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Parent Perspectives on Supports and Barriers for Autistic Youth Transitioning to Adulthood

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Abstract

Knowledge is needed about specific supports and barriers for successful transitions to adulthood for autistic youth, especially from the perspective of parents, who are highly involved in transition preparation. We conducted a qualitative thematic analysis of previously conducted semi-structured interviews with 39 parents of 41 autistic adolescents to identify themes related to supports and barriers; we then used Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological System’s Theory to aid in interpreting the themes. We identified three main supports and four main barriers to the transition to adulthood from the parent interviews. The supports and barriers represent factors to consider at each theorized ecological level. Results point to opportunities to promote person-environment fit and support the transition to adulthood for autistic youth at multiple system levels.

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Funding

The data described in this manuscript was collected through support by several sources: The Society for the Study of Occupation (Study A) (SSO:USA Student Research Grant), the University of Utah College of Health (Study B) (COH Seed Grant), the University of Utah Consortium for Families and Health Research (Study C) (C-FAHR Pilot Award), and the American Occupational Therapy Foundation (Study C) (AOTFIRG18KIRBY).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ensign Therapy Group, San Juan Capistrano, CA, 92675, USA

    Jenna M. Hoffman

  2. Department of Occupational and Recreational Therapies, University of Utah, 520 Wakara Way, Salt Lake City, UT, 84108, USA

    Anne V. Kirby

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  1. Jenna M. Hoffman
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  2. Anne V. Kirby
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Contributions

JMH developed the idea for the project, analyzed the data, and drafted the manuscript. AVK conducted/oversaw all data collection; provided support for study conceptualization, analysis, and manuscript writing; and edited the manuscript. Both authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Anne V. Kirby.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Approval was obtained from the ethics committees of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the University of Utah. The procedures used in this study adhere to the tenets of the Declaration of Helsinki.

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All participants gave informed consent participate.

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Hoffman, J.M., Kirby, A.V. Parent Perspectives on Supports and Barriers for Autistic Youth Transitioning to Adulthood. J Autism Dev Disord 52, 4044–4055 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-021-05273-5

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