Exploring the role of technology in the lives of autistic youth

This study examines how autistic youth engage with technology in their everyday lives, with particular attention to its role in learning. Whereas autism research often frames technology as intervention or remediation (e.g., Wall et al., 2019; Hampshire & Allred, 2018; Vargo & Brown, 2020), this project centers youths' own meanings, practices, and creative uses. Drawing on semi-structured interviews with autistic youth, their parents, and youth-created artifacts, the findings highlight three themes. First, technology supports autonomy by helping youth regulate emotions, create predictability, and negotiate power dynamics. Second, it shapes learning as youth pursue self-directed curiosity and resist ableist narratives that position technology as "fixing" deficits. Third, it fosters belonging through creativity, identity work, and community. Overall, this study reframes technology in education as a relational, material, and creative force that enables young people to act, learn, and belong on their own terms.