A tool to measure social strengths and challenges
Developing a Quantitative Assessment Tool for Characterizing Social Domains
This project is creating a clearer way to measure social thinking and behavior for children and adults with autism and other brain-related conditions.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Stanford University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Stanford, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11159619 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If you join, you'll help expand a new questionnaire that aims to capture different parts of social thinking and behavior in children and adults with autism and other conditions. The team is using the RDoC framework to break social functioning into measurable pieces and will refine the Stanford Social Dimensions Scale (SSDS). You may be asked to complete questionnaires and behavioral tests and possibly provide biological or observational data so researchers can link the new scale to real-world signs and biology.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates include children and adults with autism spectrum disorder, other neurodevelopmental or psychiatric conditions, people at risk for social difficulties, and healthy volunteers for comparison.
Not a fit: People without social concerns or those seeking immediate therapeutic treatment are unlikely to receive direct clinical benefit from this measurement development project.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could help clinicians tailor supports and treatments to a person's specific social strengths and challenges.
How similar studies have performed: This work builds on a recently developed Stanford scale and the NIMH RDoC framework, which are promising but still relatively new and not yet widely established in clinical care.
Where this research is happening
Stanford, United States
- Stanford University — Stanford, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Hardan, Antonio — Stanford University
- Study coordinator: Hardan, Antonio
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.