Iliana Magiati
Dr. Iliana Magiati (she/ her) is an Associate Professor at the School of Psychological Science at The University of Western Australia (UWA). Previously, she was an Assistant and then Associate Professor at the National University of Singapore (NUS).
She completed her doctoral training in clinical psychology (D.Clin.Psy.) at the Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London in 2006 and earned a Ph.D. from St George’s Hospital Medical School, University of London, in 2005. With experience as both an applied researcher and a clinical psychologist in multidisciplinary child development and community psychology teams in the UK’s National Health Service, Iliana's work is deeply rooted in understanding and supporting the mental health and well-being of autistic individuals. Her research explores psychological and sociocultural factors that impact well-being, such as camouflaging/ masking, autistic burnout, autistic identity, diagnostic disclosure, and more. She is particularly interested in camouflaging/ masking and autistic burnout in adults, their psychosocial correlates and their consequences and impact on wellbeing; the assessment and experiences of anxiety and OCD in Autistic individuals; the identification and diagnosis of autism in adolescence and adulthood, and in developing post-diagnostic supports for late identified/ diagnosed young people and adults; supporting Autistic students in higher education; and enhancing adult outcomes and quality of life for autistic individuals.
Iliana is actively involved in the academic and professional autism community. She is an Editor for Autism: The International Journal of Research and Practice and currently serves on the Editorial Board of Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders (RASD) and Neurodiversity, following serving the Editorial Boards for Autism, Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders and Frontiers in Education (Special Educational Needs). She is currently the Vice-President of the Australasian Society for Autism Research (ASfAR), having previously contributed to the work of ASfAR since 2015 in various roles, including webmaster and social media coordinator.
At UWA, she coordinates the Graduate Certificate in Autism Diagnosis (GCAD) and has led the UWA project team to the development of seven online microcredential courses in autism assessment and diagnosis for professionals developed by the Autism CRC with The University of Western Australia, available through UWA Plus, alongside Dr. Lauren Taylor, with 350+ enrolments to date.
Iliana is dedicated to fostering inclusivity and diversity in psychology and in academia. She coordinates the School of Psychological Science-School of Indigenous Studies peer mentoring program for Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander psychology students—a program recently recognized with both School and University Excellence Awards in Learning and Teaching (Inclusion and Diversity programs). She serves as Deputy Chair of the UWA Cultural and Linguistic Diversity (CALD) Working Group and is an active member of the Australian Indigenous Psychology Education Project (AIPEP) Community of Practice and the SPS Inclusion and Diversity Committee.
Guided by the autistic community's research priorities, most of her research work is co-produced and participatory, carried out in partnership with autistic advisors and consultants and/or with guidance from autistic community reference groups. Her research has been used to inform policies and has been referenced in policy advisory documents, working papers, and government reports in Australia, Singapore, the UK, Ireland, the USA, Norway, and elsewhere.
Abstracts this author is presenting: