This pilot study examined the relations among preschool teachers' attitudes towards the inclusion of children with autism and perceived self‐efficacy, as well as demographic characteristics such as teachers' work experience and educational background. The cohort consisted of 21 participants who had degrees in preschool education and worked with children with autism in general preschool/kindergarten settings in central Sweden. Data were collected using the Autism Attitude Scale for Teachers, the Teacher Efficacy Scale and a demographic survey. In general, findings revealed that preschool teachers held positive attitudes towards children with autism, and this was significantly related to the number of credits in special education taken during pre‐service education. However, teachers showed neutral attitudes towards the inclusion of children with autism into general preschool classrooms. No relations were found between teachers' perceived self‐efficacy and attitudes towards inclusion, although a relationship was found between participation in in‐service training and efficacy to make decisions. Implications concerning early childhood education professional development and supervision are discussed.

Little is known about needs of grandparents of young children with autism in family and community settings. This study investigated perceived needs of grandparents of preschool-aged children diagnosed with ASD in the cultural context of Sweden. Participants were 120 grandparents of children enrolled into autism intervention programs provided by the public disability services in Stockholm. The Grandparents' Needs Survey and the SDQ Impact supplement were used to collect data. Grandparents expressed most needs in topic areas of information and childcare. No significant relations were found between grandparents' demographics and perceptions of needs; grandparents' needs were predicted by their perceived burden. The findings provide insight into understanding of grandparents' needs essential for planning and provision of quality family-centered early intervention services.

Systematic reporting of cultural variables in research publications is important to address disparities in diagnostics and treatment for children with ASD from diverse backgrounds. The present review examined reporting of cultural factors in ASD publications in the Swedish research context by using the GAP-REACH checklist developed by the Cultural Committee of the Group for the Advancement of Psychiatry. Thirty peer-reviewed articles published in English between 2013 and 2015 met inclusion criteria. Depending on research designs, 46% of the reviewed studies defined cultural factors using various proxies for ethnicity to describe study participants; none of the studies used the Brace^variable; 23.3% provided rationale for inclusion of cultural factors. The checklist in its modified form is applicable within the Swedish context.

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