Parental Advocacy Research Study in Naperville

Volunteers needed for research testing a new program to improve parents’ ability to advocate for adult services on behalf of their child on the autism spectrum.

Transitioning from school-based to adult service systems is challenging for many families of youth on the autism spectrum.

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign researchers invite parents of youth with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to participate in a research study testing the ASSIST (Advocating for Supports to Improve Service Transition) program.

ASSIST aims to improve parents’ ability to advocate for adult services on behalf of their son or daughter with ASD.

Eligible participants are the parent of a son or daughter with ASD who is between 16 and 26 years old.

What participants will do:

• Psychological testing of youth
• Participate in a person-centered planning session
• Weekly group-based parent advocacy training sessions for 12 weeks
• Questionnaires and follow-up interviews for parents and youth may last up to 3.5 years

Families will receive up to $425 for completing all parts of the study.

The study will take place every Monday night from 6 to 8 p.m. in Naperville from Feb. 24 through May 18.

If you are interested in participating, contact Molly Buren at mburen2@illinois.edu or (773) 290-9956. Additional information is available on the research study flyer.