Past Polls

10/18/2011 – 12/1/2011

Was your child with ASD bullied in the past year?

15% -	Yes, daily
22% -	Yes, weekly
19% -	Yes, at least once a month
18% -	Yes, but rarely
22% -	No, never bullied

6/29/2011 – 8/30/2011

I would like IAN Community to feature more articles on:

Summary:

Of the 94 people who took the poll, the largest group (30%) selected couldn't decide, 17% were interested in adult and transition issues, and 15% were interested in treatments and therapies.

17% -	Adult and transition issues
11% -	School issues
15% -	Treatments and therapies
7% -	Research into causes
7% -	Family impact
9% -	Issues of daily living
30% -	Can't decide! All are important to me.

4/5/2011 – 6/1/2011
Why do you think children or adults with ASD elope or wander?
Summary: Of the 125 people who responded to this poll, 25% felt that children with ASD wandered for the joy of exploring and 24% felt that wandering was due to sensory overload.

Please visit our preliminary report on wandering and elopement for information on what people reported on our formal survey.

24% -	Sensory overload
10% -	Anxiety or fear
9% -	To escape demands
25% -	The joy of exploring
16% -	Seeking a special place or person
13% -	Don't know

1/31/2011 – 4/1/2011

Parents of children with ASD, does your child currently have:

Summary:

Of the 56 people who answered the poll, 21% reported using equine/horse-assisted therapy, 5% reported using dog-assisted therapy, 10%reported using animal visitation programs, and 62% felt that their child benefited from interaction with a family pet.

Learn more about animal therapies and find out what IAN Research parents have told us about their use of animal therapies.

21% -	Equine/horse-assisted therapy
0% -	Dog-assisted therapy
0% -	Animal-assisted therapy with an animal other than a dog or horse
5% -	A service dog
10% -	An animal visitation program at school or daycare
62% -	Other. My child seems to benefit from interaction with a family pet

11/29/2010 – 1/31/2011
Parents of a child (8-18) with ASD, please tell us about your child's friendships:
Summary: A total of 144 people responded to this poll. Of those, 43% reported that their children have one or more friends with whom they interact in prearranged situations and/or school. Another 43% reported that their children have no friends. Look for an upcoming article on IAN that explores friendships and autism.

43% -	My child has no friends
18% -	My child has one friend and they meet only in prearranged situations and/or school
1% -	My child has one friend and they meet in situations that they arrange
2% -	My child has friends only on the internet
25% -	My child has more than one friend and they meet only in prearranged situations and/or school
8% -	My child has more than one friend and they meet in situations that they arrange

9/3/2010 – 11/28/2010

Parents of a school-aged child with ASD: Within the past year, has your child been bullied?

Summary:

Of the 117 individuals who responded to the poll, 70% reported that their child with ASD had experienced some form of bullying, harassment or exclusion during the past year.

Please take a look at Bullying and ASD for a interesting discussion of the subject.

 

29% -	My child has not been bullied within the past year
41% -	My child was bullied or repeatedly harassed verbally
8% -	My child was bullied physically
21% -	My child was intentionally excluded from activities

8/10/2010 – 9/2/2010
What factor associated with pregnancy or birth might increase a child's risk of developing an autism spectrum disorder?
Summary:

Sixty-one people responded to our poll. Of those who responded, 72% felt that more than one factor might increase a child's risk. Thus far, research on a range of pregnancy and birth factors has not yielded a singled out one factor that seems to be associated with a large number of ASD cases. Rather, having a less than optimal pregnancy and/or birth in general has been linked with higher risk of ASD. Find out more in our article on pregnancy and birth factors.

3% -	Prematurity and low birth weight
4% -	Difficult birth
1% -	Maternal infections including including cytomegalovirus and herpes
6% -	Environmental toxins such as pesticides
6% -	Assisted reproductive technologies such as IVF
4% -	Advanced maternal or paternal age
72% -	Probably a few of these

6/23/2010 – 7/22/2010
Adults with ASD: Who have you told that you have an ASD?
Summary: Twenty-seven people responded to this poll. While the majority have told some or all of the important people in their lives about their ASD, twenty-nine percent haven't told anyone.

18% -	I've told some friends, but not my employer or school
7% -	I've told my employer or school, but not my friends
14% -	I've told my friends only
29% -	I don't tell anybody
11% -	People know even if I don't tell them
18% -	I've told everybody

4/1/2010 – 5/1/2010

Grandparents: Did you play a role in identifying that your grandchild had an autism spectrum disorder?

Summary:

We had 63 people respond to this poll. The majority of grandparents reported that they had raised concerns about their grandchild.

To find out what over 2,600 grandparents reported in our research study on grandparents, visit our Grandparents with ASD Research Report

49% -	Yes, completely. I independently raised concerns.
28% -	Yes, partly. I supported others who raised concerns.
15% -	No. Concerns were raised by others, but I did not believe anything was wrong at first.
6% -	No. I was not made aware of the concerns until the diagnosis had already been made.
0% -	My grandchild has not yet been evaluated or diagnosed.

1/4/2010 – 2/2/2010
Readers outside of the U.S.: would you participate in IAN Research if you were qualified?
Summary: IAN has been considering the feasibility of extending IAN Research to support families and autism researchers throughout the world. We recently held a workshop to discuss the needs of researchers and families in developed and developing nations.

84% -	Yes, absolutely!
5% -	No, I'm not interested
9% -	Not sure.