Autism in the Modern Workplace

Summary: 

Famous scientists, engineers, and activists with Autism from around the world have inspired a movement for neurodiversity in our workforce. Studies have found that individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) can be more productive, more accurately complete tasks, and, in some industries, can turnover at half the rate compared to neurotypical employees. Individuals with ASD bring incredible value to organizations if minor accommodations are provided. We discuss how hiring individuals with Autism can benefit your organization and the necessary steps to provide an inclusive environment. 

What is Autism Spectrum Disorder

In the very recent past, Autism or ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) as it is currently referred, was thought to be a debilitating and incurable life-long ailment which would permanently limit the functional capabilities of a child from being realized. It is no wonder then that half of 25 year olds with ASD have never held a paying job and between 80-90% of people with ASD are unemployed. Shawn Smith was diagnosed with ASD at age 4, and his parents were told that they should limit their expectations for what their child could EVER achieve. At the time, many children with an ASD diagnosis were given an inferior level of education and separated from their neurotypical peers, which would further limit their ability to succeed as adults. Similarly, adults with ASD were perceived as often requiring permanent support, and as being incapable of high competency employment.

In 2016, the prevalence of Autism was found to be 1 in 54 children, with boys being affected 4 times as often as girls. Autism is a developmental disorder which is described as a spectrum due to the wide variety of ways that individuals with this disorder can present. While each individual with Autism will manifest their condition uniquely, in general Autism is characterised as disrupted social skills, communications, and sensory systems as well as repetitive behaviors. 

Instead of heeding the advice of the medical professionals, Shawn’s parents instead provided their child with enhanced and personalized learning supports which allowed him to blossom. This type of early intervention would prove to be the most effective method of supporting individuals with Autism. Shawn would go on to graduate from the University of Washington with a BA in Environmental Science. Shawn’s mother, Mary Ellen Smith, is one of countless parents who could see the potential in their children that even doctors at the time were ignoring. She used this insight, and the subsequent knowledge that she gained as well as her authority as corporate vice president for worldwide operations at Microsoft to launch the Autism Hiring Program in 2015 on World Autism Awareness Day. This program supports individuals with ASD throughout their hiring process and into their employment, to allow them to bring their unique abilities and special skills to bear on Microsoft’s platform.

Barriers to Employment for Individuals with ASD

Without proper support, individuals with ASD face an uphill battle when dealing with employment. Autism can cause social dysfunction, repetitive behaviors, sensory issues, and challenges with communication all of which can directly decrease one's ability to function within a typical interview or work setting. In addition to these challenges, a disproportionately high number of individuals with ASD have comorbid conditions which are less common in the general population: about 40% are nonverbal, almost 50% wander or bolt from safety, 31% of children have an intellectual disability, 30-61% have ADHD, 26% of adults have depression, 4-35% have schizophrenia, and as many as 1 in 3 have epilepsy. All of these possible comorbid conditions operating on an individual who has social and communication problems and who displays sensory issues and repetitive behaviors, can become an insurmountable barrier to employment for individuals with ASD who do not have support. With the exception of highly social and communicative jobs, these challenges do not affect the ASD employees ability to perform essential functions. Instead these difficulties disrupt their ability to operate effectively within their work environment, which results in them not being hired, or even fired from roles that they would be able to perform if given support.

Neurodiversity at work

Society is beginning to celebrate individuals with Autism and recognize the unique value that they can bring to organizations and the world. Many of the most brilliant inventors and scientists in history are now posited to have had ASD- many suggest that Isaac Newton and Charles Darwin were likely on the spectrum and that those differences contributed to their careers. In recent times, some very influential figures have grown up with ASD diagnoses. Greta Thurnberg, the teenage Swedish climate activist has attributed her creativity and ability to do things differently to her diagnosis of Asperger’s syndrome. Greta feels she is uniquely equipped to focus all of her energy (no pun intended) on climate activism and this has led her to become ”the greatest threat to the fossil fuel industry”. Temple Grandin, the renowned animal scientist and animal rights activist described that the way her brain thinks allows her to think creatively and view things from an animal’s point of view, an important skill in her field. She is also able to troubleshoot plans for cattle plants in her mind like a virtual reality program, making her a revolutionary force in both the cattle and industrial meat industries.

The unique skills and perspectives that individuals with ASD can bring to organizations are hard to ignore which is one reason that large organizations like Microsoft, Freddie Mac, and HP have created special programs through which to recruit and hire individuals with ASD. Individuals with ASD do face challenges in some office environments and sometimes require accommodations, however, the skills they bring are incredibly valuable and often more than outweigh their cost.

Employer Supports for Employees with ASD

There are a litany of supports that employers can provide to enable employees with ASD to reach their potential, and many of these supports also benefit neurotypical individuals. Since the first barriers to employment for individuals with ASD start in the hiring process, this is where interventions must be implemented first. 

Hiring Supports

Individuals with Autism may be intimidated or discouraged by jobs that seem to require advanced social and communication skills, which have applications questions open to wide interpretation, which require traditional interviews, or which do not offer work trials for them to see what will be expected of them. To support the hiring of employees with ASD, job descriptions can be revised to more accurately reflect the required social and communication competencies of a particular position, instead of including these skills as default in all postings. Application forms can be made more explicit to direct applicants to include specific types and amounts of relevant information. Interviews, which are traditionally very high pressure and focus almost entirely on social and communications skills, can be adjusted in a variety of ways; from providing interview questions beforehand, to getting the applicant familiar with the company, the building and their interviewers, to allowing the applicant to bring someone else to support their communication. Finally, a work trial can be an especially effective measure of how an applicant will perform the specific work tasks that would qualify them for their role. All of these techniques specifically support individuals with ASD to be able to perform at their peak level during the selection process, and also offer support to neurotypical individuals.

Employment Supports

Once an employee with ASD has been deemed able to perform their job duties with reasonable accommodations, and is hired, there are many strategies that managers can use to make sure these employees are as comfortable and productive as possible. Managers can provide clear, explicit, concise and specific instructions on an employees responsibilities to decrease miscommunications on essential topics. They can provide ongoing training and monitoring to ensure that employees are receiving the support they need. They can ensure that the work environment is well-structured and free from sensory distractions. They can regularly review employee performance and provide gentle but direct feedback regarding improvements. They can specifically warn and prepare ASD employees in advance of any major changes. And, with the specific employees consent, they can support the education of their staff about ASD and how to support their colleagues directly. Once again, while these supports are specifically tailored to individuals with ASD, they also benefit neurotypical individuals.

Benefits of hiring individuals with ASD

Technical Orientation

   One of the more common skills among individuals with Autism is a technical orientation. People on the spectrum often have a unique ability to complete repetitive tasks with ease and accuracy, something that neurotypical individuals struggle with. In fact, studies have shown that individuals with Autism identify 10% more software bugs than their neurotypical coworkers. In the support center of Bank of America, employees with Autism are comforted by the repetitive, technical tasks of catching errors and handling paperwork. Whereas neurotypical employees typically find these types of tasks tedious and frustrating as well as challenging, their employees with Autism thrive with them.

High Productivity

      Another standout quality of employees with Autism is their incredibly high productivity rate. In fact, neurodiverse software teams are up to 30% more productive than neurotypical teams and individuals on the spectrum are 48-120% more productive than neurotypical employees. This is because individuals with Autism have high attention to detail, excellent concentration, and persistence. While a neurotypical individual might quit a difficult task, individuals with Autism are more willing to persist until it’s perfect.

Low Turnover

      Employees with Autism are perceived as loyal and hardworking, two qualities that decrease their risk of turnover dramatically. Especially in highly technical positions, turnover and burnout is generally very high, however, this is not the case for individuals with Autism. For the software industry, the average turnover rate is 15%, however, the turnover rate for individuals with Autism is only 7%.

Conclusion

Inclusive employment practices that embrace neurodiverse individuals on the Autism Spectrum can access their unique skills and abilities for their organizational advantage. These organizations can capitalize on technical orientation, high productivity and low turnover to augment their workforce as well as introduce new perspectives to their teams.

About the Authors:

Oliver Zagorin is a graduate student in the University of Maryland Industrial/Organizational Psychology program. After graduation, he hopes to work as a consultant in DEI and Organizational Change.

Morgan Cromer is a graduate student in the University of Maryland Industrial/Organizational Psychology program. After graduation, she hopes to work as a consultant in organizational culture and employee satisfaction.