Autistic Adolescent Social Support and Quality of Life
Project Summary:
The goal of this project is to gain an understanding of how social relationships affect the quality of life for autistic adolescents ages 14-22. Data will be collected through asynchronous surveys and cognitive profiling batteries live on Zoom with a research assistant. Student research assistants will be asked to assist with data collection and subsequent entry into a REDCap database. This position will require 9 hours of work per week in the Fall and Spring semesters. Students are expected to be flexible with their weekly lab schedule to accommodate participant schedules. Thus, students should expect to commit up to two weekday evenings and one weekend day per week, with two hour blocks dedicated to each of these timeslots.
Questions for students to answer:
What are your career goals? How does this project prepare you for your career.
Explain one of your most important or formative employment experiences. What were the challenges of the job and how did you manage the challenges?
Please explain why you are interested in this RA position.
This lab position will be a unique opportunity to gain hands-on experience working with adolescent participants and their families. The student research assistants selected for this position will have significant training opportunities, including building proficiency with the REDCap data capture platform and receiving training on basic neuropsychological tasks, including the Wechsler Abbreviated Scales of Intelligence-II and the online administration of executive functioning tasks. These skills are highly valued amongst the employers of post-baccalaureate research assistants (for students interested in eventually applying to clinical psychology programs), as well as advisors in graduate programs more generally. Depending on the contributions of the student research assistants, there may be opportunities for authorship on conference presentations.