Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by social, communicative, and behavioral impairments. Some individuals with ASD attempt to conceal their social impairments in a coping strategy known as camouflaging. Camouflaging includes (1) masking or suppressing instinctive autistic behaviors, and (2) compensating by memorizing and following social-communication norms. Even though camouflaging can help individuals with ASD secure jobs, avoid rejection, and form meaningful relationships, individuals with ASD qualitatively report that camouflaging is socially exhausting and can cause undue stress, anxiety, and feelings of inauthenticity. Given the qualitative reports of anxiety related to camouflaging, this study includes a quantitative investigation of the correlations between social camouflaging, mental health, and autistic traits across ASD and typically developing (TD) youth and young adults. Twenty ASD participants (Male=11) and 30 TD participants (Male=12) from the ACE GENDAAR network, a five site NIH funded project investigating gender differences in individuals with autism are included in the study. ASD diagnosis was confirmed via gold-standard diagnostic measures. Camouflaging was assessed using the Camouflaging Autistic Traits Questionnaire, a self-report measure of camouflaging behaviors. Mental health was assessed via the Adult Self Report or Youth Self Report, self-report behavioral checklists of co-morbid mental health symptoms. Social impairments associated with ASD were measured using the Social Responsiveness Scale, a parent-report questionnaire on their child's autistic traits. We hypothesize a positive correlation between the degree of camouflaging and the severity of depression/anxiety for both ASD and TD participants. We also predict camouflaging to be a better predictor of depression/anxiety severity than autistic traits. Data from this study can provide a better understanding of the prevalence of camouflaging in ASD and TD participants. It can also help create earlier mental health interventions for participants who camouflage their autistic traits.

Autism Spectrum Disorder is a neurodevelopmental disorder that is characterized by deficits in communication and social skills, and increased repetitive behaviors. These deficits also have the potential to impact executive functioning (EF). EF refers to the important mental processes of working memory, flexible thinking, and inhibitory control in order to reach a goal or complete a task. Language development centers around the ability to communicate, understand, and problem solve through verbal communication. Previous studies in typically developing (TD) children have found a moderately strong relationship between language ability and EF in children, as language allows for individuals to communicate more effectively, leading to higher EF ability when it comes to completing a task. The aim of this study is to analyze the correlation between language development and EF in individuals with and without ASD. As language and verbal communication requires recall and focus, it is likely that the two areas of EF most impacted by language development will be working memory and the ability to shift between tasks. Participants (ASD= 60, TD = 60) ages 8-17 years participated in a four-site study looking at sex differences in autism and completed the CELF-4, a clinician administered language measure. Parents of children completed the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Functioning Questionnaire (BRIEF), an 86 item EF questionnaire that results in a global executive composite score. We expect (1) that ASD youth will have greater impairments in language and EF compared to TD youth, (2) to see correlations between EF and language across both groups. Additionally, we predict higher EF and language scores for females than males. This study will provide a better understanding of language and EF that may be used to guide treatments, such as speech therapy for EF improvement.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurological disorder that causes developmental delays and difficulty in communication. Previous research shows children's communication skills may vary with parents' level of education. Children with parents who completed college are more verbal and show stronger communication skills in comparison to children with parents who have not completed college. This could potentially be due to an increased awareness of the importance of communicative skills among parents who have a higher education. Our goal is to explore this relationship in the GENDAAR sample, a four-site NIH funded study looking at sex and gender differences in autism. In addition to parental education, other socioeconomic factors (SES) such as household income and household structure and their relation to language skills will be explored in order to investigate the impact of SES on language development. Participants included 125 youth, ages 8-17 years with and without ASD. ASD diagnosis was confirmed via standardized assesments such as ADOS-2 and ADI-R and all participants included had a verbal IQ>70. Participants completed the Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals (CELF-4) measure that focused on language skills in areas including word structure and recalling sentences. Parents completed the ACE Demographic questionnaire containing questions about SES. Based on previous data, we hyothesize that children with parents of higher education will have stronger language skills that children with parents of lower education levels. We also expect to see children in multimember households and children with higher family income to have better language outcomes. Knowledge of this information could lead to a deeper understanding of language skills in children, which would allow care to be directed towards individuals who are not recieving access to resources necessary to imporove language skills. 

Attitudes toward and strategies to address crime reduction differ between the Democrat and Republican parties. While much research has been conducted on the effects of specific policies or strategies on crime rates, few studies have evaluated the connection between partisanship and rates of various crimes. Additionally, because of the various ways in which certain crime-reduction strategies are implemented, it can be difficult to draw conclusions about such strategies and different theoretical explanations of crime-reduction. The current study attempts to investigate whether or not partisanship is associated with changes in certain crime rates. Because prior research has established an effect of policies tied to liberal ideology on lower violent crime rates, and policies tied to conservative ideology on lower property crime rates, the current study is expected to see similar effects when looking at partisanship. Using state-level measures of partisanship and crime rates between 2005 and 2014 I use a mixed effects regression model to compare governor affiliation, legislature control, and trifecta control to changes in violent and property crime rates by the FBI'S Uniform Crime Report (UCR). Preliminary results show mixed support for the hypotheses of Democrat control on decreases of violent crime and Republican control on decreases in property crime. Understanding the effect of partisanship on crime change may help researchers and policy makers understand the context under which crime-reduction strategies can best be utilized and whether or not compromise between parties is needed for fighting crime.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by deficits in communication, cognitive, and social impairments (Morgan et al., 2019). Earlier diagnosis has been shown to have a positive language trajectory for children with ASD. Delays in language development is one of the earliest signs of autism, and the more severe the child's early language delays are, the more likely they will have impaired language functioning (Mody & Belliveau, 2013). This project aims to evaluate if early language behavioral concerns raised by parents (age at first concerns of language) predict later language ability in youth with and without ASD. Participants included 68 children with ASD (males=34) between the ages of 8 and 17 years from the four site NIH funded study looking at sex differences in autism. All participants included met ASD criteria via standardized measures and had a verbal IQ >70. Parents of participants completed the Autism Diagnostic Interview (ADI-R), including questions related to when they observed the first signs of language and behavioral concerns and if concerns started at certain milestone ages (before 12 months, 18 months). Child participants completed a clinician-administered language task (CELF-IV), including answering questions related to recalling and formulating sentences. We predict that ASD children, whose parents identified concerns at an earlier age, have better language skills later in childhood. Previous research has indicated that females with ASD have a better language trajectory and have more vital verbal skills (Banks, 2020). Considering this research, we will explore sex differences, age of concerns, and later language development. This research can shed light on the importance of providing training to parents to recognize language delays early in children.

In the past decade, there has been an increasing focus on the sexual lives of college students. Through this focus, both academic literature and popular culture perpetuate a narrative of “hookup culture” (i.e. environments that accept and facilitate casual sex encounters without romantic or emotional intentions) within this demographic. Though many theories support the importance of studying the sexual lives of college students, this narrative neglects the emotional aspects of intimate relationships, limiting the field’s understanding of intimacy in college. By conducting a thematic analysis of anonymous, written responses from college students (n = 59), this project studied how college students’ perceptions of intimacy differ from the popular narrative of hookup culture and casual sex. Using Erik Erikson’s stages of developmental theory and previous sociological research, I hypothesized that college students will emphasize the emotional components more than the sexual components of their intimate relationships and perceptions. The results of this study expand our understanding of intimate relationships among college students and challenge the limiting narrative of hookup culture and casual sex as ways to study and understand this demographic’s intimate relationships.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a complex developmental disorder that is characterized by persistent challenges in social, behavioral, and communication functioning. The various challenges posed by ASD-related symptoms may result in lower quality of life (QoL) (Burgess & Gutstein, 2007). Previous research has focused on the relationship between others’ reports of autism traits (parent or clinician) and self- report of QoL for individuals with ASD (Mason et al., 2018), and only few reports have used self-report of autism traits and self-report of QoL. Self-report measures provide direct self-assessment rather than other’s interpreting a behavior from observation. The use of self-report provides a better understanding of how individuals with ASD evaluate autism traits and QoL without others’ bias. The present study aims to evaluate the relationship between self-reported autism traits and self-reported QoL in youth with and without ASD. Participants (ASD = 35, TD= 56) ages 16-34 year from a four-site NIH funded study on gender differences in autism were included. All participants met inclusionary criteria on standardized measures and had an IQ>70. Participants completed self-report assessment of autism traits (SAAT), a 58 item questionnaire on autism traits, and quality of life (Peds-QL) questionnaire, where questions about physical health, functioning, and emotional health were answered. We expect individuals with autism to report a lower QoL than TD peers replicating previous findings, and self-report of autism severity to be a predictor of QoL. We will additionally explore gender differences across these relationships to evaluate if females report lower autism traits considering more males are clinically diagnosed with ASD than females. These results will provide insight into the importance of timely recognition of QoL challenges in individuals with autism so supports can be developed and provided to young adults with autism.