Operational definitions have a significant history in applied behavior analysis. The practice's importance stems from the role operational definitions play in detecting an event, human thought, or action. While operationalizing target behaviors has enjoyed widespread practice, some concerns have recently arisen with translation validity and…

This study examined how autistic adults conceptualize health and whether their conceptualizations differed substantively from those of their emergency contacts (people who helped with health or healthcare management). We conducted semi-structured interviews with 10 dyads of autistic adults and emergency contacts. A thematic analysis with deductive…

Background: Literacy development in learners with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) differs from that of neurotypical peers. Many individuals with ASD, particularly those with complex communication needs, enter adulthood without literacy skills, which affects employment opportunities. Teachers' perceptions of their learners' literacy abilities…

Backgrounds and aims: Echolalia, the repetition of previous speech, is highly prevalent in Autism. Research into echolalia has historically assumed a clinical standpoint, with two opposing paradigms, behaviourism and developmentalism, offering differing support and intervention programs. These paradigms offer a multitude of clinical…

Introduction: Echolalia, the repetition of others' speech, is a common observation in autistic people. Research has established that echolalia is functional and meaningful for many; however, some clinicians and researchers continue to characterise it as pathological and in need of reduction. The aim of this systematic review was to understand the…

Leaf and colleagues (2016) provided a definition and description of progressive applied behavior analysis (ABA) in the context of autism treatment in which a behavior analyst takes a structured, yet flexible, approach to treatment that is responsive to the learner and includes on-going, in-the-moment analysis of teaching. Since Leaf and…

In recent years, the Autism and Developmental Disabilities Monitoring Network has observed a shift in racial disparities in autism. To delineate the historical shift of racial disproportionality in US autism prevalence, our literature review examines three key topics: publication trends concerning racial disproportionality in autism, discernible…

This article describes the historical evolution of U.S. federal education policy as it pertains to the constructs of disability and giftedness, which were originally treated as distinct domains. However, policy shifts and research initiatives revealed the intersection of the two domains, which led to recognition of twice-exceptional individuals as…

Background & aims: Echolalia, the repetition of one's or others' utterances, is a behavior present in typical development, autism spectrum disorder, aphasias, Tourette's, and other clinical groups. Despite the broad range of conditions in which echolalia can occur, it is considered primarily through a disorder-specific lens, which limits a…

Autistic burnout is an experience commonly described by autistic people (#AutBurnout and #AutisticBurnout on social media). Recently, two definitions of this syndrome have been published. Both describe debilitating exhaustion with onset related to various stressors including masking, though several differences exist, such as the characteristic of…

Genetic syndrome groups at high risk of autism comorbidity, like Down syndrome and fragile X syndrome, have been presented as useful models for understanding risk and protective factors involved in the emergence of autistic traits. Yet despite reaching clinical thresholds, these 'syndromic' forms of autism appear to differ in significant ways from…

Education is of relevance to everyone but it involves a specialized vocabulary and terminology which may be opaque or unfamiliar to those new to the field. This UK-focused Dictionary of Education provides clear and concise definitions for over 1,100 terms, from A* to zero tolerance, that anyone studying education or working in the field is likely…