Dr. Magyar has several lines of research that link directly to community-practice. The first is in educational program development and evaluation. Youth with autism require extensive special education services that often challenge a school's capacity to develop and implement effective programming. Given the diversity of student needs, and of school cultures with respect to program development and evaluation it is unlikely that any one approach to educational programming for youth with autism will be sufficient. To learn more about Dr. Magyar's work, check out her newly published book entitled: Developing & Evaluating Educational Programs for Students with Autism (2011, Springer Publisher). Instead, it is expected that replicable program evaluation methods will be necessary to assist schools in designing and evaluating evidence-based programs tailored to their educational context and the varied needs of the students. Dr. Magyar's research seeks to validate a reliable program model for schools and autism treatment centers to use in their own program development activities. Over the past several years, she has developed and studied a model of program development and evaluation. This model includes a formal needs assessment protocol, standard program elements, an implementation plan, and program evaluation protocol. She has field-tested this model through a series of case studies, supported by grants or large technical assistance contracts, and is has summarized this work in a book.

Her second line of research is in psychological assessment and instrumentation. Valid and reliable assessment tools are essential for accurate diagnosis, treatment and educational planning, progress monitoring, and measurement of outcomes in research protocols. Currently, Dr. Magyar and colleagues are evaluating the validity of several diagnostic and psychological assessment tools used to assess autism spectrum and related disorders.

• Magyar CI, Pandolfi V, Dill CA. An initial evaluation of the social communication questionnaire for the assessment of autism spectrum disorders in children with down syndrome. J Dev Behav Pediatr. 2012 Feb; 33(2):134-45.
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• Pandolfi V, Magyar CI, Dill CA. Constructs assessed by the GARS-2: factor analysis of data from the standardization sample. J Autism Dev Disord. 2010 Sep; 40(9):1118-30.
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• Montes G, Halterman JS, Magyar CI. Access to and satisfaction with school and community health services for US children with ASD. Pediatrics. 2009 Dec; 124 Suppl 4:S407-13.
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• Pandolfi V, Magyar CI, Dill CA. Confirmatory factor analysis of the child behavior checklist 1.5-5 in a sample of children with autism spectrum disorders. J Autism Dev Disord. 2009 Jul; 39(7):986-95.
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• Magyar CI, Pandolfi V. Factor structure evaluation of the childhood autism rating scale. J Autism Dev Disord. 2007 Oct; 37(9):1787-94.
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