingualism does not worsen figurative language processing.
• OTSLPOther2025Waiting Times and Influencing Factors in Children and Adults Undergoing Assessment for Autism, ADHD, and Other Neurodevelopmental Differences.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism ResearchChildren waited a median 525 days and adults 252 days for diagnosis. Complex histories lengthened children's waits but shortened adults' waits. Meeting quality standards was not clearly linked to longer waits.
• SLPCase-Control2025Altered interactive dynamics of gaze behavior during face-to-face interaction in autistic individuals: a dual eye-tracking study.Molecular autismAutistic adults initiated eye contact less often and broke it off more frequently than neurotypical adults, especially while listening. They also reported the interaction as more stressful and less enjoyable. This suggests reduced eye contact is driven by active avoidance rather than indifference.
• SLPOther2025Altered Patterns of Dynamic Functional Connectivity Underpin Reduced Expressions of Social-Emotional Reciprocity in Autistic Adults.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism ResearchAutistic male Responders showed lower reciprocity and less frequent brain network switching during repeated money-sharing than non-autistic Responders. This is a social reciprocity difference, not a treatment effect.
• OTSLPOther2025Rapport in same and mixed neurotype groups of autistic and non-autistic adults.Autism : the international journal of research and practiceAutistic adults reported higher rapport and enjoyment when grouped with other autistic adults. Non-autistic adults reported consistent rapport regardless of group composition. Autistic participants felt less rapport when they were the minority in mixed groups.
• SLPOther2025The Role of Parent Advocacy in Autistic Youths' Self-Determination.American journal on intellectual and developmental disabilitiesThere was no overall link between parent advocacy and autistic youths' parent-reported self-determination. Links appeared only in subgroups, including higher skills with better adaptive behavior, and more activities with poorer relationship linked to lower self-determination.
• SLPRCT2025Parent Outcomes from a Randomized Controlled Trial Investigating a Modular Behavioral Intervention for Young Autistic Children.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism ResearchMAYAC, a lower-dose intervention with structured parent training, did not reduce parental stress or increase competence more than traditional comprehensive behavioral intervention. Both approaches led to similar improvements in parent well-being over 48 weeks, despite MAYAC requiring significantly fewer intervention hours.
• SLPOther2025Autistic behavior is a common outcome of biallelic disruption of PDZD8 in humans and mice.Molecular autismAll six known people with two faulty copies of PDZD8 had autistic behavior. The two newly reported siblings had severe autism, severe intellectual disability, and no functional language. Mouse studies showed social recognition and odor discrimination problems. No therapy was tested.
• SLPCohort2025Satisfaction with friendship support protects autistic youth from the negative effects of peer victimization.Autism : the international journal of research and practiceFor autistic youth experiencing frequent peer victimization, being more satisfied with friendship support was associated with fewer depressive symptoms. Satisfaction with friendship support alone was not significantly associated with depressive symptoms. The study did not test interventions.
• PTOTSLPPilot2025Relationship between visuospatial working memory and fine and gross motor skills in children with developmental disabilities: a preliminary study.Journal of physical therapy scienceIn 30 children with autism, visuospatial working memory correlated with fine motor skills but not gross motor skills. The study was underpowered, so these links are preliminary and do not prove that memory training improves motor function.
• SLPCase-Control2025Exploring lie frequency and emotional experiences of deceptive decision-making in autistic adults.Autism : the international journal of research and practiceAutistic adults lie as often as non-autistic adults in general, but are less likely to lie to protect a group. They report finding lying more difficult, feeling more guilt, and being less confident they would be believed. This challenges the stereotype that autistic people cannot or do not lie.
• SLPCohort2025The robustness of speech-like vocalization in typically developing infants and infants with autism.Research in developmental disabilitiesInfants with autism or developmental disabilities produced speech-like sounds at the same high rates as typically developing infants during the first year. Volubility did not predict later language or cognitive outcomes, so low sound production is not a reliable early marker for these groups.
• SLPCohort2025Sex-Differential Trajectories of Domain-Specific Associations Between Autistic Traits and Co-Occurring Emotional-Behavioral Concerns in Autistic Children.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism ResearchAssociations between autistic traits and emotional-behavioral concerns shift with age and sex. Boys showed peak links between social difficulties and mental health concerns at ages 7-9. Girls showed stable or increasing links with anxiety at ages 10-12, suggesting different critical windows for support.
• OTSLPQualitative2025Gaming in the intervention and support process: A realist evaluation of a gaming-based programme.Autism : the international journal of research and practiceCaregivers and therapists described a Minecraft-based programme as working because it placed autistic youth in an "expert" role. Leveraging their gaming knowledge boosted confidence and motivation, allowing therapists to coach social skills implicitly rather than through direct instruction.
• SLPOther2025Paths to Common Ground in ASD.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism ResearchIn peer tangram play, children with ASD and controls all reached shared terms, but ASD dyads took longer, used more words, and reached agreement less often within the first turns.
• OTSLPSurvey2025'Mind the Gap'-A Survey on Care Gaps and Priorities for the Transition to Adult Healthcare According to Caregivers of Young People With Rare Conditions Associated With Intellectual Disability.Journal of intellectual disability research : JIDRCaregivers of young people with rare intellectual disabilities reported the biggest gaps in healthcare transition were preparation for adult services, planning for the future, and adjusting communication to cognitive needs. They rated being seen without parents as the least important aspect of care.
• OTSLPOther2025Autistic Traits and Emotion Dysregulation in 5-11-Year-Old Intellectually Able Children With Autism Spectrum Condition: Mediating Role of Emotion Regulation Strategies.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism ResearchChildren with autism who struggle socially or to switch attention rely less on parental help to manage emotions, which is linked to higher emotional dysregulation. Comorbid conditions, not age or sex, were also strongly tied to greater dysregulation.
• OTSLPCohort2025Correlates of self-reported life satisfaction among autistic youth with and without intellectual disability.Autism : the international journal of research and practiceAutistic youth with ID reported higher life satisfaction than those without ID, though not significantly. Support needs, parent stress, and social participation linked to satisfaction in youth with ID, while self-determination mattered more for youth without ID.
• OTSLPCohort2025Age-Related Trajectories of Autistic Traits in Children With Angelman Syndrome.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism ResearchAutistic traits and sensory issues in Angelman syndrome remain stable from childhood through adolescence, but do not necessarily indicate ASD. Deletion genotypes show more traits than other types. Clinicians should interpret ADOS scores cautiously, as severe intellectual disability often drives these behaviors.
• SLPCohort2025Household Income, Maternal Allostatic Load During Pregnancy, and Offspring With Autism Spectrum Disorders.Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism ResearchChildren of mothers with lower household income during pregnancy had higher odds of an ASD diagnosis by age 4. This association persisted even after accounting for maternal autistic traits. Maternal physiological stress markers did not explain the link.