Can we translate research into trauma-informed, neurodiversity-affirming guidance for supporting autistic young people in UK schools?

Autistic people experience disproportionately high rates of trauma and adversity, yet post-traumatic stress has been largely overlooked in autism research and practice. In this talk I will present findings from my PhD, which used mixed methods across educational and healthcare settings to establish that autistic people experience PTSD symptoms, that autistic traits in childhood predict PTSD in adulthood, and that teachers and clinicians currently lack shared, actionable guidance for supporting trauma-exposed autistic young people. I will then discuss my current postdoctoral work in the Reimagine Lab, where we are using imagery interference approaches to understand and target anxiety-related “flash forward” imagery in autistic and neurodivergent young adults. Finally, I will outline my proposed ESRC fellowship work which will translate my PhD findings into a trauma informed, neurodiversity-affirming framework for UK schools, developed in collaboration with teachers, parents, and autistic young people themselves.

Alice Quinton is a ESRC Postdoctoral Fellow in the Reimagine Lab, at the Oxford Centre for Emerging Minds Research, Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford. She completed her MRC-funded PhD at King’s College London, examining trauma-related mental health in autistic and neurodivergent young people across clinical and educational settings. Her current work focuses on anxiety and trauma in neurodivergent young people, and engaging young people (and their support systems) in how to translate research into trauma-informed practice in schools. 

This seminar is hosted in-person and online. Please see the details to join online below: 

• https://zoom.us/j/98611180818?pwd=qKFgYGOss76befRbH4zy0aRgjqNyOU.1
• Meeting ID: 986 1118 0818
• Passcode: 765845