To Share or Not To Share: Navigating Disclosure and Stigma Among Family Caregivers of Autistic Young Adults_Group Intervention

September 28, 2026 updated by: University of Wisconsin, Madison

This study is a caregiver support program for family caregivers of autistic young adults (ages 18 to 26) as their family members navigate young adulthood. The program includes six 60-minute virtual sessions focused on making sense of caregiving roles during young adulthood, reflecting on everyday family experiences, supporting decision-making within families, deciding when and how to share experiences with others, and thinking about the future.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

This program has three components:

  1. program participation, which includes six virtual sessions and one optional celebration session
  2. eight surveys, including one pre-program survey, one post-program survey, and six post-session surveys to collect participants feedback on each session; and
  3. one optional one-on-one interview.

For the six sessions, this program utilizes a peer-facilitated model, recognizing the unique expertise that comes from lived experience. Some aspects of navigating transition can only be fully understood and effectively communicated by fellow family caregivers, rather than by professionals.

Attendees are encouraged to bring their broader life experiences, including those unrelated to caregiving, when they see these experiences as central to who they are. The program welcomes participants as whole people, honoring both their caregiving role and the parts of their lives that extend beyond it.

Session content and topics are built from a series of interviews with family caregivers. The program not only covers what was openly discussed in those interviews but also explores what was less visible, what may have been unspoken, hidden, or missing from the conversations.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
50

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Wisconsin
      • Madison, Wisconsin, United States, 53705
        • Recruiting
        • University of Wisconsin

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Child
  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Has a family member aged 18-26 who has received an autism-related diagnosis from a healthcare professional
  • Must be a primary caregiver for this family member
  • Must be able to speak, understand, and read English well
  • Participants will be able to provide consent themselves.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Lack of proficiency in English
  • Not a primary caregiver for a family member with autism aged 18-26
  • Individuals requiring a guardian to provide consent will be excluded

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Supportive Care
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Single Group Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Experimental: Family Caregivers

Family Caregivers of Autistic Young Adults
Other: Group Intervention

Six 60-min virtual sessions Surveys before and after program intervention Optional post-intervention interview

Other Names:
  • Anchors and Sails

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Devaluation of Consumer Families (DCFS) Scale
Time Frame: baseline (pre-intervention) and 6 weeks (post-intervention)

9-items scored on a 4 point likert scale from 1 (strongly disagree) to 4 (strongly agree). Total range of scores is 9-36 with higher scores indicating higher devaluation of the family.
baseline (pre-intervention) and 6 weeks (post-intervention)
Self-Compassion Scale Score
Time Frame: baseline (pre-intervention) and 6 weeks (post-intervention)

Self-Compassion Scale (26-item), scored from 26 to 130, with higher scores indicating greater self-compassion.
baseline (pre-intervention) and 6 weeks (post-intervention)
Caregiving Appraisal Scale Score: Agreement
Time Frame: baseline (pre-intervention) and 6 weeks (post-intervention)

Caregiving Appraisal Scale (6-item) scored from 6-30 where higher scores indicate higher appraisal.
baseline (pre-intervention) and 6 weeks (post-intervention)
Caregiving Appraisal Scale Score: Frequency
Time Frame: baseline (pre-intervention) and 6 weeks (post-intervention)

Caregiving Appraisal Scale (23-item) scored from 23-115 where higher scores indicate more frequency of appraisal.
baseline (pre-intervention) and 6 weeks (post-intervention)

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Family Empowerment Scale Score
Time Frame: baseline (pre-intervention) and 6 weeks (post-intervention)

Family Empowerment Scale (12-item) scored from 12-60 with higher scores meaning more empowered.
baseline (pre-intervention) and 6 weeks (post-intervention)
State Hope Scale Score
Time Frame: baseline (pre-intervention) and 6 weeks (post-intervention)

State Hope Scale (6-item) scored from 6-48 where higher scores indicate more hope
baseline (pre-intervention) and 6 weeks (post-intervention)
Caregiving Confidence Scale (CSES-8) Score
Time Frame: baseline (pre-intervention) and 6 weeks (post-intervention)

CSES-8 scored from 1-10 with higher scores meaning more confidence
baseline (pre-intervention) and 6 weeks (post-intervention)
Affiliate Stigma Scale Score
Time Frame: baseline (pre-intervention) and 6 weeks (post-intervention)

Affiliate Stigma Scale (22-item) scored from 22-88 where higher scores indicate increased stigma
baseline (pre-intervention) and 6 weeks (post-intervention)
Caregiving Flexibility Score
Time Frame: baseline (pre-intervention) and 6 weeks (post-intervention)

Caregiving flexibility score (18-item) scored from 18-72 where higher scores indicate increased flexibility
baseline (pre-intervention) and 6 weeks (post-intervention)
Feeling of Loneliness Score
Time Frame: baseline (pre-intervention) and 6 weeks (post-intervention)

Feeling of Loneliness (3-item) scored from 3-9 where higher scores indicate increased loneliness
baseline (pre-intervention) and 6 weeks (post-intervention)
Autonomy Support Scale Score
Time Frame: baseline (pre-intervention) and 6 weeks (post-intervention)

Autonomy Support Scale (5-item) scored from 5-20 where higher scores indicate more autonomy
baseline (pre-intervention) and 6 weeks (post-intervention)
Emotional Support Scale Score
Time Frame: baseline (pre-intervention) and 6 weeks (post-intervention)

Emotional Support Scale (6-item) scored from 6-30 where higher scores indicate increased emotional support
baseline (pre-intervention) and 6 weeks (post-intervention)

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
University of Wisconsin, Madison

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Sang Qin, PhD, University of Wisconsin, Madison

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
September 17, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
June 1, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
June 1, 2027

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
September 28, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
September 28, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
October 5, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
October 5, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
September 28, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
September 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 2026-1026
  • Protocol Version CP002 (Other Identifier: UW Madison)
  • SOE | Rehab Psy & Sp Ed Ops (Other Identifier: UW Madison)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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