Appropriate adults: Their experiences and understanding of Autism Spectrum Disorder.
Appropriate adults spot autism glitches in police interviews—give them ASD-specific tactics today.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Richards et al. (2020) asked 55 trained appropriate adults what they know about autism.
These volunteers sit in police interviews to protect vulnerable suspects.
The team used a short survey to see if the adults noticed ASD traits and if those traits caused problems.
What they found
Most adults could name some ASD features like poor eye contact or literal speech.
Still, many said the interview broke down when autistic people showed these traits.
The authors say current training is too thin and want ASD-specific lessons added.
How this fits with other research
Turcotte et al. (2018) extends this story downward in age.
Their caregiver survey shows 1 in 13 autistic students already meet police at school.
When police contact starts young, the same kids may need an appropriate adult later.
Ghaderi et al. (2019) echo the knowledge-gap theme in white coats.
Ontario doctors also feel unsure how to help autistic patients even after basic training.
Both papers shout the same fix: give front-line staff deeper ASD tools.
Why it matters
If you write court reports or consult with police, share this finding.
Tell interview teams to front-load breaks, use plain words, and allow written answers.
Push training boards to add a short ASD module for appropriate adults.
A one-hour tweak can spare a suspect hours of confusion and keep statements clean.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
An appropriate adult (AA) is required by law, to support juveniles and vulnerable adults during custody procedures. This paper explored the opinions and knowledge of AAs and how the characteristics of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) could disadvantage an individual within a police interview. A questionnaire was administered to AAs who had received training to carry out their duties (N = 55). AAs were asked a number of questions concerning suspects with ASD. Overall, the questionnaire found that AAs had some awareness of the key features of ASD. However, AAs were less aware of the possible impact these characteristics could have upon the interview process. Nevertheless, when asked about actual practice, fifteen incidents were reported where it was deemed that the characteristics of ASD disrupted interview procedures. For example, it was reported that suspects with ASD displayed repetitive and rigid behaviour patterns that interfered with the flow of the interview. Encouragingly, the self-reported data suggested that AAs were able to respond effectively to these actual incidents. That withstanding it is suggested that AA training should include information about how those with ASD might be at a disadvantage within the forensic interview environment and outline strategies that AAs could use to help a person with ASD fully engage within the criminal justice process.
Research in developmental disabilities, 2020 · doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2020.103675