Alexandra Kalinyak

Alexandra Kalinyak

@kalinyak.bsky.social

✨Clinical Psychology PhD student✨| Autism researcher | Loves her dog and giving positive feedback I don't represent anyone but myself. (she/her)

133 Followers 542 Following 17 Posts Joined Nov 2024
3 months ago
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The CDC website was quietly edited last night to claim there’s “no evidence” that vaccines don’t cause autism.

This is false.

But this is damaging, even beyond people’s confidence in vaccines.

For the first time in my career, I cannot tell people to trust what the CDC website without hesitation.

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6 months ago

One of the best things I did my first year was find a non-school-related hobby/interest that gave me joy.

It doesn’t have to feel productive and you don’t have to be good at it either. Just something that you do for you!

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7 months ago
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The Most Valuable Menopause Fitness Hack Middle-aged women aiming to build muscle should be skeptical of "fitfluencers," many of whom promote junk science and grifts.

Wrote about becoming one of the many ladies my age who lifts--and the raft of junk science and grifts out there for perimenopausal women who are trying to stave off muscle and bone loss as we age (gift link):

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7 months ago
YouTube
Breaking the Age Code with Dr. Becca Levy YouTube video by CWI

www.youtube.com/watch?v=yCl1...

My first look into Dr. Levy's work thanks to a friend - fascinating stuff!

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8 months ago
Bar chart showing what Americans do when they encounter paywalled news articles online. Among those who encounter such articles, 53% say they try to find the information somewhere else; 32% give up on accessing the information; 11% try to access the article without paying; and only 1% pay for access. The chart is based on a Pew Research Center survey of U.S. adults, conducted in March 2025.

NEW from @pewresearch.org: What Americans do when they encounter paywalls

Only 1% say they pay for access.

www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/...

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10 months ago

It is only 4pm but when in Maryland, you have to eat a crab cake, right?

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10 months ago
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Leading Autism Organizations Release Joint Statement on Upholding Scientific Integrity and Supporting the Autism Community - Autistic Self Advocacy Network April 17, 2025, Washington, D.C. – As national organizations dedicated to advancing the well-being of Autistic individuals, the Autistic Self Advocacy Network, Autism Society of America, Autism Speaks...

autisticadvocacy.org/2025/04/lead...

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10 months ago

To be clear, autistic people who are not employed and who have high support needs— whether it be with toileting at anything else— aren’t tragedies either.

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10 months ago

Substantively, this is my favorite.

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11 months ago

Imagine being 12 years old — a science-loving, neurodivergent American kid — and reading headlines from the U.S. presidential declaring plans to investigate the “causes of the #autism #epidemic.” Vaccines. Parenting styles. Air. Water. Food. Everything “on the table.”

You scroll and blink.

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11 months ago
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Kennedy Guts Teams That Share Health Information With the Public (Gift Article) The health secretary had promised “radical transparency,” but fired communications teams in the Health and Human Services Department.

It's 100% understandable and reasonable that the layoffs of scientists/researchers and the gutting of programs that directly helped prevent/treat diseases have gotten the most attention. Those cuts are going to have *enormous* impact. But I want to explain why the comms cuts are also important. 2/x

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11 months ago

I need people to be aware of and accept autism acceptance. The new campaign is Autism Acceptance Awareness Acceptance Awareness.

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11 months ago

I am so proud of you! Congratulations!!!!

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1 year ago
Screenshot with excerpt of a handout by:

University of Washington Autism Center

In our experience at the University of Washington Autism Center, many professionals are not informed about the variety of ways that autism can appear, and often doubt an autistic person’s accurate self-diagnosis. In contrast, inaccurate self-diagnosis of autism appears to be uncommon. We believe that if you have carefully researched the topic and strongly resonate with the experience of the autistic community, you are probably autistic.
https://depts.washington.edu/uwautism/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/Self-Diagnosed-Adult-Autism-Resources-handout-9-22-22.pdf

For anyone out there who has self-assessed as #autistic, and can't access a formal assessment/diagnosis (or don't want to for your own reasons), this is for you:
🥰🫂🩷🙏

This is an excerpt. Please read the entire handout at this link:
t.co/Y0sAYrr522

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11 months ago

This is catastrophic for pancreatic cancer patients

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11 months ago
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The importance of stupidity in scientific research—an inspiring read for me as a second-year PhD student!

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1 year ago
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Might save a life.

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1 year ago

Such important work - congratulations Andreea!

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1 year ago

Being an academic means not realizing your desk is a total mess, your slides were out of order, or leaving your conference travel booking to the last secon, but also catching every time someone uses a different term for the same construct in a paper.

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1 year ago

Writing up some findings/analyses on a whiteboard makes me feel so scientific.

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1 year ago
Flyer titled "Recruitment call: Supporting autistic students at university". The University of Portsmouth logo is in the top-left corner and the University of Nottingham logo is in the top-right corner. 

It says "Are you an autistic university student in the UK?
We are inviting you to take part in our study on support experiences and needs", followed by 
"You can take part if:
 •	You are a university student in the UK (18 and above)
•	You have a formal autism diagnosis or you self-identify as autistic"
"To complete the questionnaire, scan the QR code, which will take you to a draft email to the researcher. Please send this email to get your unique ID to complete the questionnaire." The QR code is presented to the right.
The flyer ends with "For questions, please email emine.gurbuz@port.ac.uk".

Calling autistic uni students in UK (UG, masters): our survey on your support experiences & needs, developed from community-based participatory research w/ autistic & non-autistic students & disability support staff. Pls share widely
Scan QR code in flyer -> send drafted email to receive direct link

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1 year ago
Logo for the America Psychological Association at the top and with shades of blue and white the quote reads, "There is extensive research that supports the complexity of sex and gender beyond binary classifications. The new restrictive definition of sex ignores decades of science, increasing harm to youth and families, while undermining critical mental health outcomes." APA CEP Dr. Arthur C. Evans Jr.

From the American Psychological Association:

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1 year ago

Mixed methods are super popular in mental health right now but there are unfortunately many systemic barriers to using this approach.

We were inspired to write this piece to help researchers to overcome these challenges and as a call to action for institutions, funders, and journal editors⬇️

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1 year ago

Always cool seeing so many disciplines and stakeholders come together for the Alabama Autism Conference!

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1 year ago
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Guidelines for the Creation of Accessible Consent Materials and Procedures: Lessons from Research with Autistic People and People with Intellectual Disability | Autism in Adulthood Informed, voluntary, ongoing consent is a central tenet of ethical research. However, consent processes are prone to exclusionary practices and inaccessibility. Consent materials are often too long an...

New free paper, Guidelines for the Creation of Accessible Consent Materials & Procedures: Lessons from Research w/ Autistic People & People w/ Intellectual Disability, from teams incl. AASPIRE - more coming from our Outcomes Project led by @cnicolaidis.bsky.social!
www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/...

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1 year ago

Congratulations!!!

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1 year ago

Such an interesting read!

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1 year ago
#A2ndVoice Autistic Adults Aged 50+ Years Meet up. Thur 12th Feb, from 11am-noon. For autistic people aged 50+ years,. The theme is Reactions to a late diagnosis, focusing on other ppl's reactions. It's free, but you must register at https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMrdeyrrzsoHtH9VUVg37CPtp_fcioUMz4W#/registration

Our #A2ndVoice chat for #AutisticElders is tomorrow, Thur 12th Feb, from 11am-noon. If you're #autistic & aged 50+ years, you're welcome. We'll chat about Reactions to a late diagnosis, focusing on other ppl's reactions. It's free, but you must register at us06web.zoom.us/meeting/regi...

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1 year ago

Just did this!

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1 year ago
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Open-World Games’ Affordance of Cognitive Escapism, Relaxation, and Mental Well-Being Among Postgraduate Students: Mixed Methods Study Background: Open-world games, characterized by their expansive and interactive environments, may offer unique cognitive escapism opportunities, potentially leading to relaxation and enhanced well-bein...

I *knew* it!

«These games, such as “The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild” and “The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom,” allow players to experience a sense of freedom and autonomy, which can reduce stress and improve mental health.»

www.jmir.org/2024/1/e63760/

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