Implementing a Co-produced Curriculum for Neurodivergent Individuals in the Workplace

Individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD), especially autistic individuals, are disproportionately unemployed and underemployed. Job coaches (JCs), family members (FMs), and employers can serve as supports to improve employment outcomes of adults with I/DD. To train these individuals to provide effective, strengths-based support, our team co-designed and co-produced a training curriculum entitled DIVERSE. In this study, we sought to understand barriers and facilitators to implement DIVERSE in the community.

We utilized a mixed-methods effectiveness-implementation hybrid design to determine the barriers and facilitators to implementation of DIVERSE. A total of 78 participants, including JCs, parents, and employers, completed the DIVERSE training and at least one quantitative survey. Twenty-five individuals were randomly selected to complete semi-structured interviews guided by the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research. Transcripts of interviews were analyzed by thematic analysis.

High levels of DIVERSE acceptability, feasibility, and appropriateness were found in all participant groups. Qualitative results indicated more facilitators than barriers and more similarities across groups than differences. Major facilitators included the perception that DIVERSE is helpful and easy to complete, its fulfillment of a need in the community, and its compatibility with personal or organizational values. Major barriers included participants' individual needs for specific curriculum content and meeting each individual's expectations of the scope of topics covered in the curriculum.

DIVERSE is a feasible, acceptable, and appropriate training for supporters of individuals with I/DD. Facilitators and barriers to implementing DIVERSE will be used to further disseminate the curriculum at a larger scale.