We are currently recruiting families with children between 18 and 30 months of age to participate in a new research study! The goal of this study is to follow young children with autism over time to see how they learn to communicate and speak. We hope to learn more about the various developmental pathways to language and better understand why some children struggle to develop spoken language.
Initial Eligibility Visit:
The first step in your study participation will be an initial visit to confirm that your child meets our research study criteria. To participate, your child must be between 18 and 30 months old and have a confirmed diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). If your child has been referred for an evaluation due to suspected ASD, but has not yet been evaluated, your eligibility visit will be overseen by our clinical consultant, Dr. Brandi Smith, Psy. D.
Once we confirm your child’s eligibility, you will complete the following:
- Follow-up visits, every 3 months until your child turns 3 years old, to capture subtle changes in your child’s development (3+ visits; up to 2 hours each).
- A final visit when your child turns 5 years old (up to 2.5 hours).
- At each visit, your child will participate in play-based activities and standardized assessments of development and communication.
In order to participate, your child must:
- Be between 18 and 30 months old
- Have a concern for, or a confirmed diagnosis of, Autism Spectrum Disorder
- Normal or corrected-to-normal vision and hearing
- No major medical or genetic diagnoses
Compensation
Parents will receive $75 for the first visit, $75 for each follow up visit, and $100 for the final 5-year-old visit. Parking will be provided at each visit. Additional compensation is available for families living outside the metro Atlanta area.
After each visit, we will send you a letter with your child’s scores on the standardized assessments as well as a summary of your child’s strengths and any skills you may want to work on. This letter may be helpful to share with anyone working with your child.
