The TRACE Framework: Improving Reporting of Sensory, Communication, and Contextual Factors in Autistic Physical-Health Research

Autistic adults frequently report that sensory load, communication constraints, unclear pacing, and unannounced proximity or touch shape whether physical-health research procedures are accessible. Yet physical-health research rarely reports these contextual conditions, limiting interpretability and obscuring who was able to participate. Existing reporting guidelines (e.g., Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials [CONSORT], Strengthening the Reporting of Observational Studies in Epidemiology [STROBE], Template for Intervention Description and Replication, Standard Protocol Items: Recommendations for Interventional Trials, and Guidance for Reporting Involvement of Patients and the Public 2) improve transparency around study design and outcomes but do not prompt reporting of access-relevant context for autistic participants. Without this information, researchers cannot determine whether outcomes reflect the procedure itself, the conditions under which participation occurred, or whether findings generalize across autistic adults with differing support needs. This article introduces Transparent Reporting of Autistic Context and Environment (TRACE), a minimum reporting standard for physical-health research involving autistic adults. TRACE is intended primarily as a reporting guideline for disseminating research findings, analogous to established frameworks such as CONSORT and STROBE, with the goal of improving transparency in articles and supplementary materials. TRACE synthesizes evidence from autistic health research, participatory toolkits, and related mechanistic literatures to identify contextual factors that influence participation. The framework specifies nine reporting domains, including sensory context, communication access, pacing and predictability, proximity and touch practices, and access modifications. TRACE also includes a reporting checklist, an ultrabrief methods template, and expanded guidance for specialty contexts. As a practical add-on to existing reporting standards, TRACE makes access-relevant context visible, supporting clearer interpretation, comparability across studies, and more inclusive physical-health research.