Professionals play an important role in when and how families access autism services. Black families often experience disparate access to autism services compared to White families. Family Peer Advocates (FPAs) are professionals who have personal experience with the diagnostic process, school-based supports, and community-based services, and provide training and support to families. Understanding the experiences of FPAs may help researchers and practitioners better address the needs of Black autistic children and their families. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore FPAs’ experiences providing autism-related services and resources for Black families with autistic children. We conducted focus groups with 32 FPAs from two agencies in one southeastern state. Three themes emerged from our inductive data analysis regarding FPA experiences: (a) serving multiple roles; (b) working with “zero resources”; and (c) variations in racial responsivity. Given our findings, we call for FPAs to ensure they are considering and responding to the intersecting impact of race on families’ experiences with autism diagnosis and services.

中文翻译：

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家庭同伴倡导者支持黑人家庭抚养自闭症儿童的经验


专业人员在家庭何时以及如何获得自闭症服务方面发挥着重要作用。与白人家庭相比，黑人家庭获得自闭症服务的机会往往不同。家庭同伴倡导者 (FPA) 是在诊断过程、学校支持和社区服务方面拥有个人经验的专业人员，并向家庭提供培训和支持。了解 FPA 的经验可能有助于研究人员和从业者更好地满足黑人自闭症儿童及其家庭的需求。这项定性研究的目的是探讨 FPA 为有自闭症儿童的黑人家庭提供与自闭症相关的服务和资源的经验。我们与来自东南部一个州的两个机构的 32 个 FPA 进行了焦点小组讨论。我们对 FPA 经验的归纳数据分析得出了三个主题：(a) 担任多种角色； (b) 以“零资源”开展工作； (c) 种族反应的差异。鉴于我们的发现，我们呼吁 FPA 确保他们考虑并应对种族对家庭自闭症诊断和服务经历的交叉影响。