Screenshot of the title of the editorial, published in the journal Autism. The editorial title is: "Community involvement in PhD students’ autism research projects: Challenges and opportunities"
Paragraph setting out the main challenges relating to community involvement in PhD student projects, as follows: Community involvement is not without challenge and difficulties are commonly reported in recruiting representatives, building meaningful connections, maintaining engagement, funding community partners and implementing their recommendations. These challenges can be more pronounced in PhD student projects. The primary focus of a PhD is to independently complete a specific, often narrowly defined research project that contributes new knowledge to the field, within a specific timeframe and often with limited research funding. The independence requirement of PhD work may seem at odds with the requirements of active collaboration with community members, making it hard to strike a balance between leading the project and allowing collaborators to feel ownership of it. The limited timeline, of just three full-time years in some countries, can make it difficult for PhD students to ensure meaningful community engagement and to follow community advisors’ suggestions within the narrow scope and timeframe. Without funding, PhD students may also find it difficult to conduct community-engaged research that pays people appropriately for their contributions and time (Pickard et al., 2022). Finally, the early career stage of PhDs means that connections with community experts are often formed during, rather than prior to, the PhD, limiting the scope for early engagement.
🚨New publication alert:
In this editorial my PhD students and I reflect on our challenges and relative successes in incorporating community involvement in our autism research.
The editorial is openly available here: journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10....
