A Strength-Based Employment Maintenance Program for Individuals on the Autism Spectrum

Kessler Foundation

Status: Enrolling

Conditions: Autism

Treatments: Behavioral: KF-STRIDE® Into Work!

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT06255925

E-1199-22

Details and patient eligibility

About

The investigators are looking to evaluate how effective a training program that focuses on character strengths may be in improving job maintenance skills in young adults. The investigators are examining the effects of this intervention in young adults who feel they would like to help in improving their satisfaction with work, and in keeping their jobs.

Full description

Individuals with autism possess employable and valuable strengths and abilities. Unfortunately, despite these strengths, individuals with autism experience challenges in obtaining and maintaining employment. Traditionally, the majority of interventions designed for autism (including those focused on employment) focus on remediating deficits, without harnessing the strengths of those with autism. This deficit-based approach (i.e. to fix what is deficient in a person with autism) has triggered increasing criticism and dissatisfaction from the autism community. A growing shift toward strength-based training tools represent a holistic approach to treatment of autistic individuals by acknowledging and using their strengths to improve outcomes. To date, no strength-based employment programs have been examined in individuals with autism. Thus, in the current project, the investigators aim to develop and test a strength-based employment program. At Kessler Foundation, the investigators have developed a strength-based training tool: Kessler Foundation Strength Identification and Expression (KF-STRIDE®) which targets job interview skills by teaching individuals with autism to identify and express their personal strengths to a future employer. In the current proposal, the investigators aim to adapt this program to specifically target job maintenance skills.

Enrollment: 30 estimated patients

Sex: All

Ages: 14 to 26 years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Lives in the United States of America
• Between the ages of 14-26
• Speaks English well and at a 4th grade reading level

Exclusion criteria

• Had a stroke, Traumatic Brain Injury, or neurological injury or disease in the past(like brain tumor or epilepsy)
• Has a history of significant psychiatric illness(like schizophrenia or psychosis)
• Has uncontrolled seizures or other unstable medical complications

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Single Group Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

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30 participants in 2 patient groups

Treatment Group

Experimental group

Description:

In this arm, participants would participate in in an intervention program that uses character strengths to improve job maintenance skills in young adults.

Treatment:

Behavioral: KF-STRIDE® Into Work!

Control Group

No Intervention group

Description:

In this arm, participants are services as usual and will participate in their regular activities.