'It's Really Who They Are and What They Want': Staff Perspectives on Supporting Autonomy for Autistic Adults With Intellectual Disabilities.
Jackie Ryan, Heather M Brown, Anne Borden and 5 others
PMID 40731376WHAT IT FOUND
Staff at an autism transition program said autonomy support depends on knowing each person deeply, creating a safe environment, and teaching skills like self-advocacy and recognizing internal body signals.
They noted that low pay and high turnover make it hard to build the relationships needed for this work.
Key findings
01Staff identified that strong, individualized relationships are crucial for supporting autonomy, but high turnover and low wages hinder the time needed to build them.
02Staff perceived four specific skills as necessary to enhance participants' autonomy: self-advocacy, interoceptive awareness, working effectively with others, and understanding the pros and cons of choices.
03Staff reported that community stigma and ableism, along with parental overprotection, acted as significant barriers to participants exercising autonomy in daily life.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study included staff from only one service provider, limiting generalizability. Data relied solely on staff perceptions, with no direct observation of the program or input from participants or parents. The lead author had a prior relationship with the service provider and created the program, which could introduce bias despite mitigation efforts. The sample size was small (8 staff members).
Declared interests
The lead author was an employee of the autism service provider at the time of data collection and had previously created the program. Another author was a volunteer board member for the provider. Funding was provided by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council, Autism Edmonton, and the Autism Research Centre.
The easy way to misread this
Do not interpret these findings as evidence that specific interventions improve autonomy outcomes. This study reports staff perceptions and themes about what they believe is important; it did not measure actual changes in participant autonomy or well-being.