Beyond individual support: Employment experiences of autistic Korean designers receiving strength-based...

This study qualitatively examined the employment experiences of autistic designers in a South Korean company providing strength-based support at the organizational level. The experiences of 12 autistic employees (mean age = 27 years old, 83.3% male), 12 parents, and 5 non-autistic employees were examined using semi-structured interviews and multi-perspective interpretive phenomenological analysis. Four superordinate themes emerged: the impact of inclusive support systems, views on autistic characteristics, empowering employment experiences, and associated outcomes. Results emphasized the importance of organization- and individual-level support in shaping the employment experiences of autistic and non-autistic employees. While autistic characteristics served as facilitators and challenges of autistic employees' employment experiences, they contributed to the company's overall success. A sense of belonging, competency, and agency motivated autistic employees; their employment outcomes involved perceived changes in autistic characteristics, enhanced quality of life, and positive autistic self-identity. The findings suggest that the implementation of neurodiversity-based support at the organizational level allows autistic employees to leverage their unique characteristics as strengths regardless of support needs and benefits all employees. Future research should explore cultural influences, assess generalizability to other vocational contexts, and investigate the impacts of adopting neurodiversity in the workplace to create inclusive environments that maximize the career potential of autistic employees.Lay AbstractAutistic people have difficulties obtaining and maintaining jobs. This study looked at the experiences of autistic designers working in a South Korean company that supports autistic people at the company level. We wanted to understand how the autistic individuals' jobs and the support they received influenced their lives. We interviewed autistic employees, their parents, and non-autistic coworkers. We found four important themes: how they felt about the support systems, their thoughts on being autistic, the experiences they had at work, and their employment outcomes. Both company and individual support were crucial for the company. Autistic characteristics sometimes created challenges, but overall, they contributed to the company's success. Feeling like they belonged, being good at their jobs, and having control over their work made autistic employees feel empowered. Working at this company led to positive changes such as reducing certain autism-related challenges, improving their quality of life, and feeling good about being autistic. These findings suggest that companies should support autistic employees not only on a personal level but also as part of the company's culture. Thus, autistic characteristics can be seen as strengths that benefit the individuals and the whole company. Future research should explore how different cultures influence these experiences and evaluate whether similar findings apply to other jobs. We also need to study how embracing neurodiversity in the workplace can create environments that help autistic individuals do well in their careers.