About Us

The Canadian Autism Intervention Research Network -- CAIRN -- was started in 2001 by a group of researchers and clinicians who saw the need to involve parents, other professionals, and policy makers in the development of new ways of diagnosing and treating children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Many treatments used to this day have little scientific evidence that they work, although there are treatments available that are backed by sound research. CAIRN’s founding members designed the organization so that their research would take account of the opinions and experiences of all groups of people concerned about children affected by ASD. In particular, the input of family members was sought, because they are the ones who bring to our discussions the realities of their everyday life. Their insights help to focus research priorities, so that meaningful and useful outcomes for the children are used when testing treatments.

The CAIRN Web site
This Web site was created so that knowledge about what works and what doesn’t
could be communicated to as many people as possible. The CAIRN website continues to be a source of the latest and best evidence on autism for parents and others looking for quality information they can trust.

The CAIRN Review
Once a year, we publish this collection of short articles on topics of interest to the autism community. The CAIRN Review is available online or in hard-copy format and can be ordered singly or in quantity without charge. E-bulletins are used to advise subscribers of upcoming publication of a Review.

CAIRN Conferences
Another of CAIRN’s major initiatives was to bring scientists and practitioners from across disciplines, as well as parents, and policy makers to four national conferences. At the last conference held in 2004 - the 87 participants voted on research topics suggested by all of these groups. Their top 10 choices formed an Autism Research Agenda. While not all of the topics have resulted in research projects, the information gathered from the conferences helped to change awareness among researchers about the differences and similarities in opinions about what is essential to investigate. These ideas have been incorporated into other studies carried out by CAIRN members. CAIRN researchers are now conducting research on the first choice, the Pathways Project.

To find out more about current research studies recruiting new participants, go to Take part in studies.