Thank you for making the DOCTRID IV Conference such a success! 

View the DOCTRID IV Programme Here

Thank you to everyone who attended the DOCTRID IV Conference in Queen's University Belfast. A special word of thanks to Professor Karola Dillenburger, School of Education at QUB who was our superb host for the event and provided us all with a warm welcome.Thank you to President Johnston and Professor Jones for taking the time to address our delegates, to Professor Lou Anna Simon, President of Michigan State University for your unwavering support. Thank you to our wonderful MC Professor Ian Gray for engaging with delegates throughout the conference, for promoting the aims of DOCTRID IV and encouraging participation and input.  Finally thank you to the wonderful staff at QUB, with a special thanks to Jan Speer.

The 4th International DOCTRID conference took place in Queen’s University Belfast on 27th & 28th April and was attended by over 150 delegates from a host of countries including Ireland, the UK, USA, France and Belgium. The conference offered a unique opportunity for researchers, disability service practictioners and families to come together to discuss the challenges facing people with intellectual disability and autism spectrum disorders and the future directions of research needed to improve their quality of life.

Leading researchers and practitioners in behaviour analysis, psychology, computer science, service provision and special education participated in lectures and discussion groups with family members and carers on 4 major themes of ‘Social Inclusion’, ‘Gaps and Innovation in Service Delivery’, ‘Prevention and Epidemiology’ and ‘Future of Assistive Technologies’.

The DOCTRID Research Institute welcomed two new partners who signed a Memorandum of Understanding with RESPECT at the opening ceremony of the conference, Dundalk Institute of Technology and Designability. These partnerships bring  the total number of DOCTRID partners to 17. Both institutions can now also act as hosts for ASSISTID Fellowships 

DOCTRID has a critical mass of expert researchers and clinicians, carers, industry and service providers to act as a driver for change and make a real difference in the lives of people with ID or ASD.

Read the DOCTRID IV conference overview here...