News and Knowledge

Event Title: Sexuality on the Spectrum
Presenter: Peter Gerhardt, Ed.D. and Amy Gravino, M.A.
Date: Monday, October 15, 2018 at 2:00 PM ET
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OAR will be hosting a free webinar on the topic of sexuality, sexuality education, and relationships on October 15 at 2:00 PM ET featuring Peter Gerhardt, Ed.D., OAR Scientific Council chairman and executive director of the EPIC School (Paramus, N.J.), and Amy Gravino, M.A., president of A.S.C.O.T. consulting. Gerhardt and Gravino will provide an overview of the many challenges associated with sexuality and sexuality education in ASD and offer recommendations as to the role individuals with autism, their families, and the professionals who support them need to play in this complex and important area of adult life.

It goes without saying that individuals with ASD are sexual beings. Unfortunately, the biological, physiological and behavioral aspects of human sexuality in general remain significantly under-researched, so it is not surprising that there is even less research when it comes to sexuality and individuals on the autism spectrum.

This knowledge gap, when added to the social, cultural, religious and legal restrictions that often govern the display sexual behavior, results in an area of intervention about which we have limited evidence-based information as to

1) the content of instruction in sex education,

2) the process of instruction or intervention in sex education,

3) the timing of intervention in sex education or,

4) the development of effective interventions to prevent sexual abuse.

Individuals interested in this event are encourage to register for the live event and participate in the Q&A session.

Gerhardt serves on numerous professional advisory boards including the Cambridge Center for Behavioral Studies. Dr. Gerhardt has more than 35 years of experience using applied behavior analysis principles in support of adolescents and adults with autism spectrum disorders in educational, employment, residential, and community settings.

Gravino, M.A., is a Certified Autism Specialist and offers consulting, mentoring, and college coaching services for individuals on the autism spectrum and their families. Gravino is a professional international speaker and currently serves on the boards of Specialisterne USA, Yes She Can, Inc., and the Golden Door International Film Festival of Jersey City. Gravino is now authoring The Naughty Autie, a memoir of her experiences with dating, relationships, and sexuality from the firsthand perspective of a woman on the autism spectrum.

OAR’s archived webinars can be accessed here.

If you have any questions or comments about this event or if you would like to request specific webinar topics for the future, please contact us at programs@researchautism.org or call 703-243-9762.