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Research

Reduced eye contact early in life may play a role in the developmental pathways that culminate in a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder. However, there are contradictory theories regarding the neural mechanisms involved. According to the amygdala theory of autism, reduced eye contact results from a hypoactive amygdala that fails to flag eyes as salient. However, the eye avoidance hypothesis proposes the opposite-that amygdala hyperactivity causes eye avoidance. This review evaluated studies that measured the relationship between eye gaze and activity in the 'social brain' when viewing facial stimuli.

Research

Our previous cross-sectional investigation (Chetcuti et al., 2020) showed that infants with autism traits could be divided into distinct subgroups based on temperament. This longitudinal study builds on this existing work by exploring the continuity of temperament subgroup classifications and their associations with behavioral/clinical phenotypic features from infancy to toddlerhood.

Research

The broad autism phenotype commonly refers to sub-clinical levels of autistic-like behaviour and cognition presented in biological relatives of autistic people. In a recent study, we reported findings suggesting that the broad autism phenotype may also be expressed in facial morphology, specifically increased facial masculinity.

Research

With increasing demands for health, disability and education services, innovative approaches can help distribute limited resources according to need. Despite an increased focus on support needs within the clinical pathway and policy landscape, the body of research knowledge on this topic is at a relatively early stage. However, there appears to be a sense of unmet support needs and dissatisfaction with the provision of required support following an autism diagnosis amongst caregivers of young people on the spectrum.

Research

In this population-based cohort that included 2,084 children with autism aged ≤6 years, over one-third met the criteria for motor difficulties

News & Events

Chloe recently decided to bake cupcakes to sell to her school friends and teachers and it was all for a cause very close to her heart - autism research.

News & Events

Autism researcher Professor Andrew Whitehouse was on 720 ABC Perth yesterday taking questions on child health.

News & Events

Dr Andrew Whitehouse from Perth's Telethon Institute for Child Health Research shortlisted as a finalist for the prestigious 2012 Australian Museum Eureka Prize

The Sibling Project focuses on children, adolescents and emerging adults who have a sibling with a disability, investigating their mental health, relationships and quality of life.

National Siblings Day is a holiday dedicated to celebrating the bond between siblings. It is a time to recognize the importance of siblings, whether they are brothers, sisters, step-siblings, or even those who feel like family.