Latest Chan Division News
Research
AI tools to help unveil patterns between social determinants of health, mental health risks, among autistic youth ⟩
November 10, 2025
Artificial Intelligence Autism Research
Amber Angell to lead five-year, $3.6 million study analyzing electronic health records, with collaborators from academia and the autistic community.
By Mike McNulty (Adobe Stock) A new USC-led study will apply artificial intelligence tools to electronic health records (EHRs) in order to better understand how social determinants of health — non-medical factors impacting health, such as education, income, housing and neighborhood resources like…
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Liew tapped to lead NIH-funded P50 national specialized research center ⟩
October 15, 2025
Artificial Intelligence Community and Partners Research Technology
Five-year, $6.5 million project will leverage data science, artificial intelligence and machine learning to build large rehabilitation research datasets for precision rehabilitation.
By Mike McNulty (Image generated by Adobe Firefly) Sook-Lei Liew is the principal investigator of the newly funded Data Science and Analytics for Precision Rehabilitation (DAPR) Center, a five-year project supported by a $6.5 million P50 grant from the National Center for Medical Rehabilitation…
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AI-augmented MRIs may improve post-stroke prognosis ⟩
September 30, 2025
Artificial Intelligence Research Technology
New NIH-funded project uses AI to enhance MRI image resolution to better understand how global brain health impacts long-term stroke recovery.
By Mike McNulty (Adobe Stock) Artificial intelligence is seemingly, suddenly, everywhere. Soon, thanks to a new USC-led study funded by the National Institutes of Health, it will be used to generate synthetic stroke MRI images that are just as accurate and detailed as those produced by the world’s…
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New research shows telehealth occupational therapy is feasible and appropriate for families of high-risk infants back at home after NICU stay ⟩
August 20, 2025
Community and Partners Research Technology
Parents “highly satisfied” with telehealth version of program that initiated occupational therapy an average of six days after NICU discharge.
By Mike McNulty (Adobe Stock illustration) Results of a new study published in OTJR: Occupational Therapy Journal of Research show that telehealth occupational therapy (OT) can be a family-centered, timely way of delivering a comprehensive OT program to high-risk infants back home after being…
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Can ChatGPT actually “see” red? New results of Google-funded study are nuanced ⟩
July 8, 2025
Artificial Intelligence Research Technology
AI can accurately generate color associations, but humans use more than just language to understand color.
By Mike McNulty ChatGPT seems to “understand” the metaphor of ‘it was a very pink party’ better than ‘the meeting made him burgundy’ (Adobe Stock illustrations) ChatGPT works by analyzing vast amounts of text, identifying patterns and synthesizing them to generate responses to users’…
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USC scientists find a gut-brain link that may affect behavior in children with autism ⟩
April 14, 2025
An imbalance in the microbiome disrupts neurotransmitter production and may manifest as social difficulties and repetitive behaviors.
By Leigh Hopper A new USC study suggests that gut imbalances in children with autism may create an imbalance of metabolites in the digestive system — ultimately disrupting neurotransmitter production and influencing behavioral symptoms. The research, published Monday in Nature Communications, adds…
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PhD candidate Franklin receives AOTF Kielhofner Award ⟩
February 7, 2025
Associations and Bodies Autism Awards Research Students
$5,000 award will support qualitative and participatory approach to expand "belonging" theory in occupational therapy.
By Mike McNulty Occupational science PhD candidate Marshae Franklin OTD ’21, PhD ’26 (Photo courtesy of Marshae Franklin) Occupational science PhD candidate Marshae Franklin OTD ’21, PhD ’26 was named the 2025 recipient of the Dr. Gary Kielhofner Doctoral Research Scholarship in Occupational…
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New $5.5 million NIH-funded study to test whether sensory adaptations can ease children’s dental fears and anxieties ⟩
November 25, 2024
Community and Partners Faculty Research
Study led by Leah Stein Duker in partnership with Children's Hospital Los Angeles extends Sensory Adapted Dental Environment research line begun in 2011.
By Mike McNulty (Adobe Stock) A new study funded by more than $5.5 million in NIH grants will test whether a Sensory Adapted Dental Environment (SADE) — a novel intervention that provides soothing visual, auditory and tactile input within the dental clinic environment — can reduce anxiety and…
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Post-doctoral scholar receives three-year NIH fellowship award ⟩
October 3, 2024
Diversity, Access, Equity Health and Wellness Research
Ryan Walsh received F32 postdoctoral fellowship grant to study social determinants of health in non-standard work contexts.
Post-doctoral scholar Ryan Walsh Post-doctoral scholar Ryan Walsh has been awarded a F32 postdoctoral fellowship grant from the NIH National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities to study social determinants of health and health disparities in emerging (i.e., non-standard) work…
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Belonging and camouflaging while Black, female and autistic ⟩
July 10, 2024
Autism Community and Partners Research Students
New article explores how occupational science might reconcile authentic belonging and autistic camouflaging among intersectional populations.
By Mike McNulty First author and occupational science PhD candidate Marshae Franklin OTD ’21, PhD ’26 (Photo courtesy of Marshae Franklin) To what extent does a person truly “fit in,” when fitting in requires hiding parts of one’s authentic self? What disruptions arise at the juncture…
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