About Benjamin Covington

Iris Analytical Consulting is the practice of Benjamin Covington, an autistic biostatistician who works with university research teams on autism and neurodivergent research. He holds a Ph.D. in Neuroscience and has spent his career at the intersection of rigorous quantitative methods and the study of autistic and neurodivergent people—from numerical cognition to mental-health intervention trials.

His work spans the full arc of a study: power analysis and design at the proposal stage, modeling once the data are in, and the methods and results sections reviewers scrutinize. He works across multilevel modeling, structural equation modeling, mediation, and longitudinal methods, and consults on research beyond autism when the fit is right. Whatever the design, the goal is the same—analysis a PI can defend in review and build on in the next grant.

Benjamin also serves as a community advocate on neurodivergent research projects, helping teams design studies that reflect the priorities of the people they study. For groups doing participatory or community-based work, that perspective is built in, not bolted on: methodological rigor paired with genuine, lived understanding of the population the research serves.

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Selected Publications

  • Levin, M. E., Aller, T. B., Kelley, H. H., Klimczak, K. C., & Covington, B. (in press). Preliminary examination of associations between psychological flexibility processes of change and quality of life in digital acceptance and commitment therapy for autistic adults. Journal of Clinical Psychology.

  • Ha, J., Christensen, J., Bera, J., Golson, M. E., Covington, B., & McClain, M. B. (2026). Effectiveness of different modalities of autism knowledge interventions on autism knowledge and stigma. Research in Autism, 130, 202773.

  • Aller, T. B., Kelley, H. H., Juhasz, A., & Covington, B. (2025). COVID-19 health distress among autistic adults: Does psychological flexibility explain effects of health distress on mental health concerns? Autism, 29(5), 1359–1383.

  • Aller, T. B., Kelley, H. H., Klimczak, K. C., Covington, B., & Levin, M. E. (2025). A longitudinal pilot evaluation of Valued Living: An Acceptance and Commitment Therapy–based digital mental health intervention for autistic adults. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science, 100961.

  • Aller, T. B., Kelley, H. H., Barrett, T. S., Covington, B., & Levin, M. E. (2024). An examination of psychological flexibility as a mediator between mental health concerns and satisfaction with life among autistic adults. Autism in Adulthood, 6(4), 451–461.

  • Ha, J., McClain, M. B., Covington, B., & Golson, M. E. (2022). Brief report: A brief video intervention for increasing autism knowledge in a general population sample. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 52(11), 5058–5063.

  • Bundock, K., Simonsmeier, V., Golson, M. E., Covington, B., & McClain, M. B. (2020). Promoting academic success. In Interprofessional Care Coordination for Pediatric Autism Spectrum Disorder (pp. 117–135). Springer.

  • Covington, B. (2021). Numerical cognition and autism spectrum traits in adults (Doctoral dissertation). Utah State University.

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