Employment Activities and Experiences of Adults with High-Functioning Autism and Asperger's Disorder.

There is limited large-scale empirical research into the working lives of adults who have an autism spectrum disorder with no co-occurring intellectual disability. Drawing on data from a national survey, this report describes the employment activities and experiences of 130 adults with Asperger's Di...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of Autism & Developmental Disorders Vol. 44; no. 10; pp. 2440 - 2450
Main Authors: Baldwin, Susanna, Costley, Debra, Warren, Anthony
Format: research tables/charts Journal Article
Published: Springer Nature Oct2014
Online Access:View this record in EBSCOhost
Description
Summary:There is limited large-scale empirical research into the working lives of adults who have an autism spectrum disorder with no co-occurring intellectual disability. Drawing on data from a national survey, this report describes the employment activities and experiences of 130 adults with Asperger's Disorder (AD) and high functioning autism (HFA) in Australia. Outcome measures include current occupation; occupational skill level and alignment with educational attainment; type of job contract; hours of work; support received to find work; support received in the workplace; and positive and negative experiences of employment. The findings confirm and expand upon existing evidence that adults with AD and HFA, despite their capacity and willingness to work, face significant disadvantages in the labour market and a lack of understanding and support in employment settings.