Community views on the assessment and diagnosis of autism: Principles to guide clinical practice

This study aimed to identify guiding principles to underpin assessment and diagnosis of autism to improve the quality, consistency and accuracy of services provided to individuals and their families. An online survey and focus groups were used to capture community perspectives of members of the Australian autistic and autism communities.

Citation:
Sulek R, Wicks R, Hinze E, Dargue N, Dempsey B, Goodall E, Groves L, Trembath D, Waddington H, Whitehouse AJO, Varcin KJ. Community views on the assessment and diagnosis of autism: Principles to guide clinical practice. Autism. 2026.

Keywords:
Assessment; autism; best practice; diagnosis; principles

Abstract:
This study aimed to identify guiding principles to underpin assessment and diagnosis of autism to improve the quality, consistency and accuracy of services provided to individuals and their families. An online survey and focus groups were used to capture community perspectives of members of the Australian autistic and autism communities.