Swim Camp Study for Autistic Kids Finishes First Phase

By Drew Milne

The Sonoran Center’s postdoctoral scholar Austin Duncan, PhD, and his research team have recently completed the first phase of a pilot study on a swim camp for Autistic kids and teens ages 10 to 14. 

“Individuals with autism have much lower rates of physical health, probably related to lower rates of physical activities,” said Dr. Duncan. “Most physical activity habits are formed at a relatively young age. So we tried to figure out ‘What if there’s a way to give individuals with autism physical activity interventions that don’t tax their social/cognitive capacities. Because they’re of that age, there needs to be a social component, but it needs to be in a way that works for them.’”

The swim camp is designed to give the participants a sensory-sensitive environment for them to have fun, stay active, and socialize with other kids like them. The swim camp is indoors, and has low lighting and quiet space to help avoid the sensory overload that public swim areas can sometimes bring. 

The team settled on swimming as the activity of choice because, “The continual tactile stimulation [of the water] combined with the lower aural and visual stimulation is something that many people with autism say they prefer,” Dr. Duncan explained. 

The first phase, which recently concluded, was a small pilot study with three participants. However, the results were very promising in terms of both social and physical health. Duncan and his team hope to start another, larger phase of the project soon. 

“We consider the intervention a success. We’re doing a second round in April where we are able to gather more data to see if this really works. The response from participants was overwhelmingly positive. I can say that all three of the children did much better in both following directions (from the instructor) and interacting with each other as the month progressed,” he said. 

Keep an eye out for next month’s newsletter, which will feature a CACTI Blog in which Sylvia Badger shares her experience working on the swim camp project with Dr. Duncan!