Sarah E. Frampton, PhD, BCBA-D, LBA(NE)
University of Nebraska
David Celiberti, PhD, BCBA-D
Association for Science in Autism Treatment
For restaurants, retail stores, and products, quality ratings are often an important consideration when making a purchase. Although research studies do not come with star ratings in a review section, they too can be evaluated for quality. This Science Corner series aims to illuminate the elements of research studies that make them stronger (i.e., more trustworthy), as well as those that serve as “red flags,” signaling that caution may be warranted when interpreting findings. Below, the articles from this series, along with others related to evaluating research, are organized for easy access.
Whether you are a consumer making important decisions about intervention or a faculty member tasked with helping students read published research with a more discerning eye, we are confident you will find these articles helpful.
Our Science Corner Articles Related to Internal Validity
Internal validity refers to the degree to which a study can confidently demonstrate a cause-and-effect relationship between variables. With respect to research on autism interventions, we are interested in whether we can determine if the intervention led to improvement. These articles explore what research components strengthen internal validity, common threats that can weaken it, and how researchers can design studies that produce trustworthy, interpretable findings. Our articles include:
- An overview of internal validity
- Maturation as a threat to internal validity
- History as a threat to internal validity
- Multiple treatment interference as a threat to internal validity
- Instrumentation as a threat to internal validity
- Infidelity as a threat to internal validity
- Threats to internal validity in group design studies
Our Science Corner Articles Related to External Validity
External validity concerns whether research findings can be applied beyond the specific conditions of a study. In this collection of articles, we examine who research represents, how participant and environmental factors influence generalization, and why promoting and ensuring real-world relevance is essential for meaningful scientific impact.
- An overview of external validity
- Who is missing from autism research and why it matters
- The importance of participant characteristics when determining the external validity of a research line
- Why ecological validity matters in the literature and in your living room
- Putting it altogether: Navigating gaps in research
Other ASAT Articles
In addition to our articles highlighted above on internal and external validity, these Science Corner pieces address broader issues essential to evaluating and applying research findings responsibly. From interpreting assessment data to understanding replication, retractions, and treatment integrity, these articles highlight key considerations that support ethical, evidence-based decision making in autism intervention and beyond.
- Interpreting standardized assessment scores
- Some cautions on the exclusive use of standardized assessments in recovery-oriented treatment
- Retraction of published research
- An unexpected journey into retraction
- The review process of peer-reviewed research articles
- Rejected, revised, resilient: The ultimate path of a peer-reviewed paper
- Role of replication in scientific validation
- Treatment integrity: Why it is important regardless of discipline
- Caveat lector: Let the reader beware
- The road less traveled: Charting a clearer course in autism treatment
- Conducting a comprehensive literature search
Reference for this article:
Frampton, S. E., & Celiberti, D. (2026). Science Corner: Can I trust these results? A deep dive into quality indicators of autism research, Science in Autism Treatment, 23(5).
#EarlyCareerAndStudents #Faculty #Researchers #SavvyConsumer #TrainingandSupervision
