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Cited by 75Disability Education and EmploymentAutism Spectrum Disorder ResearchEmployment and Welfare Studies

“[I] don’t wanna just be like a cog in the machine”: narratives of autism and skilled employment

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Raymaker, Dora M, Sharer, Mirah, Maslak, Joelle, Powers, Laurie E, McDonald, Katherine E, Kapp, Steven K, Moura, Ian, Wallington, Anna “Furra” +1 more·2023·Autism
DOI 10.1177/13623613221080813PMC PMC9525447
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Abstract

Autistic people experience disparities in employment which may be exacerbated for individuals in skilled employment. Little is known about the experiences of autistic people in skilled employment or how they define success. We used a community-based participatory research approach to conduct a thematic analysis with an inductive approach at a semantic level through a critical realist paradigm. We interviewed 45 autistic people with skilled training, 11 supervisors, and 8 key informants. We purposively sampled to maximize variation. We addressed trustworthiness through multiple coders and peer debriefing. Common themes included high stakes of disclosure, unconventional pathways to careers, disconnects with service and support systems, mental health challenges from trauma/burnout, autistic advantages in the workplace, and complex dimensions of discrimination. Participants defined success as opportunities for growth, work/life balance, financial independence, sense of community, and feeling valued, accepted, and like their work had meaning. Strategies to facilitate success suggested a multi-faceted and wholistic approach including attention to the role of supervisors. Our findings suggest a highly customizable, systems-focused, multifaceted approach to autism employment intervention could be useful in improving skilled employment outcomes. We recommend further work particularly in the areas of disclosure and destigmatizing disability in the workplace. Lay abstract Autistic people are less likely to be employed than the general population. Autistic people with skilled training (e.g. training for jobs in acting, plumbing, science, or social work) might be even less likely to get a good job in their field. Little is known about the experiences of autistic people in skilled employment or what employment success means to them. We interviewed 45 autistic people with skilled training in a wide range of fields, 11 job supervisors, and 8 topic experts. We asked them about their experiences, what they felt helped them to be successful at work, and what employment success means to them. Participants talked about the high stakes of disclosure, taking unconventional pathways to careers, disconnects with service and support systems, mental health challenges from trauma and burnout, the autistic advantages in the workplace, and complex dimensions of discrimination. Participants said success meant opportunities for growth, good work/life balance, financial independence, sense of community, and feeling valued, accepted, and like their work had meaning. Things that helped them be successful included flexible, accepting workplaces, supportive and respectful supervisors, and direct communication. What we learned suggests that an individualized, wholistic approach to autism employment intervention that considers both employers and employees and employee mental health could be useful. We also recommend more research into disclosure and destigmatizing disability at work.

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  • Support for autistic employees remains uneven, shaped not only by formal policy but also by how autism, disability, and difference are interpreted across workplace contexts.

    “Support, therefore, remains uneven, shaped not only by formal policy but also by how autism, disability, and difference are interpreted across workplace contexts (Davies et al., 2025; Raymaker et al., 2022)”

    From The system-level organisational design framework: a neuro-cognitive trait interaction approach to workplace inclusion for autistic people (2026) · cites this paper as Raymaker et al., 2022

    The Results (Themes) describe pervasive ableism and autism-related discrimination, while the Discussion links positive employment outcomes to workplace cultures that normalize and accommodate autism. These passages support the role of workplace attitudes and practices, but the paper does not establish the claim’s contrast with formal policy. (LLM, conf=0.82)

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  • Adjustment-led approaches, when unaccompanied by wider organisational change, may leave support inconsistently implemented and misaligned with processing and communication needs.

    “Consequently, adjustment-led approaches, when unaccompanied by wider organisational change, may require autistic employees to navigate systems not designed for cognitive variation, while support remains inconsistently implemented and misaligned with processing and communication needs (Erbil et al., 2024; Raymaker et al., 2022).”

    From The system-level organisational design framework: a neuro-cognitive trait interaction approach to workplace inclusion for autistic people (2026) · cites this paper as Raymaker et al., 2022

    The Discussion > Implications calls for a systems-focused approach that does not place all responsibility for change on autistic employees. The Discussion also identifies accommodations for communication needs, including written instructions. Our copy does not establish that adjustment-led support is inconsistently implemented or specifically misaligned with processing needs; no page numbers are available in the indexed passages. (LLM, conf=0.84)

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  • Adjustment-led approaches, when unaccompanied by wider organisational change, may require autistic employees to navigate systems not designed for cognitive variation.

    “Consequently, adjustment-led approaches, when unaccompanied by wider organisational change, may require autistic employees to navigate systems not designed for cognitive variation, while support remains inconsistently implemented and misaligned with processing and communication needs (Erbil et al., 2024; Raymaker et al., 2022).”

    From The system-level organisational design framework: a neuro-cognitive trait interaction approach to workplace inclusion for autistic people (2026) · cites this paper as Raymaker et al., 2022

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Authors
Raymaker, D. M., Sharer, M., Maslak, J., Powers, L. E., McDonald, K. E., Kapp, S. K., Moura, I., Wallington, A. “., & Nicolaidis, C.
Affiliations
  • Portland State University (US)
  • Portland State University, USA
  • Academic Autism Spectrum Partnership in Research and Education, USA
  • Syracuse University (US)
  • University of Portsmouth (GB)
Corresponding author
Raymaker, Dora M
ORCID
Venue
Autism
Publisher
SAGE Publications
Published
2022-04-01
Volume
27
Issue
1
Pages
65-75
ISSN
  • 1362-3613 (ISSN-L)
  • 1461-7005
DOI
10.1177/13623613221080813
PMC
PMC9525447
OpenAlex
W4220863625
Cited by
75
References
42
Citations by year
2026: 19 · 2025: 26 · 2024: 21 · 2023: 7 · 2022: 2
FWCI
16.24
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
journals.sagepub.com/page/policies/text-and-data-mining-license (tdm)
Locations
  • Autism (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
  • PDXScholar (Portland State University) (submittedVersion)
Funders
  • National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (KL2TR002370)
  • National Institute of Mental Health (1R21MH112038)
  • National Institutes of Health (UL1GM118964)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Safety Research › Disability Education and Employment
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Autism Spectrum Disorder Research
  • Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Employment and Welfare Studies
Keywords
skilled employment, employment of autistic people, employment discrimination, mental health, burnout, trauma, supervisors, employment success, disability stigma, flexible workspaces, employment interventions, career paths, work-life balance, financial independence, sense of community, vocational education, workplace inclusion
MeSH terms
Autism Spectrum Disorder, Autistic Disorder, Disabled Persons, Persons with Disabilities, Humans, Workplace, Disclosure

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