Understanding on lived experience of siblings of children with ASD is still overlooked in low and middle-income countries (LMICs). Inspiring by ‘picturing autism’ a project initiated by a fine-art photographer and mother of a son with autism, and continuing the experience of photovoice project with children with ASD in Hanoi, Vietnam, a multidiscipline team of public health professionals, artists, and young people initiated a 18 month visual-based participatory research to explore the experience of having a brother or sister with ASD, and to foster reflections and dialogues on ASD and ethical considerations.Employing photovoice method, this project offers siblings in Hanoi, Vietnam opportunities of recording their experiences of living with a brother or sister with ASD, connecting with other siblings through shared experience, and feeling empowered by the impact their project has on a larger community. This project will also engage young photographers without siblings on the spectrum. Through empathy and camaraderie, the young people become autism allies in their communities, and their collaboration will continue to target a wider community, especially young people and professionals through creative art projects, exhibition, workshops and dialogues. Findings and lessons learned from this research will be disseminated to researchers, programmers and policy makers.
Interagency Autism Coordinating Committee (IACC)
Autism Research Database (AFD)
