The review considers the effectiveness of physical activity interventions which are aimed at improving social, cognitive and/or behavioural functioning for people on the autism spectrum. Physical activity interventions are activities that require physical movement and effort that can be conducted in groups or individually.
The third edition of the Guideline was released on 21 November 2022:
Whaikaha – Ministry of Disabled People now lead the Guideline and the Living Guideline process, in partnership with the Ministry of Education.
The New Zealand Autism Spectrum Disorder Guideline second edition was published in 2016.
As part of their commitment to the implementation of the Guideline, the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Education agreed to establish a Living Guideline process. This process is where a guideline is regularly updated and refined to reflect new evidence and changing user needs. Each update is reported in a comprehensive supplementary paper.
The current review aims to update the guideline with evidence published from 2004 onwards relating to physical activity interventions.
Physical activity interventions involve repeated gross-motor movements requiring physical exertion. In the current review, they are defined as ‘planned, structured, repetitive, and purposeful’.