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Parents continue to support to autistic university students, and consequently, experience considerable stress. The aim was to explore the experiences of parents of specialist peer mentored university students and to examine these using the ICF as a theoretical framework.

We investigated whether a commonly used research assessment - the Autism Observation Scale for Infants (AOSI) - accurately measures autism behaviours among infants showing early signs of autism identified within the community. The AOSI is often included in studies tracking the development of infants at increased likelihood of autism, such as the infant siblings of diagnosed children. However, the suitability of this measure has not previously been tested with community-referred infants.

The study of temperament in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) has the potential to provide insight regarding variability in the onset, nature, and course of both core and co-morbid symptoms. The aim of this systematic review was to integrate existing findings concerning temperament in the context of ASD. Searches of Medline, PsychInfo and Scopus databases identified 64 relevant studies. As a group, children and adolescents with ASD appear to be temperamentally different from both typically developing and other clinical non-ASD groups, characterized by higher negative affectivity, lower surgency, and lower effortful control at a higher-order level.

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a group of neurodevelopmental disorders which are more common in males. The 'prenatal sex steroid' hypothesis links excessive sex-steroid exposure during foetal life with the behavioural differences observed in ASD. However, the reason why sex steroid exposure may be excessive remains unclear. Epidemiological studies have identified several environmental risk factors associated with ASD, including developmental vitamin D (DVD) deficiency.

Birth order effects have been linked to variability in intelligence, educational attainment and sexual orientation. First- and later-born children have been linked to an increased likelihood of an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) diagnosis, with a smaller body of evidence implicating decreases in cognitive functioning with increased birth order. The present study investigated the potential association between birth order and ASD diagnostic phenotypes in a large and representative population sample.

South Australian families with babies showing early social and communication differences will be among the first to benefit from a nation-leading early support program, as The Kids Research Institute Australia’s Inklings Program officially launches in South Australia.

A world-first program for babies with delays in their social and communication skills has been launched in Western Australia, thanks to support from the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA).

The Kids Research Institute Australia's Professor Andrew Whitehouse and Sarah Pillar share four things families can do to support their child while waiting to receive an ADHD or autism diagnostic assessment.

On International Day for People with Disability this Sunday, The Kids Research Institute Australia celebrates the children and families we work with in our research, as we strive for better outcomes for kids with disability.

Autism researcher Professor Andrew Whitehouse has been named this year’s Western Australian of the Year in the HBF Professions category.