Affiliations: [a] Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| [b] Department of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| [c] Aegis Therapies, Allentown, PA, USA
Correspondence:
[*]
Address for correspondence: Beth Pfeiffer, PhD, OTR/L, BCP, Department of Rehabilitation Sciences, Temple University, 3307 N. Broad Street, Philadelphia, PA 19122, USA. Tel.: +1 215 707 4504; Fax: +1 215 707 7656; E-mail: bpfeiffe@temple.edu.
Abstract: BACKGROUND:Individuals with ASD have some of the highest rate of post-graduation unemployment and competitive employment rates are very low. There is substantial research identifying specific person factors influencing employment outcomes, although there is very little research exploring the impact of environmental factors. OBJECTIVE:The purpose of this article is to understand the impact of environmental factors on work satisfaction and performance from the perspective of adults with Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD). METHODS:Qualitative interviews were used to gather personal perspectives from working adults with ASD. The data was micro-analyzed for open coding and organized under common categories. When data was saturated, axial coding occurred resulting in multiple categories linked together under a common central theme. RESULTS:Results identified the central category of Facilitators and Barriers of Person and Environment Fit for Work Satisfaction and Performance, which encompassed the categories, subcategories and links between categories. Both environmental factors and person-fit were identified as two overarching categories where barriers and facilitators were present. CONCLUSIONS:Adults with ASD identified that social interactions, attitudes, and the physical or sensory environment impacted perceptions of work satisfaction and performance. Future research is needed to better understand how to reduce environmental barriers in the workplace for adults with ASD.
Keywords: Autism spectrum disorder, environment, work performance, job satisfaction
