Autistic Eye Contact? A Hermeneutic Phenomenological Multicenter Study on Experiences With Eye Contact Between Adults With and Without Autism Spectrum Disorder With Use of Semi-structured Interviews. Using Semi-structured Interviews, the Experiences of People With and Without Autism Regarding Eye Contact Were Made Clear. The Topic List for These Semi-structured Interviews Was Developed in Co-design With People With Autism.

This study aimed to examine the subjective eye contact experiences of adults with ASD compared to adults without ASD. Factors such as beliefs about the phenomenon, problems because of eye contact, development in eye contact, interpretations of others and more were explored.

To get insight in the subjective eye contact experiences of adults with ASD compared to adults without ASD, a hermeneutic phenomenological design using Multisite Qualitative Analysis (MSQA) and the PRICE-model for saturation during data analysis were used. MSQA enables the highest qualitative accuracy, the gathering of rich context-specific insights and maximizing the applicability. Semi-structured interviews was chosen for data collection and analysis because adults with ASD attach importance to on the one hand having the space to share their experiences in their own way, but on the other hand need frameworks to know what is asked of them. Hermeneutic phenomenological approach, grounded in philosophical concepts developed by Heidegger and Gadamer, made it possible to create meaning on how people experience a situation or phenomenon, such as eye contact, in a flexible and practical way.

Multisite design was chosen in response to criticism that single-site findings would limit the relevance and transferability and reliability to other settings. The Consolidated criteria for reporting qualitative studies (COREQ) checklist was used for reporting the research data. For the checklist. In addition, the Standards for Reporting Qualitative Research (SRQR) checklist was used. The research design was developed in collaboration with three adults with ASD and three adults without ASD, in order to include relevant information from the perspective of the target groups.

The semi-structured interviews were conducted using a topic list. This topic list consisted of the following sub questions:

Meaning: