Autistic BIPOC Serve as Research Advisors in New Project from Emily Rothman and Colleagues
(1/18/22, HealthCity)
“Engaging communities as partners in research is essential for ensuring that the right questions are asked, appropriate methods are used, results are interpreted in context, and findings are effectively translated. Yet, the experiences and perspectives of many communities are often missing from research studies, especially those of Black, Indigenous, and other people of color (BIPOC) autistic adults.
In an effort to increase representation for this community of people, researchers Emily F. Rothman, ScD, professor and chair of the Department of Occupational Therapy, Megan Bair-Merritt, MD, MSCE, executive director of the Center for the Urban Child and Healthy Family at Boston Medical Center, and Sandy Magaña, PhD, MSW, professor in autism and neurodevelopmental disabilities at the University of Texas at Austin are spearheading a project to create an advisory board of 12 BIPOC autistic adults across the U.S. to serve as expert advisors to partner with autism researchers. Their aim is to improve community engagement with BIPOC autistic adults to find out what their needs are and to foster connections between them and autism researchers for more effective, inclusive studies.”