Scholars

Associate Professor

Positions:

Associate Professor, Educational Psychology, School of Education and Human Development

overview

Dr. Laci Watkins's research and teaching are closely informed by her prior experience as a special educator in public schools and her continued work and collaborations in these settings. Dr. Watkins's research focuses on strategies to support the inclusion of autistic students in schools and communities, peer-mediated interventions and social interaction, examining the social validity of behavioral interventions, improving teacher implementation of evidence-based practices in authentic educational settings, and statistical analysis of single case experimental design research to better determine for whom and under what conditions certain practices are most effective. Dr. Watkins is also interested in multidisciplinary collaborations in autism research and training. She teaches courses on inclusive special education, behavioral interventions, and single case experimental design and provides training, supervision, and mentorship to graduate students. With her Autism & Inclusion lab group, Dr. Watkins and her team have been actively involved in community-based research partnerships seeking to improve outcomes for children with autism and developmental disabilities. Dr. Watkins has been awarded federal funding to support her work and received several recognitions for her high impact research.

selected publications

Academic Articles38

Fedewa, M. P., Watkins, L., Carden, K., & Grbac, G. (2024). Effects of a Teacher-Facilitated Peer-Mediated Intervention on Social Play of Preschoolers with Autism.. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders. 1-20.
McDaniel, S. C., Watkins, L., Chow, J. C., Fedewa, M., & Nemer, S. (2023). Systematic Literature Review and Meta-Analysis of Coping Power: Effects and Implications for Implementation. 39(4), 350-374.
Friedman, N. R., Watkins, L., Barnard-Brak, L., Barber, A., & White, S. W. (2023). De-implementation of Low-Value Practices for Autism Spectrum Disorder.. Clinical Child and Family Psychology Review. 26(3), 690-705.
Watkins, L., Fedewa, M., Hu, X., & Ledbetter-Cho, K. (2023). A Teacher-Facilitated Peer-Mediated Intervention to Support Interaction Between Students with and without Autism. 7(2), 252-267.
Tomeny, T. S., Hudac, C. M., Malaia, E. A., Morett, L. M., Tomeny, K. R., Watkins, L., & Kana, R. K. (2023). Serving Individuals With Autism Spectrum Disorder in the Age of COVID-19: Special Considerations for Rural Families.. 42(2), 105-118.

Chapters4

Watkins, L., Ledbetter-Cho, K., Gevarter, C., & Bloomfield, B. (2022). Academic Skills and ABA. Matson, J. L., & Sturmey, P. (Eds.), Handbook of Autism and Pervasive Developmental Disorder. 937-955. Springer Nature.
Braaten, E. B. (2018). The SAGE Encyclopedia of Intellectual and Developmental Disorders. The SAGE Encyclopedia of Intellectual and Developmental Disorders. 1437-1439. Sage Publications, Inc..
Watkins, L., Kuhn, M., OReilly, M. F., Lang, R., Sigafoos, J., & Lancioni, G. E. (2016). Social Skills. Singh, N. N. (Eds.), Handbook of Evidence-Based Practices in Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. 493-509. Springer Nature.
OReilly, M. F., Sammarco, N., Kuhn, M., Gevarter, C., Watkins, L., Gonzales, H. K., ... Lang, R. (2015). Chapter 8 Inborn and Acquired Brain and Physical Disabilities. Roane, H. S., Ringdahl, J. L., & Falcomata, T. S. (Eds.), Clinical and Organizational Applications of Applied Behavior Analysis. 179-193. Elsevier.