Research Requests
AV regularly receives requests from researchers to advertise opportunities for our community to participate in their research projects.
Each of the research studies listed below are current academic studies researching various aspects of the lives and experiences of individuals within our community.
They include information about the goal of the study, the participant eligibility criteria, what participation involves, and any remuneration or compensation for your time and input.
If you meet the eligibility criteria for any of the below studies and would like to participate, please click the link provided for that study to find out more or to register.
If you would like to know more about any of the studies, please contact the nominated researcher for more information.
Information for researchers
If you are an academic researcher seeking participants for a current study relevant to our community and you would like to advertise your study on our website, we would be happy to assist you with this.
Please complete our research request form.
This form will ask you a series of questions about your study. Our admin team will use your responses to prepare a dot-point summary for upload to our website.
The form will also ask you to upload a PDF of your study's ethics approval. Please note that we cannot upload a study without an ethics approval.
When both of these steps have been completed, our research volunteer will be in contact with you to confirm that we have all of the required information and to advise you of the next steps.
Note: as of February 2023, our Research Support volunteer role is vacant.
All research requests are being processed by our Community Administration Manager, which means that it may take a little longer for your study to be uploaded or for you to receive a response.
If you or someone in your team may be interested in joining the AV team as our Research Support volunteer, we would love to hear from you! Please complete our online application form or contact our AV admin team for more information.
Studies currently seeking participants
Investigating neurocognitive profiles in parents of children with autism and anorexia.
Researchers at Deakin University are seeking participants for an online study investigating the relationship between autism spectrum disorder and anorexia nervosa. The purpose of this study is to understand how and why personality traits, characteristics, and behaviours associated with autism spectrum disorder (autism) and anorexia nervosa (anorexia) are related.
Specifically, we are interested in the presence of these traits and behaviours among parents of children who have been formally diagnosed with autism or anorexia, as well as parents whose children do not have either condition.
Who is conducting this research?University / Institution / Faculty conducting the study
Dr Melissa Kirkovski and Student Researcher Ms Rosemary Neville-Jones (Masters of Psychology, Clinical student),Deakin University.
Who is eligible to participate?
You can take part if you are a parent of a child aged 13 years or above AND your child fits one of the following criteria:
- Your child has been diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (including Aspergers) OR
- Your child has been diagnosed with anorexia nervosa OR
- Your child has not been diagnosed with either of these conditions, and does not have any other major medical, neurological, neurodevelopmental, psychological or psychiatric conditions.
What does participating involve?
Participants will be asked to complete an online survey and tasks including several questions about your demographics and behavioural traits and characteristics.The study is not expected to take more than an hour to complete.
Participants who complete this study will go into the draw to win one of 10 AUD$150 e-gift cards from ‘Prezzee’.
How will this research help people with Aspergers / autistic people?
This study will build our understanding and aims to contribute towards improving clinical practice in Autism Spectrum Disorder.How can I register to participate? Visit the study page on the Deakin University website.
Where can I find further information? Plain language statement of the study
Researcher contact details: Rosemary Neville-Jones and Dr Melissa Kirkovski
Closing date: 30 April 2023
Exploration of Differences in Autistic and Non-Autistic Women’s Pregnancy Experiences
Who is conducting this study?
Associate Professor Mark Stokes, Deakin University
Who is eligible to participate?
Women who are over 18, who are currently pregnant, or who have been pregnant in the past twelve months.
What does participating involve?
Participants are asked to take an online survey that will take approximately 30 minutes. The survey will ask participants about their pregnancy and following pregnancy experiences, and whether sensory sensitivities associated with autism made their experience more challenging at times.
How will this research help people with Aspergers / autistic people?
Our findings will identify aspects of pregnancy that autistic women find particularly challenging. We hope to help prenatal and postnatal services to become better informed, and more inclusive of autistic women in their care and their needs.
How can I register to participate? Register via the study page on Deakin University website
Where can I find further information? Via the study page on Deakin University website
Researcher contact details: Jessica Hooley (intern) - j.hooley@deakin.edu.au
Closing date: 31 December 2023
Autistic Experiences of Interpersonal Violence
This research project is autistic-led and has undergone the co-design process.
University / Institution / Faculty conducting the study
Kassandrah Cooke, PhD Candidate, The Healthy Autistic Life Lab (HALL) at Deakin University
Who is eligible to participate?
Autistic adults (18 years or older) with low support needs (i.e., without a co-occurring intellectual disability) and non-autistic adults (18 years or older) with a previous history of interpersonal violence.
What does participating involve?
Participants will be asked to engage in a recruitment briefing (phone call with the primary researcher). You will be able to ask questions about the research and to provide additional verbal consent. Participation will also involve completing an online survey that asks questions relating to demographics, mental health, social behaviour, and violence experiences. Interested participants may also engage in an interview to describe their violence experience(s).
How will this research help people with Aspergers / autistic people?
In addition to the aims stated in the above summary, it is also hoped that the findings from this research will assist in identifying key areas for future research, and inform the development and implementation of interventions, policies, or procedures aimed at identifying, preventing, and supporting autistic individuals affected by violence.
How can I register to participate? Participants can register their interest by contacting the student researcher, Kassandrah Cooke: cookek@deakin.edu.au
Where can I find further information? Email Kassandrah Cooke: cookek@deakin.edu.au. She can send you a plain language and consent form and arrange a recruitment briefing for interested participants.
Researcher contact details: Kassandrah Cooke, PhD Candidate at cookek@deakin.edu.au
Closing date: 31 December 2024
Telehealth Sleeping Sound Autism
Monash University researchers are recruiting Australian families with autistic children without intellectual disability, aged 5-12 years who have moderate-severe behavioural sleep problems. Their aim is to evaluate a brief behavioural sleep intervention called Sleeping Sound delivered via telehealth, to see whether it improves sleep, wellbeing and daily functioning.
Who is conducting this research?
Samantha Lewis, PhD Candidate: Monash University Faculty of Education, School of Educational Psychology and Counselling - Krongold Clinic
Who is eligible to participate?
Families with confirmed diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder without intellectual disability, aged 5-12 years, with parent report of moderate-severe behavioural sleep problems, and no medical conditions that impact sleep or intellectual functioning. Parents able to complete online surveys.
What does participating involve?
Families will be asked to complete screening by phone, confirmation of diagnosis and consent, and an online survey before participating.
Families will be randomly allocated to either the Sleeping Sound program or "treatment as usual" group.
Families in the Sleeping Sound program will receive two free telehealth sessions and a follow-up phone-call with a clinician.
All families will be asked to complete follow up surveys at 3 and 6 months.
How will this research help people with Aspergers / autistic people?
This project will enable a new and highly accessible pathway for autistic children and their parents to access a vital clinical intervention that has been shown to have broader developmental and mental health benefits for the child and their family.
How can I register to participate? Visit the study registration page
Where can I find further information? Visit the study registration page
Researcher contact details: Samantha Lewis on (03) 9905 3100 or via telehealth-sleeping-sound@monash.edu
Closing date: 30 April 2023
Maternal reported barriers and enablers associated with disclosing an autism spectrum disorder diagnosis to children.
We are exploring mothers’ experiences disclosing an autism diagnosis to their children, what supported the disclosure process and what made it difficult for both parents and their children. This can help us learn more about how best to support families during this important time where the child is learning about their ASD diagnosis for the first time.
Who is conducting this research?
Megan Clark (Master of Clinical Psychology Candidate), Swinburne University
Who is eligible to participate?
Mothers of children that have disclosed their child's autism diagnosis to them. Mothers can be of any age and disclosure can be recent or several years earlier.
What does participating involve?
An interview with a student researcher lasting approximately 40 minutes. Interviews can be in person at the Swinburne University Psychology Clinic or online.
How will this research help people with Aspergers / autistic people?
This work aims to understand the process of the disclosure from the mothers perspective while also considering how the child/adolescent responded to the disclosure. It is important that we support parents having this discussion and the autistic individuals themselves as they develop their sense of identity.
How can I register to participate? Contact student researcher Megan Clark: 6963366@student.swin.edu.au. Once parents express interest they will be sent an information and consent statement that explains the study in more detail.
Researcher contact details: Megan Clark - 6963366@student.swin.edu.au
Closing date: 1 May 2023
Neurodivergent adults' attitudes towards early supports
Participants will be asked about their lived experience of early supports/interventions, and to respond to vignettes where an early support/intervention has been recommended for a young person. There is also a questionnaire that asks about the participant's attitudes towards different intervention goals for neurodiverse young people
Who is conducting this research?
Dr Nerelie Freeman, Lecturer and educational/developmental psychologist, School of Educational Psychology & Counselling, Monash University
Who is eligible to participate?
Any adult who has been diagnosed or self-identified as neurodivergent
What does participating involve?
Completing a 30 minute online survey. Reflecting on your own experiences of early supports may be triggering, so be aware of your own needs before deciding whether to participate in this survey. Support services are provided on the explanatory statement and within the survey if participants get distressed and wish to seek support. Participants will be able to go into the draw to win a $25 Coles voucher. Identifying information is provided in a separate survey that is not linked to survey responses.
How will this research help people with Aspergers / autistic people?
We want to explore attitudes and lived experiences of neurodiverse adults to help inform supports for young people, and whether certain supports and goals are considered more acceptable than others.
How can I register to participate? Visit the study registration page.
Where can I find further information? The explanatory statement appears on a page prior to participants entering the survey. Interested participants can also email the student researchers directly.
Researcher contact details: Probationary psychologists Isabella Montesano - imon0007@student.monash.edu or Katherine Cail - kcai0004@student.monash.edu
Closing date: 30 June 2023
Autistic adolescents, examining what helps or hinders their successful experience of secondary school
Seeks the views of autistic secondary students, parents, educators, on what is working/not working for this group at school. Adolescence can be a tough time for autistic teens and they are more likely to have a negative experience of school. Also, very little research includes their perspective. One aim is to write a set of guidelines for schools so that they can better support these students.
Who is conducting this research?
Clare Kermond, PhD candidate, Latrobe University, Olga Tennison Autism Research Centre.
Who is eligible to participate?
Autistic teens in mainstream secondary schools, parents of autistic teens, educators.
What does participating involve?
One or two interviews of half an hour each, either in person or online, not connected with schools. Autistic interviewees will be given options of many accommodations including camera on or off (for online interviews), questions spoken, in writing or a sound recording, answers given verbally, in writing or drawn, some answers using emoticons, breaks as needed.
Participants will be recompensed at the rate of $30 per interview.
In person interviews will be at a location convenient to the participant but not at school, for example a park or library near school or at home.
How will this research help people with Aspergers / autistic people?
A key aim is the development of a set of guidelines for autism -informed schools to guide the whole school community to better support autistic students and their families/carers. The results will also be disseminated widely to raise awareness and understanding of the challenges of autistic secondary students and how to better support them.
How can I register to participate? Contacting the researcher, Clare Kermond. They will send interested participants an information statement and consent form.
Where can I find further information? Contact the researcher, Clare Kermond.
Researcher contact details: Clare Kermond - C.kermond@latrobe.edu.au
Closing date: 31 July 2023
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