Participatory systems mapping: Can this approach improve how services work for autistic people? (2026). Freeth, M., Poole, D., Newell, V., & Scargill, K.

Open access article: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/13623613251399656?casa_token=1tgue-E9cEoAAAAA%3AvDhDOSZw74D3baSPsJ1FmaBHIky_xK3TBjga7FsN3g__srHtCSTcyRAhWOFZBp5ZMjpWh1kiPRYg3A

Abstract

A thriving society relies on complex systems working effectively. There are many areas in which such systems exist, including healthcare, social care, housing, employment, benefits, education and justice. These systems interact in dynamic and often unpredictable ways, with some aspects controlled at the local level, some at the regional level and others at the national level, where changes in one area can have ripple effects on others (Ngan Nguyen et al., 2025; Peters, 2014). Autistic people tend to rely on these systems more than non-autistic people do (Zerbo et al., 2019), so when they work poorly or are inaccessible, the consequences for this community are particularly severe (Brede et al., 2022; Doherty et al., 2022; Shattuck et al., 2012). For many autistic people, simply accessing these systems at all is a huge challenge, and even once they are in them, autism-specific provisions are rarely available (Turcotte et al., 2016). In this editorial, we will introduce participatory systems mapping (PSM) as an approach to understanding and specifying how to improve complex systems, highlighting the benefits for autism researchers interested in policy design, service delivery and intervention. We will focus on healthcare as a primary example, but the principles apply across different systems.

Citation: Freeth, M., Poole, D., Newell, V., & Scargill, K. (2026). Participatory systems mapping: Can this approach improve how services work for autistic people? Autism, 30(2), 263-268.