Deepening the participation of neurodivergent youth in qualitative mental health research: Co-development of a general approach and the evaluation of its implementation in a study on emotion.

Background: There is a growing expectation that neurodivergent young people, such as those with diagnoses of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and/or autism, should play a central role in shaping research on neurodevelopmental conditions. However, currently, their involvement is typically limited to arms-length advice. To address this, the (RE-STAR) programme has co-developed a framework for deepening the involvement of neurodivergent participants in translational research.

Participatory translational science of neurodivergence: model for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and autism research.

Background: There are increasing calls for neurodivergent peoples' involvement in research into neurodevelopmental conditions. So far, however, this has tended to be achieved only through membership of external patient and public involvement (PPI) panels. The Regulating Emotions - Strengthening Adolescent Resilience (RE-STAR) programme is building a new participatory model of translational research that places young people with diagnoses of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and autism at the heart of the research team so that they can contribute to shaping and delivering its research plan.