Autistic individuals experience marginalization and stigmatization, and are often not connected to mainstream services or organizations fostering peer relationships (Boundy, 2008; Jaarsma & Welin, 2012; Robertson, 2010). Therefore, the accomplishments of the online Autistic community in building a community for self-advocacy, peer-support, friendships, and identity development (Brownlow & O'Dell, 2006; Kidney, 2012) are important to recognize, empirically examine, and promote (Blume, 1997a; Davidson, 2008). Utilizing a community-based participatory research approach (CBPR; Israel, Schulz, Parker, & Becker, 1998) the Academic Autistic Spectrum Partnership in Research and Education (AASPIRE; www.aaspire.org) conducted the AASPIRE Internet Use, Community, and Well-Being Study, and collected data from 151 autistic adults and 173 non-autistic adults. The current study utilized data from the AASPIRE Internet Use, Community, and Well-Being Study on involvement in the online Autistic community, communication preferences, Autistic identity, and self-determination. The aims and rationale for the study were to contribute to the small body of quantitative literature on the online Autistic community, including expanding on findings that support positive outcomes of involvement in the online Autistic community (Kidney, 2012), and whether communication preference influences the relationships. The study also sought to examine the fit of an integrated model of associations among involvement in the online Autistic community, Autistic Identity, and self-determination in autistic adults who do and do not prefer online communication. Additionally, the study aimed to promote positive Autistic research and the voices of autistic participants and CBPR partners by challenging common misperceptions about autistic individuals and community/social interactions, understand the impact of communication preference, and inform policy and education designed for autistic individuals. The study used data to develop a multi-dimensional construct of involvement in the online community as well as explore the Autistic Identity Scale. The main findings included positive relationships between involvement in the online Autistic community and Autistic identity (r=.33, p<.01), as well as between involvement and self-determination (r=.38, p<.01) in autistic adults. Exploratory analyses yielded mixed results in the cross-sectional sample that was relatively limited in demographic diversity and small considering the number and type of analyses (n=324). Main findings include no moderating impact of preference to communicate online or population type (autistic or non-autistic) on the significant relationships between (1) involvement in the online community and self-determination or (2) involvement in the online community and Autistic identity. However, exploring the relationships among the variables with structural equation modeling, analyses indicated that no significant relationship exists between involvement in the online Autistic community and self-determination in autistic adults who do not prefer online communication. Findings indicate the need for further research on the complex impact of communication preference in larger samples of autistic adults. Despite sample limitations and mixed results from exploratory analyses, the findings mostly support the associations of involvement in the online Autistic community with Autistic identity and self-determination. The discussion addresses implications of the findings for theory, research, and action. For example, findings may influence how autistic individuals are provided education about and access to new media for fostering community, or lead to the development of online interventions or techniques for the promotion of positive outcomes in autistic individuals.

The values of the disability rights movement and community psychology promote research that focuses on improving the lives of individuals with disabilities (Dowrick & Keys, 2001). Using the Internet for social interactions has been shown to contribute to an individual's identity development, sense of community, and well-being (Obst, Zinkiewicz, & Smith, 2002a; Turkle, 1995). While challenges in typical social interactions have traditionally been considered a defining feature of autism spectrum disorder, autistic individuals have taken advantage of the Internet to develop social interactions (Blume, 1997a). The present study focused on the online Autistic community and how the importance and value of involvement in it is related to Autistic identity, sense of community, and psychological well-being. The Academic Autistic Spectrum Partnership in Research and Education (AASPIRE) partnered with the Gernsbacher Lab to form the Gateway Project. Using the Gateway Project, AASPIRE conducted the Internet Use, Community, and Well-Being Study and collected data from 72 autistic adults online. It was hypothesized that the importance and value of involvement in the online Autistic community would be positively related to Autistic identity and sense of community, Autistic identity and sense of community would be positively related, and Autistic identity and sense of community would be positively related to psychological well-being. It was also hypothesized that the positive relationship between the importance and value of involvement in the online Autistic community and psychological well-being would be mediated by Autistic identity and sense of community. Correlations were examined among the hypothesized relationships, and a mediated regression model (Baron & Kenny, 1986) was used to explore the relationship between the importance and value of involvement in the online Autistic community and psychological well-being with Autistic identity and sense of community as mediators. Significant relationships were found between the importance and value of involvement in the online Autistic community and Autistic identity, between the importance and value of involvement in the online Autistic community and sense of community, and between autistic identity and sense of community. As a first step to test the mediated regression models, psychological well-being was regressed on the importance and value of involvement in the online Autistic community. The regression was not significant; therefore the hypothesized model was not significant. Despite non-significant mediated regression model results, significant relationships among the importance and value of involvement in the online Autistic community and Autistic identity and sense of community offer important results. These finding illuminate the potential positive impact of the importance and value of involvement in the online Autistic community, including evidence counter to the myth that autistic individuals lack skills necessary for social relationships. These findings support the positive utility of involvement in the online Autistic community for autistic adults. Further research with a larger sample size is recommended, due to low power coefficients in the analyses. Additional research may also further illuminate the findings of the current study. Possible topics may include sense of community and Autistic identity in individuals that do not use the Internet, differences in the way the Internet is used in autistic individuals, and different measures of involvement in the online Autistic community and well-being.