Can Virtual Reality Pre-exposure to Realistic Workplaces and Interactions Improve Job Placement, Anxiety, and Performance in Transitioning Adults with ASD?
Abstract
Employment promotes personal dignity, independence, self-reliance, and is reported to substantially improve quality of life for people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Unfortunately, the vast majority of adults with ASD remain unemployed. While vocational rehabilitative services for placement of people with disabilities are available, they do not address the specific needs of people with ASD. Through this proposal, we address the critical need for factors promoting success in the key transition into employment for individuals with ASD. For those adults that are placed in employment, there is often minimal support available. There are needs specific to the ASD population that will affect productivity and effectiveness during employment, namely, sensory sensitivity, anxiety, and training support. Being able to experience a workplace firsthand has been shown to be an effective method of ensuring appropriate job placement. Though this is a crucial point of intervention, very few employers are able to offer services that can address these needs. In our first aim, we will develop innovative software using commercially available technology to aid in transitioning people with ASD into employment. We propose capturing prospective work environments through methods such as consumer-level/affordable 360-degree video cameras, and then providing people with ASD a ?virtual reality experience.? This job ?pre-exposure? will allow people with ASD to experience different workplaces and help them determine whether the job could be appropriate for them. During this experience, they could identify aspects of the workplace environment that may be very distracting or debilitating (i.e., florescent lighting) and prepare for these sensitivities (i.e., wearing a hat). Secondarily, being pre-exposed to a novel space may reduce anxiety in people with ASD, giving them the opportunity to ?walk through? their work area and acclimate to their surroundings. This approach could also be applied to children and young adults starting a new school or other similar experiences. Another crucial point of intervention is in the first few weeks of a job, during which people with ASD report feeling high levels of anxiety due to navigating social interactions and the unknown. Training helps mitigate the stressors caused by a new job; however, people with ASD may need more specialized training and support. In some situations, support is provided by a job coach, who assists the person with ASD in intensive training upon commencement of a job and systematically lessens their support over time. While having access to a job coach can be successful, it is estimated that only 20% of new hires receive some specialist support during employment, likely due to the high cost of employing an on-site job coach. In our second aim, we will address this need by developing a hands-free, two-way remote job coaching system via smartglasses. As part of our research proposed here, we will gather feedback from employers, job coaches, and individuals with ASD to understand how to build an effective system that would be accepted in the work place. Remote job coaches can provide people with ASD individualized training, supported instruction of assigned tasks, and social integration support through smartglasses. This approach could reduce stigma associated with having a job coach on-site for employees with ASD, as well as provide a cost-effective solution for employment services. Additionally, we will develop a web-based dashboard with feedback from job coaches that will empower them to provide support to multiple people, broadening the impact of the technology. Remote video job coaching would also help enable job coaches to provide feedback and personal support to persons with ASD in hard-to-serve areas, such as rural and remote locations. Through this Autism Research Program Idea Development Award, we will develop innovative, impactful research that aims to i
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Aug 07, 2017
- Source ID
- W81XWH1710449
Entities
People
- Joseph Salisbury
Organizations
- United States Army