Supporting Children with Autism and/or an Intellectual Disability who have Experienced Interpersonal Trauma: Finding Evidence to Guide Practice

The focus of this thesis was on children with autism and/or an intellectual disability who have encountered interpersonal trauma. While these children are at heightened risk of exposure to such trauma and experience poor outcomes as a result, we currently lack best practice guidelines. Therefore, using an evidence-informed practice framework, this body of work extracted evidence from the literature, clinicians and families to provide preliminary guidance on how to better support neurodivergent children affected by interpersonal trauma. Our results have important implications for clinical practice, service delivery and healthcare infrastructure, and make an important step toward supporting children in ways that are more responsive to their needs and circumstances.