The focus is on research and clinical advancements in understanding the diverse experiences of autistic* persons across the lifespan in all aspects of life, including communication and language learning and use, social interaction and relationships, and life skills. Emphasis will be on improving quality of life outcomes across all ages and all persons. Areas might include assessment and service provision, including acknowledging the importance of culturally responsive practices and neurodiversity. This topic includes interprofessional education, practice, and/or research. It also addresses the implementation of interprofessional competencies within curricular or practice models or the evaluation of collaborative care outcomes specific to autism. (*Note: Intentional use of identity-first language; see Gernsbacher, 2017 for full discussion.)
Proposals that have a primary focus on other areas but involve the autistic community should be submitted to the topic of primary focus.