Samantha M. Ross

Project:

Autistic Stakeholder Perspectives and Construct Validation of Flourishing Measures; Informing Surveillance and Intervention

Institution: West Virginia University

Project Overview

Summary:
The research investigates the construct validity of flourishing as a measure of well-being in autistic youth, which was integrated into the National Survey of Children’s Health (NSCH) in 2018 but not validated for this population.

Methods:
The study included cognitive interviews with 12 autistic youth and 26 parents, followed by focus groups that discussed potential revisions to NSCH flourishing items and the creation of a 'conversation toolkit for flourishing.'

Results:
Preliminary analysis suggests that differences in flourishing between autistic and non-autistic youth may stem from the variability in how items are understood, rather than actual differences in well-being.

Conclusions:
Findings from autistic youth and parent perspectives will contribute to guidelines for using and interpreting flourishing measures and pave the way for larger studies on well-being and the development of universally designed assessment tools.

Project Mentors and Contributors

Kristy Anderson, Justin Haegele