To unlock the mysteries of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), research across a wide variety of disciplines is essential. Scientists play a crucial role in this process, but they cannot provide answers on their own. Those with ASD and their families can play a vital part by participating in research studies and becoming informed consumers of research.

IAN Research is Now Closed

The Interactive Autism Network (IAN) research project is closed and is no longer accepting research participants. We encourage U.S. residents to join SPARK and others to join their local research registry. Learn more about these research opportunities. Thanks to all of the participants and researchers who did so much to advance autism knowledge.

What is IAN Research?

In What is IAN Research, we explain how individuals with ASD and their families can participate in a major autism research project via the Internet from the comfort of home. Browse through a wealth of data, including:

• IAN Research Publications, for research studies and presentations using IAN data.
• View charts and graphs of the results of our autism research surveys and learn what IAN Research participants have told us.
• IAN Stats, for IAN research data and questionnaires from 2006 through 2012.
• IAN Research Reports, for what we've learned so far from research participants.
• IAN Research Questions, for IAN questionnaires.

Understanding Research

In our Understanding Research section, we provide the tools you need to understand and use research to get the information you want about autism spectrum disorder, therapies and treatments.

Learn why research matters (and why it takes so long), how you can tell if a research study is well-designed, and how you can interpret studies about the effect of the environment on autism. Learn about theories and new findings in the field.