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Research

Inner speech impairments in autism

Three experiments investigated the role of inner speech deficit in cognitive performances of children with autism.

News & Events

Study sheds new light on the ‘autism epidemic’ mystery

Researchers have shown that the so called 'autism epidemic' is due to an increase in the diagnosis of children with less severe behavioural symptoms.

Research

Sex-specific associations between umbilical cord blood testosterone levels and language delay in early childhood

Preliminary evidence suggests that prenatal testosterone exposure may be associated with language delay. However, no study has examined a large sample of...

Research

Late-talking and risk for behavioral and emotional problems during childhood and adolescence

Although many toddlers with expressive vocabulary delay ("late talkers") present with age-appropriate language skills by the time they are of school age,...

Research

Analysis of dyslexia candidate genes in the Raine cohort representing the general Australian population

We have conducted an association study in a novel sample derived from the Australian population to further investigate the role of dyslexia candidate genes.

Research

Evaluation of the Acceptability and Feasibility of the Social Attention and Communication Surveillance-Revised (SACS-R) Tool for Early Identification of Autism in Preterm Infants

Preterm birth is associated with a 3.3-fold increased likelihood of autism diagnosis, with lower gestational age conferring higher likelihood. In Australia, autism is typically diagnosed at around age four, potentially missing the optimal neuroplasticity window before age two. The Social Attention and Communication Surveillance-Revised (SACS-R) tool identifies early autism signs in children aged 11-30 months, enabling pre-emptive intervention.

Research

Accuracy of a 2-minute eye-tracking assessment to differentiate young children with and without autism

Eye-tracking could expedite autism identification/diagnosis through standardisation and objectivity. We tested whether Gazefinder autism assessment, with Classification Algorithm derived from gaze fixation durations, would have good accuracy (area under the curve [AUC] ≥ 0.80) to differentiate 2-4-year-old autistic from non-autistic children.

Research

Measuring cognitive and affective empathy across positive and negative emotions: psychometric properties and measurement invariance of the Perth Empathy Scale

Empathy, a complex and multidimensional construct essential for social functioning and mental health, has been extensively studied in both research and clinical settings. The Perth Empathy Scale (PES), a recently developed self-report measure, assesses cognitive and affective empathy across both positive and negative emotions and is based on the self-other model of empathy. This study aimed to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Persian version of the PES in large Iranian sample.

Research

Critical Appraisal of Systematic Reviews Assessing Gut Microbiota and Effect of Probiotic Supplementation in Children with ASD—An Umbrella Review

Given the significance of gut microbiota in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), we aimed to assess the quality of systematic reviews (SRs) of studies assessing gut microbiota and effects of probiotic supplementation in children with ASD. PubMed, EMBASE, PsycINFO, Medline, and Cochrane databases were searched from inception to November 2024. 

Research

Caregiver perspectives regarding the impact of feeding difficulties on mealtime participation for primary school-aged autistic children and their families

Although up to 89% of autistic children experience feeding difficulties, little is known about the impact of these difficulties on mealtime participation. The aim of this study was to explore the impact of feeding difficulties on the mealtime participation of autistic children and their families based on caregiver experiences.