Applying Metascientific Principles to Autism Research

This book presents several metascientific strategies and explains how they can be used to improve research about the autism spectrum. It begins with an introduction to the field of metascience and the benefits that it brings to academic disciplines and society. It then outlines recommendations that researchers can adopt so that they do not incorporate specious autism research from predatory publishers into their research activities. An introduction to reproducibility and strategies that can improve the reproducibility of autism research are then outlined. This is followed by chapters about improving the peer review process and reducing the prospect of questionable research practices from occurring. This book concludes with a chapter about strategies that researchers can use to improve the participation of autistics in research. Such knowledge will equip academics, regardless of their experience, with the skills and expertise they need to produce high-quality and inclusive research about the autism spectrum.

Dr Matthew Bennett is an independent researcher who has spent more than ten years researching the autism spectrum. He has published six books about the autism spectrum.