In House Units

NARRATE In-House Training

The NARRATE Inhouse Training aims to give operative and practical application to the W.O.R.K. theoretical and epistemological framework in terms of supporting People on the Autism Spectrum (PoAS) entering the labour market.

The four teaching units can be seen as roadmaps to help professionals apply the NARRATE approach and mindset with their PoAS clients. Each unit describes how to operatively decline one of the four constructs of the W.O.R.K. framework by suggesting several operative dimensions that can be taken into consideration while supporting PoAS in their journey to find a job, face a job interview, and start a career.  

The units in this training are the following:

    1. WE In-House: it explores the interconnections between the practice of supporting PoAS entering the labour market and the broader social and work environments. How does the socio-cultural environment affect the way we, as professionals, approach our PoAS clients and help them find a job?

    2. OWNERSHIP In-House: it highlights the importance of helping PoAS be prepared for the world of work by exploring with them their skills and strengths and developing career paths aligned with their aspirations. How can we help PoAS be more aware of their skills and strengths?

    3. RELATIONSHIPS In-House: it explores how professionals can construct significant relationships with PoAS while supporting them to enter the labour market. How does the role of power we have as professionals affect the way we can support our PoAS clients?

  • KNOWLEDGE In-House: it explores possible job preparation strategies for PoAS by relying on their strengths and skills. How can we help PoAS effectively rely on their strengths and skills when preparing for a job interview or a job employment? 

Enrichment is the keyword of this training. It does not aim to tell you the “right” way or the “hidden secret” to work with PoAS. It is not meant to speak any “truths” of sort. As a roadmap, it aims to give professionals ideas and stimuli that can be used to open their minds to new perspectives and see things from other points of view. 

For this reason, you can approach this training in different ways.

You can decide to use all the units, following the order we used to present them—that is, starting from the first (WE) to the last unit (KNOWLEDGE). In this way, you can experience the roadmap in a similar way as we conceived it. 

However, you can use all the units following the order you want. Or, you can decide to use just the units, or the operative dimensions they describe, that you think can be helpful in that specific situation. 

In other words, you can develop your own path on the roadmap.

We always invite you to reflect on how to integrate and connect the ideas and topics presented in this training with the ideas and models you already apply in your work. The self-reflecting questions you will find at the end of each unit can help you with this process, as well as the exercises you will find in the NARRATE Toolbox.

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Disclaimer on Terminology

In our content, we use the term Person(s) on the Autism Spectrum (PoAS) as a respectful and inclusive way to refer to individuals who identify or are identified as being on the autism spectrum. We also use this term as an example of how language can reflect diverse narratives and perspectives, illustrating that multiple terms can exist and be valid outside of the dominant or widely accepted language.

Language is not fixed; it evolves as individuals and communities redefine and reframe their own stories. The terms used to describe those on the autism spectrum are shaped by cultural norms, historical context, and personal identity. What might be empowering or accurate for one person or group may not hold the same meaning for another. Our use of PoAS reflects our understanding that no single term can encompass the full range of experiences within the autism community.

For example, the language used to describe autism has undergone significant changes over the past few decades. In earlier years, terms like mental retardation or autistic disorder were commonly used. These terms, however, have been increasingly viewed as outdated and stigmatising, prompting the shift toward terms like intellectual disability and autism spectrum disorder (ASD). While ASD has become the clinical and widely accepted term in many contexts, it can be seen by some as overly medicalised and limiting in its scope. This reflects a dominant narrative that often focuses on diagnosis and pathology. As a counter to this dominant narrative, many within the autism community prefer terms that reflect a broader and more holistic understanding of the spectrum, such as autistic person or autistic individual, which emphasise identity over disorder.

Our use of PoAS acknowledges that while autism spectrum disorder is commonly used in medical and professional settings, it is not the only term, nor is it always the preferred choice within the autism community. By choosing PoAS, we aim to respect the diversity of language preferences and challenge the dominant narratives that position autism as something to be “fixed” or “cured.” This term reflects an alternative view that sees autism as a valid aspect of human diversity. We underscore that there is no single “correct” way to describe someone’s experience on the autism spectrum; each person’s narrative is personal and unique.

We also acknowledge that language is a powerful tool for challenging dominant narratives and highlighting alternative ways of understanding and representing identity. By using PoAS, we hope to show that there is room for multiple terms and that they can coexist, each carrying its own significance, context, and meaning. This aligns with our commitment to inclusivity and respect for the diverse voices within the autism community.

As the narratives surrounding autism continue to evolve, so too will the language we use.
By engaging with the voices of PoAS, we come to understand that their experiences steer the course of our dialogue, shaping a dynamic and evolving relationship between language and identity.

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We In House

The first construct of the W.O.R.K. framework—WE—relates to this unit. More specifically, we will explore the interconnections between the practice of supporting PoAS entering the labour market and the broader social and work environments. This unit explores how the socio-cultural environment affects the relationship between professionals and PoAS clients. How does the labour market consider autism and the PoAS? What influences PoAS’ perception about the labour market? Why is it important for a professional to consider the role of the social context? How does the way professionals see autism affect their work in supporting PoAS entering the labour market? These are some of the questions we will try to answer in this unit.

Before implementing NARRATE, we believe professionals must understand their own place on the map, the social dominant narratives that influence them and their clients, and how these narratives manifest in their daily practice. So, this unit mostly asks professionals to reflect on how they work with PoAS clients. In this unit, we aim to enhance the professionals’ comprehension of the operating context and how dominant social narratives shape it. As we will see, these socially dominant narratives influence many aspects of the organisation they work in, their clients, their families, and the professionals themselves as well. Professionals need to delve deeper into their personal and their clients’ social contexts, try to understand which narratives influence them and their clients and how they can deconstruct them or use them to their client’s advantage. Professionals need to be aware of how narratives affect them personally in order to do this effectively. 

In order for the trainee to be able to fully grasp and understand the rationale behind this unit and the exercises and practices related to it, we need to clarify a few key points and definitions regarding power, the connection between power and dominant discourses, and the way we at NARRATE interpret and situate them. 

First, remember that the language and its use hold significant importance. The language we rely on when constructing our life story can tell just as much about our perspective and how we identify as what we are describing. Language has the power to blur, alter, or distort experience, shape our thoughts, feelings, and actions, and serve as a purposeful tool for support (White, 1995). 

The poststructuralist movement in philosophy, psychology and social work, inspired by the works of various theorists and philosophers like Foucault, Derrida, and others, is one of the core elements of the W.O.R.K. framework and the NARRATE approach as a whole. Foucault, in particular, believed that power played a significant role in all human and social relationships—something quite relevant, although commonly overlooked, for the dynamics of the therapy/training/social work processes and the relationship between the professional and the client.

Every human subject, whether in a workplace, a family, or an everyday setting, finds themselves in various power relations throughout their lives, according to Foucault. Power relations are present everywhere, forming a complex web. Thus, PoAS and companies themselves exist and operate inside those power relationships. 

Power as a constitutive force

Power is constitutive of all relationships. In the sense that, as White & Epston (1990, p. 20) suggested: “According to Foucault, a primary effect of this power through truth and truth through power is the specification of a form of individuality that is, in turn, a vehicle of power. Rather than proposing that this form of power represses, Foucault argues that it subjugates. It forges persons as docile bodies and conscripts them into activities that support the proliferation of global and unitary knowledge and, as well, the techniques of power.” 

Foucault’s truth does not prescribe any intrinsic facts about the nature of people; rather, it relates to what we would refer to as norms (normalising truths), which are dominant norms (or dominant discourses) that encourage people to organise their lives. Truth does not prescribe intrinsic facts about people’s nature, but it aligns with norms (normalising truths), which are dominant norms or dominant discourses that motivate people to organise their lives. Consequently, social discourses that define what is “true” in a specific social context are discourses that have become dominant within that context. Dominant discourses about what is “right” and what is “wrong”, what is “good” and what is “bad”, what is “normal” and what is “abnormal” affect every person’s life at any time. Through hetero-control (normative judgements, punishments, social blaming, etc.) and self-control, dominant discourses subjugate people to certain norms, guiding their decisions throughout life and shaping their self-perception and narrative. In the same sense, power does not only restrain and oppress a person, but at the same time configures (or constitutes) a person. 

In this regard, an example of how PoAS’ lives may be affected by the power of dominant narratives could be being labelled as “abnormal” or “pathological” as they have received a diagnosis that defines them as different from “normal” people. Moreover, such normative discourses become internalised by PoAS themselves, and they begin to define themselves as “abnormal” or “pathological”.

Power in the Professional Social Work Relationship

According to Fors (2021), there are four major pillars that contribute to unequal power dynamics in professional helping relationships and social work: 

  1. Professional power 

  2. Transference 

  3. Socio-political power 

  4. Bureaucratic power. 

  1. a) Professional power entails a fundamental power imbalance, rooted in the respective positions held by each involved party. Professionals have extensive information about the client, while the client lacks this information. Additionally, professionals frequently receive compensation for meeting with the client (ibid.). The same can be applied to professionals working with PoAS. When we first assess PoAS, we gather a lot of information about them, including their personality, interests, and abilities. As we work with PoAS, we collect a wealth of information about them, whereas they do not. In terms of power, all of this creates an imbalance between us professionals and our PoAS clients. 

  2. b) With the term transference, we refer to the elements of the relationship between professional and client that are implicit. These non-conscious internalised parts might refer to previous unformulated experiences or internalised narratives and refer to both professionals and the client (ibid.). For example, professionals might be implicitly influenced by the dominant narratives regarding PoAS and their ability/inability to find work. Additionally, previous interactions with PoAS (such as a failed attempt to assist PoAS in finding a job) might impact their attitude. In a similar vein, socially dominant narratives about autism, as well as personal narratives influenced by prior life experiences, may cause PoAS themselves to appear unwilling or uninterested in seeking employment. Professionals need to be aware of those dynamics in order to improve the way they engage with clients, their families, other professionals, and potential companies/employers. Understanding these dynamics will provide the professionals with the opportunity to better manoeuvre and proactively resolve situations that might arise, since when the professional is able to identify them, they  might be able to change them or use them to their advantage when working with PoAS towards inclusion in the open labour market.

  3. c) The term socio-political power refers to how class, gender, diagnostic labels and overall social norms affect our relationship with our clients. For example, we might pay more attention to a client from a higher class, or we might facilitate a certain individual for a certain job based on social norms regarding gender and what men and women can and cannot do. We have to pay attention to these external factors that might influence our work. This does not always occur in a conscious and deliberate way. As professionals, we may assign PoAS patients to manual labour jobs such as supermarket workers, based on our belief that their diagnosis or past experiences with PoAS will hinder their performance in other roles. 

  4. d) Bureaucratic power pertains to the bureaucratic factors that influence access to care and work rehabilitation, as noted by Fors (ibid.). In many ways, our clients are at a disadvantage when it comes to accessing care, receiving social benefits, finding a job (PoAS unemployment rates are significantly higher than those of non-PoAS), and maintaining their independence. Our clients are, in many ways, at a disadvantage regarding their access to care, social benefits, or getting a job (PoAS unemployment rates are far greater than non-PoAS) and being able to live independently. In many cases, the opportunity for PoAS to find and maintain a job arises through the agencies where professionals work. It becomes clear that professionals can determine if someone has the “ability” to work and help them. If the professional deems a client not able to find a job or too difficult to work with, he/she will not be able to easily access the open labour market since they will have limited or no support. Our judgement as professionals could facilitate the allocation of resources towards accomplishing this goal. 

If we consider the professional’s position in supporting PoAS entering the labour market, we suggest considering five important ideas.

First is the idea that, from a social constructionist point of view (and from a narrative approach perspective), reality is a co-construction of meaning. According to this logic, a human relationship is a complex system, emerging from the collaboration of all the actors involved in it. All actors maintain this system, consciously and unconsciously. This means that every actor has an active role in the co-creation of this system; no one is completely impartial or objective. 

Secondly, we have to elaborate on the notion of narration from a narrative approach perspective. As it was described in the theoretical part, a narrative (or a discourse) is a culturally available discourse system of words, actions, rules, and beliefs that share common values (Freedman & Combs, 1996). In the world we operate in, some of these narratives are dominant (that is, they are shared by the majority of persons within a specific context); some are weaker (that is, they are poorly or less shared within that context). Both dominant and weaker narratives have constitutive characteristics in the sense that they heavily influence/shape the way a person narrates and, as an extension of that, behaves/acts their own story/life. Consequently, of course, we can extend this logic to professionals working with PoAS. We are also heavily influenced by dominant discourses about autism and our work. We, as professionals, are not “immune” to those discourses, as they shape our identity and our relevant values. 

We believe it is important to understand these processes in order to deconstruct them. Deconstruction is the third idea we invite you to focus on. Deconstructing our dominant narratives in our work as professionals supporting PoAS means asking ourselves questions that invite us to reflect on how we approach our work.

What narratives affect our understanding of autism? 

When did we develop our point of view about the autism spectrum? Who taught us these ideas?

How do our conceptions of the autism spectrum affect the way we think PoAS behave?

How do these narratives affect the way we interact, speak with, and support PoAS?

What is our conception of “labour market”?

How does our conception of the labour market affect the way we help PoAS find a job or an occupation?

What are the aspects of our theoretical view about the autism spectrum that we can exploit to help that particular client? What are the aspects we should modify to better support him/her? 

What are the aspects of our political/philosophical/personal worldview we can use to support this person? What are the aspects we should change or put aside instead? 

These are some examples of deconstructive questions inviting us to consider how our philosophical, political, theoretical, personal worldviews impact the way we support PoAS. Asking ourselves these types of questions allows us to consider how to exploit, change, adapt, and use our dominant narratives to positively help our clients. 

Deconstructing does not mean denying our dominant narratives. It means self-reflecting on them and considering how they impact the way we relate to PoAS. 

In the NARRATE Resource Kit, you will find a number of exercises to help you dive deep into the practice of self-deconstruction, for example:

  • Understanding and redefining narratives about autism, which aims to explore some dominant narratives about autism and reframe them in a more positive way.

  • What do you know about the autism spectrum? which aims to deconstruct cliches about autism and how they affect your approach to work.

  • Working with PoAS: A guide to colleagues, which aims to reflect on social stigmas about autism and how to deal with them by using a more solution-focused approach.

Fourth is the idea of agency. From a narrative perspective, reality is considered quite dynamic and not mechanistic of any sort (Pérez Cota, 2015). People actively participate in dialogical systems, continuously absorbing specific cultural narratives that shape their preconceived notions of reality (Ansay, 2015). When professionals realise that both themselves and their clients are acting agents that co-shape their reality, this realisation opens up a whole new world of opportunities regarding intervention and the way we approach and address our clients, their families, and the companies we tend to work with. Applying the idea of agency leads to the deconstruction of the notion of professionals as all-knowing experts. We view both the professional and the client as partial “knowers” who contribute both agency and knowledge to the conversation. Thus, the client is the “bearer” of his own story and knows its content, while on the other hand, the expert knows the procedure (Brown, 2006). Of course, in the process of supporting PoAS finding a job, we are asked and expected to “guide” our clients, but we always need to be on high alert in regards to our own position in this whole procedure because our power actively influences the direction of our intervention. The RELATIONSHIPS In-House unit further explores the idea of professionals and clients as partial knowers, both shaping the helping relationship with their agency.

If we consider both professionals and PoAS clients as active agents within the helping relationship, we have the room to think about how to enhance such agency. That is, how to empower professionals and PoAS. Empowering professionals means providing them with useful ideas to enrich their everyday practice, and this is the aim of the NARRATE learning content. Empowering PoAS means helping them realise how much control they have over their lives and how much they can change the world through their actions. The NARRATE training’s OWNERSHIP In-House unit further explores PoAS empowerment, proposing an approach that draws inspiration from narrative and solution-focused methods.

The fifth idea posits that dominant narratives shape everyone. As professionals, we also work with people with autism spectrum disorders (PoAS), their families, and companies. As we will discuss later, the organisations in which we work have their own dominant narratives that shape our lives, including the nature of the autism spectrum, what it means to be a PoAS, how PoAS behave in the workplace, and more. Realising the way that these narratives shape our every-day practice and our client’s every-day lives will help us to better evaluate a situation, to better understand our clients and their social environment, and to be able to develop better lasting strategies that will assist PoAS not only in getting a job but also in maintaining it.   We believe that exploring how dominant narratives  create different dynamics in relationships will give professionals the ability to better  understand the environment of the client, the client themselves, but also their (the professional’s) self and how they interact and co-shape reality. This will offer the opportunity to develop a full person-centred approach and to create a plan that is deeply tailored to the needs, strengths, weaknesses, etc. of the client.

So many autism-work discourses exist that we cannot cover them all. We will present some of the most dominant ones, based on our experience, to give professionals concrete examples. 

A medical and psycho-neuro-biological perspective dominates the prevailing discourse about autism, primarily viewing it as a developmental disorder resulting from neuro-biological conditions that cause issues like poor communication and social skills, as well as repetitive or restricted behaviours or interests. This point of view highlights a deficit model of autism: it requires correction as it is not, in any way, considered “normal”. Rather, it portrays autism as a pathological condition. In this regard, the interventions are directed towards either “fixing” the deficits or addressing some environmental variables (for example, a model of rights approach to disability) in order for society to be more “inclusive”. Both concepts, though different, emphasise that there is a “normal” way of being (normative, common, etc.) and that it is best. Whatever deviates from this conception of “normality” is therefore stigmatised. At best, it is treated with pity or a need to be “fixed”, and it is at some level  excluded from society. 

Therefore, the standard practice of diagnosing autism through the identification of deficits leaves PoAS and the family with a narrative that is negative, confusing, and marginalising. This leads to increased stress and a substantial difficulty in understanding the individual’s worldview. 

This approach to the diagnostic process and conversation has remained largely in place even though the understanding of the autism spectrum has advanced over the past 40 years. Furthermore, it ignores the action and interaction, also known as enaction, that takes place between individuals with autism and their environment, as well as the process of co-creating meaning.

An alternative narrative, in contrast to this approach, suggests that we can analyse autism by describing patterns of behaviour instead of using diagnostic labels (Monteiro, 2016). We understand autism not as a pathological or abnormal condition, but as a unique way of understanding and interacting with the world, which is in no way inferior to the normal.  “Autism” is not a diagnosis anymore but a description of a particular worldview that is distinctive in how it organises, regulates, thinks, and behaves in relation to others. 

This might, at first glance, seem like a minor adjustment, but it can actually help professionals move past the stigmatisation of the diagnosis and overcome preconceived and negative notions of autism in order to reach a highly individualised understanding of the client, which transcends diagnosis. This understanding, in turn, can help us develop personalised strategies regarding PoAS, their family, and their specific social context towards their inclusion in the open labour market. At the same time, it  paves the way to overcome the stigma of autism  when communicating with possible employers. 

An important implication emerging from the comparison between the deficit and the descriptive model of autism relates to the power of language. We at NARRATE believe that the language we use within our cultural groups strongly shapes how we think, feel, and engage with the world (Beaudoin & Monk, 2024). The deficit model of autism proposes a language that uses words like “disorder” or “illness” to address autism, while the descriptive model is more interested in supporting PoAS describe their life experience through their own words. We believe that by exploring how linguistic forces shape our lives, we can help individuals liberate themselves from limiting stories and embrace more empowering ones. The NARRATE approach places significant emphasis on language: by reflecting on our language use and actively reframing our stories, we can confront stigma and introduce new perspectives to ourselves and the PoAS (ibid.). The unit Relationships In-House proposes a more in-depth exploration of the concept of language and its power within the context of helping relationships.

We believe it is helpful to highlight a few examples of the dominant narratives about the transition to work and what modern society expects from an employee in order to better understand the connections between the narratives of autism and work. Put differently, we need to consider the construction of employment in modern society. 

After the rise of neoliberalism as a system of governance in the 1970s, there has been a swift shift in the social citizenship discourse, with the rise of the term “citizen-worker”. In this new conceptualisation, a citizen is considered productive, autonomous, and expected to create his/her own pathway through self-realisation of goals and ambitions (Nouf Latif et al., 2019). People consider productivity, autonomy, and self-growth as highly significant values. This discourse extensively influenced disability policies as well as the active inclusion of people with disabilities in the open labour market. While this change represents a significant advancement in the integration of Persons with Autism Spectrum Disorders (PoAS) into the workforce, as per the dominant deficit model of autism, it is not without its challenges. In many cases, the dominant (neoliberal) discourse expects PoAS transitioning to the open labour market to be flexible, reasonable, sociable, and capable of multitasking. PoAS may face exclusion if they fail to meet these expectations.

At the same time, if, as we described earlier, autism is constructed in the medical paradigm with a focus on the deficits, achieving the status of an active citizen worker is quite difficult since, in many cases, PoAS are not considered to be capable of agency and ambition. Within this narrow definition of PoAS, the employment positions we would seek for them would also be quite limited (e.g., copying papers, assisting in warehouses, or working at supermarkets).

Each organisation that we as professionals work with and in has a specific organisational culture, which is both systematised (for example, with explicit and concrete goals, the general vision of a company, etc.) and underlying (attitudes and values that are not explicitly stated but highly influence the everyday practice of the professionals). A set of assumptions, values, and beliefs define the organisation’s culture. These values have an influence on the behaviour of organisation members and the way they act in their everyday practice (Gregory et al., 2009). 

Moreover, the organisation could experience an internal conflict of values. For example, some organisations might support the general goal/vision of including PoAS in the open labour market, fulfilling their “social responsibility”, but at the same time, in everyday practice, they might act in contrast to these explicit values of inclusion. 

In this regard, according to some authors (Pence & Svyantek, 2016; Gregory et al., 2009), the values of an organisation correlate with the employee’s effectiveness, their behaviour, and how they tackle different issues that arise. We believe that this is significant for the professionals working with PoAS, because understanding these underlying values and attitudes and where and how they interact with their own values can better shape their everyday practice and the way they approach their everyday work. For example, we might work with  an organisation that, for a variety of reasons, might not actively support—but at the same time does not strongly stand against—inclusion in the open labour market. At the same time, we might work with  organisations that seem to support inclusion in the open labour market on the visible front stage (public declarations, etc.), while on the invisible backstage (for instance, in everyday practice), they might not (Kuznetsova, 2020). This underlying or explicit value and attitude create material difficulties in the professional’s everyday work, such as imposing  barriers when the professional tries to include PoAS into the open labour market. Understanding the narratives and the explicit and implicit values of one’s organisation is important in order to be able to (if needed) challenge them, try to navigate around them, or embrace them when they seem beneficial for the inclusion of PoAS into the open labour market. So, learning about the companies that the professionals work for, both on a surface and an underlying level, is very important for making their strategies more effective and coming up with very specific plans for bringing PoAS into the open job market.

The fit between a person and their job is crucial for success, not just for individuals with disabilities but for all employees. This fit, known as Person-Organisation Fit (PO Fit), refers to the alignment of individual values with those of the organisation. PO Fit can be seen as the harmony between an individual’s values and the values of the organisation, such as being team-orientated or innovative (Chatman, 1989; Kristof, 1996; Cable & DeRue, 2002). PO Fit goes beyond skills and abilities and encompasses the broader social and organisational context, including the alignment of values between the employee and the company. In this sense,  a supportive and inclusive company environment is crucial for job retention and success. 

Therefore, focusing on the fit between PoAS and the job environment (matching the right person to the right job in the right environment) could significantly increase the chances of PoAS securing and retaining their position. At the same time, if the correct fit is in place, PoAS will be able not only to maintain a job but to actually succeed in their role (Pence & Svyantek, 2016). Understanding the social context of PoAS’ upbringing and its impact on their personal values and philosophical worldviews is crucial for developing person-centred strategies for their entry into the labour market. 

In this context, we hold the belief that comprehending the family’s narratives and actively collaborating with them is crucial in the PoAS journey towards work inclusion. Indeed, there is an interconnection between family factors (e.g., the socio-economic level of the family) (Chan et al., 2020),  parents’ expectations (Kirby, 2016), and employment. A supportive network can facilitate our work. On the other hand, a restrictive family network can actively hinder our work with our clients. 

Another element that, in our opinion, improves the PO Fit is the way people approach problems. In many cases, people—be they PoAS or non-PoAS—focus on “knowledge of problems”, that is, on identifying barriers, challenges and bad experiences. While it is important to understand the problems, their negativity can reinforce a feeling of helplessness or hopelessness. 

On the other hand, knowledge of solutions (Parker et al., 2020) helps identify strengths, resources and possibilities. It shifts the focus from “what is wrong” to “what can we do”:

  • How do we manage to find that solution?

  • What skills can we use to solve that issue?

  • What have we learnt after solving that problem?

This mind shift to solution is part of the NARRATE approach, which invites PoAS clients to pay attention to the things they can change and can use to get towards their goals. 

The following list provides examples of how to apply a more solution-oriented approach in analysing the environmental variables affecting our PoAS clients in their active search for a job or an occupation:

  • Physical environment

    • Living conditions, geography, etc. We can approach small businesses to explore employment opportunities by closely examining the physical surroundings of our customers. 

  • Social environment

    • Family dynamics, friendships and social networks, community connections, etc. By exploring the customers’ social networks, one can find adaptive solutions, such as in the workplaces of known individuals or by referencing these social networks. 

  • Cultural environment

    • Cultural norms, dominant narratives, cultural stigma, etc. These beliefs and norms shape the customer’s narratives, empowering them to find work in specific directions shaped by their beliefs, traditions, and expectations.

  • Institutional and structural environment

    • Access to services, economic factors, systematic barriers, etc. While many features of the institutional and structural environments might seem like problems, solutions might also be found in them, for example, barrier-reducing measurements such as inclusion, diversity initiatives, funds, or projects. 

  • Psychological and emotional environment

    • Internal beliefs and narratives, past trauma, emotional support systems. Analysing this environment can lead to insights and solutions that can help in different and new situations. Discovering the emotional support systems can lead to solutions to overcome problems. 

  • Digital environment 

    • Social media, access to technology, information exposure. The client’s worldview is also shaped by online narratives and content. Helping clients curate their digital environment by focusing on empowering and solution-orientated content can shift their perspective. By identifying positive online communities or networks, clients can find validation and constructive support for their goals. 

    • Focusing on available digital tools, such as free educational platforms or employment-focused websites can empower clients to develop new skills or find job opportunities

  • Historical and generational context

    • Family history, generational expectations, historical events, etc. By exploring family histories or historical events, solutions and inspiration can be found. These stories can work as motivational tools, helping to see opportunities instead of problems. 

  • Personal choices and behaviours within the environment

  • Lifestyle choices, coping mechanisms, etc. The client’s habits, routines, and personal priorities influence their interaction with their surroundings. Encouraging clients to identify small, sustainable changes in their routines can create momentum toward their goals. As well as working with customers to identify and strengthen adaptive coping mechanisms, this can lead to actionable solutions.

We already mentioned that dominant discourses about autism and work heavily influence the way we approach PoAS and support them in entering the labour market. Additionally, how we view ourselves as professionals impacts our strategies and approach to helping PoAS.

As we said earlier,  one of the aims of NARRATE is to help professionals deconstruct dominant narratives about themselves as persons and workers and about autism. In the context of this training, deconstruction is defined as the practice of interrogating a dominant narrative and asking how it establishes its legitimacy and authority over our lives and choices.

While it is important to deconstruct our own dominant narratives, we believe it is important to deconstruct our clients’ dominant narratives as well. As we already highlighted, the prevailing  narrative about autism is that it is a pathological condition. As a consequence of this broader narrative, PoAS may develop personal negative narratives about themselves. These narratives focus on life events confirming the idea that they are “sick” and “ill” persons and obliterate alternative versions of a life story, giving the illusion that problem-saturated narratives represent reality (Gergen, 1985). Professionals do not necessarily have to deconstruct the notion of diagnosis altogether, but they can help PoAS address it in a different, more empowering way. Such a practice could consider focusing on the positives and strengths of the autism spectrum diagnosis. For instance, a dominant narrative about PoAS describes them as highly organised. We can exploit this narrative, highlighting that “high organisational skills” can be great enabling factors for finding a job. Another example: the dominant narrative about PoAS having hyper-focus on certain things can be highlighted as an ability they can exploit to find their desired occupation in the open labour market. It is of great importance to recognise not only the deficits of the diagnosis but the positives as well. In this direction, the process of re-membering could prove quite valuable.

In the NARRATE Resource Kit  you will find  a number of exercises and ideas to support PoAS in shaping the narrative from powerlessness to competence, for instance:

  • Skill Cards, that is, a list of useful skills that our PoAS clients can enhance or learn from scratch with our support. We developed this list based on our professional experience and after conducting both desk and on-field research during the NARRATE approach development process.

  • Positive Redefinition is an exercise that aims to support PoAS in identifying their own strengths and reflecting on how to use them in the process of entering the labour market.

  • The Social Skills Self-reflection exercise aims to support people with autism spectrum disorders (PoAS) by raising their awareness of their social abilities and reflecting on how to enhance them during the process of finding a job or occupation.

As mentioned in the introduction, the aim of this unit is mainly to provide professionals with ideas to self-reflect about how personal and social dominant narratives affect their approach to working with PoAS. Furthermore, professionals can support PoAS in reflecting on their personal dominant narratives about themselves and how these are interconnected with the social dominant narratives they are exposed to—for example, the ones related to what autism is and what is not, and what are the requirements of the labour market. Through this reflective process, both professionals and PoAS have the opportunity to reflect whether and to what extent their personal dominant narratives are useful to reach their goals. From the PoAS’ side, the goal is successfully entering the labour market; from the professionals’ side, the goal is supporting their PoAS clients in this process.

Reflecting on the dominant narratives affecting our lives and our actions gives us new opportunities to change our personal narratives and develop descriptions of ourselves that are more aligned to our values and desires. In other words, it aids us in reframing our identity. We at NARRATE believe that identity is not  a fixed essence but a relational, distributed, performed, and fluid construct shaped by our interactions and cultural narratives (Combs & Freedman, 2016). Dominant narratives, like the medical perspective on autism that emphasises deficits, significantly influence how individuals perceive themselves and how society perceives them. These narratives often impose limiting identities, framing individuals like PoAS within deficit-based frameworks. However, our perceptions and responses to others within various cultural and social contexts co-construct our identity as it evolves through relationships. Identities emerge through interaction, and this works for everyone, be they PoAS or non-PoAS. This is why we give so much importance to the interaction between professionals and PoAS; this is why we conceptualised a construct in our framework that we called “WE”, and this is why we have developed this unit, which tries to give professionals ideas on how to deal with social dynamics and the way they impact their and their PoAS’ lives. Recognising this dynamic nature of identity allows professionals to critically deconstruct these dominant narratives, creating space for alternative, strength-based stories that empower individuals to redefine themselves. By embracing diversity in ways of being and fostering supportive environments, professionals can help PoAS navigate and transform these narratives into ones that support inclusion and competence in the labour market.

In this unit we explored the WE dimension of the W.O.R.K. framework, applied to the practice of supporting PoAS entering the labour market. As WE refers to the specific relationship between professionals and PoAS clients, we explored the idea that dominant narratives we have about us professionals, autism and the world in general shape the way we approach PoAS and the way we see the labour market.

Also, we explored the idea that PoAS’ dominant narratives about themselves and the world affect the way they approach the labour market.

For you as a professional, “self-reflection” and “deconstruction” are the keywords of this unit, as it invites you to start reflecting about how the way you see the world impacts the way you support entering the labour market.

How might the power concept we discussed in this unit affect your work with PoAS? 

How could you help PoAS exploit their power to enter the labour market?

How might the concepts of personal agency enrich your work with PoAS? And the deconstruction?

What is the most important lesson you learnt from the content of this unit?

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Combs, G., & Freedman, J. (2016). Narrative therapy’s relational understanding of identity. Family Process, 55(2), 211-224.

Kirby, A.V. (2016). Parent expectations mediate outcomes for young adults with autism spectrum disorder. Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 46, 1643-1655.

Chan, W., Smith, L.E., Hong, J., Greenberg, J.S., Lounds Taylor, J., & Mailick, M.R. (2018). Factors associated with sustained community employment among adults with autism and co-occurring intellectual disability. Autism, 22(7), 794-803.

Chatman, J.A. (1989). Improving interactional organizational research: A model of person-organization fit. Academy of Management Review, 14(3), 333-349.

Foucault, M. (1980). Power/knowledge: Selected interviews and other writings, 1972–1977 (C. Gordon, Ed.; C. Gordon, L. Marshall, J. Mepham, & K. Soper, Trans.). Brighton, UK: Harvester Press.

Foucault, M. (1982). The subject and power.  Critical inquiry, 8(4), 777-795.

Fors, M. (2021). Power dynamics in the clinical situation: A confluence of perspectives. Contemporary Psychoanalysis, 57(2), 242-269.

Freedman, J., & Combs, G. (1996). Narrative therapy: The social construction of preferred realities. New York: W. W. Norton & Co.

Gergen, K.J. (1985). Social constructionist inquiry: Context and implications. In K.J Gergen, K.E. Davis (Eds), The Social Construction of the Person (pp. 3–18). New York: Springer.

Gregory, B.T., Harris, S.G., Armenakis, A.A., & Shook, C.L. (2009). Organizational culture and effectiveness: A study of values, attitudes, and organizational outcomes. Journal of Business Research, 62(7), 673-679.

Kristof, A.L. (1996). Person‐organization fit: An integrative review of its conceptualizations, measurement, and implications. Personnel Psychology, 49(1), 1-49.

Kuznetsova, Y. (2016). An inclusive corporate culture: Examining the visible and invisible levels of disability inclusiveness in two large enterprises. Scandinavian Journal of Disability Research, 18(3), 179-190.

Monteiro, M.J. (2016). Family Therapy and the Autism Spectrum. Autism Conversations in Narrative Practice. London: Routledge.

Parker, M.L., Diamond, R.M., & Auwood, L.H. (2020). Exploring Exceptions and Discovering Solutions: A Case Presentation of Autism and the Family. Family Process, 59(4), 1891–1902.

Pence, S., & Svyantek, D.J. (2016). Person-organization fit and autism in the workplace. Journal of Business and Management, 21(2), 117-133.

White, M. (1995). The narrative perspective in therapy. In M. White (Ed.), Re-authoring lives: Interviews & essays. Adelaide: Dulwich Centre Publications.

White, M., & Epston, D. (1990).  Narrative means to therapeutic ends. London: W.W. Norton & Co.

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Ownership In-House

In this unit, we will explore some ideas that we think can be helpful in the process of empowering PoAS in their journey towards employment. The unit focuses on promoting PoAS’ awareness about their personal stories and the ways they tell them. In the context of NARRATE, with “ownership” we define the experience PoAS may develop of being the author of their stories by changing the language they use to tell these stories. Readers will gain knowledge about concepts such as authorship, externalisation, problem mapping, and reality-checking. These ideas may help build a background for PoAS that is about career development and how to approach the job market.

Through these insights, we advocate for a holistic approach to empower PoAS individuals to realise their employment aspirations.

We at NARRATE think that work and career are essential to realising self-actualisation. In our vision, and consistently with the epistemology behind NARRATE, people—be they PoAS or non-PoAS—want to find their purpose in life, and work is a dimension that significantly contributes to developing this sense of purpose and meaning.  Consequently, PoAS  should be capable of deciding what they want to do in their lives based on their own interests and passions. In other words, they should be able to express authorship, that is, become the authors of their own life stories and active seekers of their own life meaning.

For this reason, we suggest that professionals lead their PoAS clients from one step behind (Cantwell & Holmes, 1994). In other words, the approach should be allowing clients to make their own decisions and judgements, inviting them to reflect on the sense of their decisions and considering whether they are aligned to their values and principles. At times, we must give clients more direction or advice. Sometimes, instead, we just need to ask questions that invite our clients to reflect on the quality of their thoughts, decisions and actions. 

The process of asking reflective questions and letting our clients express their points of view and make their choices is not always an effortless task. It could imply deconstructing our beliefs about autism and its characteristics. Obviously, professionals working with PoAS have studied autism as a phenomenon and have adopted one or more explicative models that should help them better understand and support their clients. However, sometimes professionals fall into what is called the “reification fallacy”. In other words, it may happen that the models professionals apply are considered true descriptions and explanations of the reality of the autism spectrum. Reification assumes that everything related to the psychological dimension (dynamics, processes, mechanisms, illnesses, etc.) exists independent of the observer’s conceptualisation (Hoff, 2017). When we reify the autism spectrum, we treat it as if it were a given (Waterhouse, 2013). 

By considering their models as true things, professionals may risk approaching their work as “bringers of truth” and acting as if they were more experts of autism than PoAS themselves. As a consequence of this, professionals, often unconsciously, might lead PoAS to take some specific decisions because they expect PoAS to act, talk or think in specific ways, according to the autism models they adopt. At the same time, professionals could not accept some PoAS actions, discourses or thoughts because they are not aligned to these models. Conditions like these, in which PoAS are not treated as persons able to control their own lives, are not so uncommon.  They have been told the things they must do to improve their conditions, or are told the behaviours they are required to perform. Many of the institutions in which they are involved tend to be autocratic, with many rules, an overworked staff, and a pressure to “get on with it” (Abels, 2001). Asking reflective questions, instead, allows PoAS to express their own values, desires and preferences. It communicates to them that their stories are worth telling and being explored even further, and that their ideas and thoughts have as much dignity as the ones expressed by non-PoAS. 

The practice of asking questions has another benefit. It respects the idea that PoAS themselves are the actual narrators of their own story. White (2007) suggests that there are at least four stances a professional can adopt in a helping relationship (see Figure 1). At NARRATE, we prefer to take a decentred stance that is characterised by an attitude of respect, curiosity, and not knowing. In this position, professionals do not assume that they know the meaning of clients’ problems, what is important to them, and how they should live their lives. Rather, people are invited to categorise and reflect on their experiences and to take their own stance on how they prefer to live their lives. As a result of such a position,  clients may experience “personal agency and the capacity for responsible action” (White, 2007, p. 289), and they may feel empowered “to pursue what is precious to them” (p. 59). Taking a decentred position in practice refers to adopting a perspective that moves away from the traditional hierarchical structures and power dynamics. The management of the company or the professionals can adapt to this attitude. They can actively seek input from the PoAS but also from other coworkers at all levels and encourage open dialogue. The goal is to create an environment and culture of inclusivity where everyone’s contributions are valued. Instead of assuming a position of authority, a decentred role is assumed, where solutions are not being provided but sought after together actively. 

Figure 1. Michael White’s Model of Different Positions (Ilic, 2017).

Rather than focusing solely on deficits, the approach embraces a strength-based exploration, celebrating competences within the context of each individual’s story. This shift in perspective fosters a positive self-perception, laying the groundwork for empowerment.

From a professional standpoint, asking questions to PoAS clients means deconstructing our dominant professional narratives about autism and being open to enrich them with new points of view that may not be aligned with the theoretical models we have adopted (the concept of deconstruction is explored in the WE In-House unit). Asking reflective questions reminds us professionals that theories are primarily for explaining (van Rooij & Baggio, 2020; Fried, 2021). They should be useful, and they are useful just because they are simplified (Smaldino, 2020). Models ignore much of reality to be useful; in the same way, a map of Rome ignores much of reality to help us navigate Rome. We at NARRATE embrace this idea and suggest that professionals should consider their models when working with PoAS as maps of practices that provide them with useful insights to effectively support their clients. What do we mean by “effectively supporting our clients”? In our view, and consistent with the narrative approach informing NARRATE, it means applying our models as constructions that can be referred to for guidance on the journey we make with our clients to somehow improve their lives. Thus, professional maps of practice, rather than imposing interpretations of autistic functioning on our clients as real things or instructions for completing individual steps, aim to provide orientation in the terrain and outline potential paths. One can simply view them as a construction that arises from the exploration of practice and ideas (White 2007). At the same time, it is important to highlight that although diagnosis as a model might be useful as a general map for understanding certain characteristics of PoAS, not all PoAS share the same traits and characteristics in general and not on the same scale. Each PoAS has certain strengths and difficulties that are quite different from other PoAS. In this sense, no professional map of practice we adopt is an essential requirement for supporting PoAS in their journey into the labour market. The application of a specific map of practice is not a matter of truth but a matter of utility. At most, a map of practice can be useful, depending on the specific context and situation, as well as the specific client’s story. For this reason, our training also provides you with narrative-inspired maps of practice (White, 2007) to enrich your approach to working with PoAS, with the aim of exploring with them  their personal meaning of autism and looking for a place of employment that fits with their specific needs and interests, their strengths and weaknesses. We can suggest three exercises in the NARRATE Resource Kit that can help you explore and train the concept of “maps of practices”. Although these exercises are meant to help PoAS and companies, you can use them for self-professional development.

  1. Personal mapping. It allows you to explore your personal and professional maps of the world and, if necessary, develop new ones.

  2. Setting goals. It helps you set your personal and professional goals and define the most useful strategies and pathways to reach them. This means reflecting on your personal and professional maps and considering whether and how they are useful to you.

  3. Scaling. It helps you rate the usefulness, efficiency and effectiveness of your personal and professional maps and reflect on how to improve them to solve specific issues or reach your goals.

We can often feel overwhelmed by our problems. Sometimes we perceive our problems as so pervasive that we fail to see anything beyond them. For instance, failing  to get a job or employment can imply an overwhelming sense of personal failure, as—in our Western culture, at least—having a job or employment is a very significant aspect of people’s lives that contributes to shaping their identity at a very core level (Winslade, 2002). Other problems that some people face in their journey to the labour market could be the fear of handling a job interview or entering a company context they do not like. Sometimes, these problems so permeate our lives that they shape our perception of ourselves, our lives, and our interactions with others (White & Epston, 1990).

We at NARRATE firmly believe that PoAS are not exempt from these dynamics. Fear of not finding a job, of not being able to interact with managers or colleagues, or of not managing to properly express their own needs and desires in the workplace, or else, the sense of failure for not getting an occupation or for being fired, can significantly impact PoAS’ self-narratives. 

In similar situations, an interesting approach can be helping PoAS re-author and map the influence of the problem in their lives.

The idea of re-authoring is based on the assumption that no one story can possibly encapsulate the totality of a person’s experience; there will always be inconsistencies and contradictions. The events of our lives can always create other storylines. As such, our identities are not single-storied—no one story can sum us up. According to Russell & Carey (2004), our identities are multi-storied. 

Re-authoring conversations with PoAS on the job search can be applied in two dimensions. First, assist them in confronting and recounting the challenges that prompted them to seek assistance. We need to unpack, deconstruct, and rewrite problematic narratives by providing them with alternative perspectives. We will outline this practice of re-authoring the problem through externalisation and problem mapping here.

The second dimension of the application of re-authoring consists in establishing conversations focused on PoAS’ strengths rather than their weaknesses. We invite readers to read the KNOWLEDGE In-House unit, which more thoroughly explores this practice of re-authoring through strength-based conversations.

Externalising the problem

By the time people seek professional help, they have often reached a stage where they perceive themselves or something about them as problematic (Ibid.). The problem has become “internalised”. People often understand problems as “internal”, as if they reflect something about their nature or “inner self”. “I am the problem” can be the explicit or implicit statement people make when asking for professional support. This understanding guides their problem-solving, which unfortunately worsens the situation. This makes people even more convinced that their issues are a reflection of certain “truths” about themselves, others, or their relationships. People feel their problems are internal to themselves or others—that they are the problem. This belief pushes people deeper into their problems. (White, 2007).

Externalisation proposes an alternative to internalising practices. It locates problems not within individuals but as products of culture and history. We understand problems as socially constructed and created over time. The aim of externalising practices is therefore to enable people to realise that they and the problem are not the same thing (Russell & Carey, 2004).

A common way to use externalisation is asking questions that scaffold a linguistic change: from “I am the problem” to “I practice (act, do, relate to…) the problem”. For example, we can ask questions in which we change the adjectives that people use to describe themselves into nouns. Consider a PoAS saying that he is “incapable of handling a job interview” (internalised language); in this case, we can ask questions like: 

  • How does this incapacity influence you during job interviews?

  • Does this incapacity affect other aspects of your life?

  • In which situations is this incapacity stronger? In which is it weaker?

Another example is asking questions to help PoAS personify the problem. For instance:

  • How would you depict this incapacity visually? Would it be a person? An animal? An object?  

  • If it is a person, is it old or young? What is his or her outfit? How is his or her hair? How are his or her eyes? 

  • Does he or she speak? If so, what does he or she say to you?

A final example is asking questions that invite PoAS to consider the problem as an action they take or a habit they have. For instance:

  • How did your life change when you started to adopt the habit of incapacity in your life?

  • What would happen in terms of finding a job if you went on practicing incapacity during job interviews?

By posing these types of questions, the person establishes some distance from the issue, enabling them to begin reevaluating their relationship with it. By reevaluating the relationship with the problem, the person changes the way they talk about the problem—that is, they re-author their narrative about their experience with the problem, which is no longer a failed aspect of the self but an issue they are in relation to, or a practice they adopt.

We at NARRATE believe externalisation may be significantly useful to PoAS to limit the effect of self-blaming, which is inherent in internalised discourses about problems. PoAS are no longer problematic individuals; at most, they engage in problematic actions or have adopted problematic habits. These new narratives of the problem provide new insight for asking questions that may not be provided by internalised discourses. For example, if we describe the problem as an action, 

  • According to which criteria is this action considered problematic?

  • In which situations is this action problematic? In which situations is this action less problematic or even beneficial?

  • How could PoAS modify this action to his or her own advantage?

Externalising the diagnosis

As Monteiro (2016) highlights, a diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) introduces a strong story line for individuals. While some people find the diagnosis helpful in understanding their puzzling behaviours and why they have such a challenging time meeting expectations in different social settings, like at work, at home, or at school, the label of autism itself makes individuals more likely to think that they are problematic. In fact, psychology and psychiatry frequently explain the diagnosis as a narrative of an existing issue, problematic behaviours, or developmental disability (for a more thorough examination of the connection between diagnosis and power, see the WE In-House section). Individuals diagnosed with ASD often search for information about autism or Asperger’s syndrome, attempting to draw connections between their personal experiences and the behavioural traits described in various texts and a wide range of online resources. None of the listings align perfectly, eliciting feelings of anxiety, confusion, frustration, and even doubt to varying extents. One website and accompanying checklist serve as a gateway to another, subsequently leading to numerous additional resources. Personal narratives, treatment recommendations, and guidelines regarding appropriate and inappropriate actions accumulate in an increasingly overwhelming manner (ibid.).

In a similar framework, externalising the diagnosis when it is considered overwhelmingly problematic by the person looking for a job can be highly useful. By separating the person from the problematic diagnosis, we limit the practice of self-blaming and decrease the effects of the problematic internalised narrative the person has developed about himself or herself. We invite the person to view themselves not as autistic, but as an individual dealing with autism, adopting the autism habit, or engaging in autistic actions. 

At NARRATE, we understand that some of our readers may find the practice of externalising autism objectionable. The prevailing narrative about autism is that it is an internal condition, and research has been trying to demonstrate the biological causes of autism for decades—even though, to this day, the neurobiological research does not support a categorical definition of autism (Levy, 2022). However, externalising is not about what is “true” and what is not. We do not suggest that autism is really an action, nor do we suggest it is really an internal disease. Externalising the diagnosis is a way of speaking that might help PoAS see their experience from a different angle, letting them explore parts of their story that they cannot get to when they are talking about it through internalised discourses. Externalising the diagnosis allows to enrich PoAS’ experience about their existential condition, which has been labelled “ASD” or “Asperger’s syndrome”, so that they can have useful insight about how it impacts their journey into the labour market. Examples of questions that can be used to externalise the autism diagnosis include:

  • Can you tell me three elements characterising your personal relationship with Autism?

  • The name you received to describe your existential condition is “autism spectrum disorder”. Do you like this name? If you do, why? If you do not, why? How would you call it instead?

  • Imagine Autism as a living being. Can you describe its appearance? Is it a human being, an animal, or something else? Does it talk? If so, what does it say to you?

  • On a scale from 0 to 10, how much impact does Autism have on your life?

Mapping the problem

Once we externalise the problem, be it the diagnosis or some other issue negatively impacting our clients, we can work with them in exploring how it actually affects their journey into the labour market. Basically, professionals and PoAS together develop a map of the problem’s effects on the PoAS’ lives. The map concentrates on the following components:

    • Developing the story of the consequences of the presence of the problem in the clients’ search for a job, in terms of behaviours, decisions, thoughts and feelings. Example of questions:

  • What does Autism say to you to discourage applying for that job? 

  • Could you describe the three emotions you experience when Incapacity becomes so significant in your life that you believe you will never find employment?  

  • What decisions have you taken so far that you think are influenced by the Fear-of-not-being-able-to-talk-to-employers?

  • Describe the ways and times when the problem intensifies in the lives of PoAS. Example of questions:

    • In which aspects of the process of looking for a job is Autism stronger?

    • What makes Incapacity more impactful in job interviews?

    • What is the Fear-of-not-being-able-to-talk-to-employers saying to you now, while you are speaking with me?

In our opinion, externalising the problems and mapping their effects in our clients’ journey into the labour market are very helpful practices to raise their sense of ownership. They have the opportunity to learn that changing the language changes their life experience and that, just by doing this, they can retell their problematic stories differently. This, in turn, enhances their sense of agency because they learn that a simple change in their language can change the way they see and approach the problems. 

We at NARRATE believe that the enhancement of PoAS’s sense of ownership also involves exploring the rules guiding the specific working context they wish to join, as well as the labour market in general. Through externalisation and problem mapping, individuals become more aware of the obstacles they face due to their existential condition, and they learn to discuss these obstacles in a non-blaming and restrictive manner. We need to extend this awareness to the obstacles and requests they might face in the workplace. The practice of reality-checking helps us reach this aim. 

A core idea of NARRATE is that  reality is a social construction, a mediation of meaning among all the actors in that specific social context. So, what does “reality check” mean in such a conceptual framework? 

A reality check means that the PoAS job seekers make sure, together with a professional, that their work performance, abilities, interests, and education are in line with their employment goals. 

People make their future employment choices based first and foremost on the images they have of different jobs and professions (Järvi, 1997). Consequently, imagination plays a part in how people view certain professions and decide which jobs would best suit their interests and abilities.
During a reality check, the professional can use lists of different industries and career paths that the PoAS can pursue and add additional information about what concrete tasks these professions include. Together, the professional and PoAS can discuss which jobs best match their performance, abilities, education, talents, and interests. Such a discussion will add clarity about what kind of job and career the PoAS wants to pursue. 

Also, a reality check means helping PoAS consider the employer’s goals and expectations. This has important implications. As we already highlighted, at some level the NARRATE approach aims to help both professionals and PoAS deconstruct their dominant narratives and find more useful perspectives in their landscapes of meaning. Obviously, employers have their own dominant narratives, too. PoAS need to be aware that the potential employers have their own narratives of the world that they see as truth. For example, punctuality, politeness, projecting a positive attitude, and dressing appropriately may be considered by the employer as signs of good and professional behaviour. 

Although the NARRATE In-Company training tier covers this topic, it is not always possible to deconstruct and improve the employer’s dominant narratives. In some cases, if PoAS want to enter a specific working context, they are required to accept some of the employer’s dominant narratives. Consequently, a significant issue could emerge. When personal experiences are in conflict with dominant narratives, it can create a narrative gap, a cognitive dissonance of sorts. Cognitive dissonance can be defined as the discomfort people feel when their behaviour does not align with their values or beliefs. In the same sense, this narrative tension or feeling of unreality can happen when questioning narratives. In the perspective of the PoAS customers, they might not agree with the employer’s dominant narrative as a reality; for example, the idea that being dressed a certain way is unprofessional. From the employers’ side, dominant or alternative narratives that do not match their perceived reality might cause tension and lead to unlikeliness to hire a potential candidate.
We at NARRATE believe that there are different ways for PoAS to solve this issue. For example, the customer can decide to change his/her professional goals and abandon the idea of searching for employment in that specific context. Alternatively, the customer can learn how to mediate his/her values with the employer’s values. In other words, PoAS can consider whether and how to deconstruct their values, needs, and principles to better communicate with the employer’s values, principles and needs.

Questions to help PoAS in this process could be:

Which values of yours are you willing to change to meet the employer’s requests? To what extent? Which values are you unwilling to compromise on?

What would happen if you applied those values with more flexibility? What negative effects would you experience? What positive effects would you get?

How would the changes to your values impact your professional image in the employer’s eyes?

These are just some examples of questions inviting our PoAS clients to reflect on how and to what extent they are willing to mediate with the working context they would like to work in. 

When should a reality check be done? 

A reality check can add benefits during the time that things get difficult, but it can actually be done at many points in the journey towards employment. If the aims that have been set are not realistic—that is, they are not aligned with the employment goals—they can be moved and broken down into smaller parts. People may not always be able to secure their dream job immediately, and they may have to accept jobs that diverge slightly from their initial aspirations. Skills can improve in the future, and the dream job can still be achieved. But when there are difficulties on the path towards employment, the reality check might help in changing the goals to be easier to achieve.

Breaking down the dream job into smaller steps might be one way to address this issue. While a dream job is important to have as a motivating factor, breaking down the steps towards this goal might help make it more achievable. Maybe it is better to settle for a  job where you can still develop skills that are needed to do your ultimate dream job. This might delay the time towards being employed in the dream job, but it does not steer the PoAS away from their initial goal. When we talked about empowerment, we stressed the importance of having goals as motivation for the PoAS in their journey towards employment. 

Reality check topics can contain, but are not limited to: 

  • Alignment of employment goals with abilities, interests, education, and talents 

  • Work environment

  • Road towards dream employment

  • Honest feedback

  • Adjusting employment goals

The following exercises from the toolkit can be used to practice these concepts: 

  • Social skills self-reflection

  • Desires and requirements for the workplace 

  • Worklife direction   

  • Work wishes  

Examples of topics to be discussed: 

Are the job seeker’s employment goals in line with his abilities, interests, education, work performance, and talents?
The professional, together with the PoAS, can make an assessment to evaluate the PoAS’ interests, education, work performance, and personality type. They can help identify strengths and weaknesses based on the assessment. The professional can provide guidance and support and explore, together with the PoAS, different career options when necessary. 

Is there a need to change the work environment for a PoAS employee, and if so, how should we change it?

With the assistance of a professional, a PoAS job seeker should think about which work task challenges appear, how big they are, and whether the job seeker’s professional skills could be advanced so that the challenges would disappear or get solved.  Would changing the work environment diminish the challenges? If so, how should the environment be modified? It is also beneficial to think about how much commitment a job requires from the employee. In many jobs, continuous learning is nowadays a fact.

People’s route to dream jobs can take time

In work life, employees are hired in placements that suit their abilities and interests. So, finding a job that suits not only your interests but also your abilities and educational level is a key matter. Especially in the early stages of your career, you may not have the luxury of being overly selective, and you may have to settle for a job that doesn’t align with your preferences. Overall, people go through many phases on their way to finding suitable long-term employment: getting a basic education and further education, trying different jobs and also jobs that won’t fit their educational level, leaving jobs on probation, having only short temporary contracts, working “only” for getting paid, and so on. This path is normal for the average individual, and it also applies to those with special needs. Emphasising the importance of job-seeking qualities like persistence, endurance, and patience is crucial for PoAS. Those with traits that may complicate job hunting will need to work harder to succeed.

Honest feedback is a positive thing and will help a PoAS job seeker move forward

Another point to be highlighted is that it is very important for a job seeker to get honest feedback on his or her talents and possibilities in a position. Even if a job seeker is found unsuitable for some job, this will help him or her to think of more suitable career options.
This way, even the negative outcomes from job experiments, trainee’s positions, or short-term jobs that will come to an end are positive since they will help the person find his or her direction.  Professionals can help set specific and clear job goals and inspire job seekers to go towards them. During employment, it’s also important to set realistic career development goals.

Visiting workplaces to support realistic employment goals

Special education institutes and companies can arrange short periods at the company premises for students to get to know the work life. All visits to the real work life and work practice programmes will support students’ more realistic view of work life, and these can steer pupils in the right direction when planning their future employment. The companies might get social support (money from the government) to fit the work environment to the special needs of an employee or for the pay of these employees. A good example is Job Shadow Day, which is held every spring in Finland, where one of the partners in the NARRATE Consortium comes from. On that day, job seekers can get to workplaces to follow the work of employees. The day has been a good way to increase knowledge of the abilities that people with disabilities have and a good way to help young people get familiar with working life.

Altering the work environment to better suit PoAS employees

Accommodations can support an employee’s performance at work; these changes do not have to be big or noticeable. Often, small adaptations can already be beneficial. Accommodations can be made for neurotypical people and people on the autism spectrum, but they have the same goal of increasing work comfort and work performance. Discuss with the potential employer what changes would be realistic and what could help the PoAS during their employment. An experiment period might also be an option where a few days could be organised to see if the accommodations are sufficient for the PoAS and if the employer is happy to make these changes for a longer period of time. 

Making changes and accommodations is not always possible in the workplace, even when they are necessary for the PoAS. This constrains the range of jobs that the individual in question can perform. For instance, if the PoAS has sensory issues, they may find it challenging to work in environments with high noise or odour, such as warehouses or busy shopping centres. Even when the PoAS has all the right skills, talents, and interests and wants to work in these places, some challenges might prove too difficult to overcome. This is where a reality check can provide clarity and direction for the PoAS. They can take into account factors that they have previously not thought about while looking for suitable employment. 

This unit describes three practices to enhance PoAS’ sense of ownership in their journey into the labour market. In the context of NARRATE, with “ownership” we define the experience PoAS may develop of being the author of their stories by changing the language they use to tell these stories. The PoAS’ re-authoring of their life story involves choosing the lens through which they would prefer to view a problem associated with their career or work life (Mate et al., 2023). Externalising and mapping the problem on one side, and reality-checking on the other, are possible ways to help PoAS feel in charge and change the way they see themselves as persons, professionals, and/or workers, as well as the world of work.

After becoming aware of their stories and how they tell them, PoAS are likely to change them. The KNOWLEDGE In-House unit provides readers with insight to practically support their clients in developing personal and professional alternative stories to reach their employment goals.

Introduce the concept of externalising conversations in your daily work: what action would you take first?

Introduce the concept of problem mapping in your daily work: what action would you take first?

What are, in your opinion, the benefits of externalising conversations? What are the challenges?

What are, in your opinion, the benefits of problem mapping? What are the challenges?

Upon reflection on the concept of reality checks in aligning employment goals with individual abilities, how can you incorporate this approach into your practice to ensure an achievable career development plan for PoAS?

Reflecting on the discussion about workplace adjustments and visits, what steps can you take to advocate for and facilitate a supportive and inclusive work environment for PoAS individuals in collaboration with employers and relevant stakeholders?

What is the most important lesson you learnt from the content of this unit?

Cantwell, P., & Holmes, S., (1994). Social construction: A paradigm shift for systemic therapy and training. The Australian and New Zealand Journal of Family Therapy, 15, 17-26.

Fried, E.I. (2020). Theories and models: What they are, what they are for, and what they are about. Psychological Inquiry, 31(4), 336–344.

Hoff, P. (2017). ‘On reification of mental illness: Historical and conceptual issues from Emil Kraepelin and Eugen Bleuler to DSM-5’. In K.S. Kendle &  J. Parnas (Eds), Philosophical Issues in Psychiatry IV: Psychiatric Nosology. New York, NY: Oxford University Press, pp. 107–117.

Huffcutt, A.I., Conway, J.M., Roth, P.L., & Stone, N.J. (2001). Identification and meta-analytic assessment of psychological constructs measured in employment interviews. Journal of Applied Psychology, 86(5), 897–913.

Ilic, D. (2017). Conversation analysis of Michael White’s decentered and influential position. Doctoral dissertation. Publications of the Nova Southeastern University.

Järvi, P. (1997). Ammattimielikuva. Ammattimielikuva osana ammatillisen suuntautumisen prosessia [The occupational image. The occupational image as a part of the vocational orientation process]. Doctoral dissertation. Publications of the Turku School of Economics and Business Administration.

Levy, Y. (2022) ASD–Time for a paradigm shift. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 13, 956351.

Mate, S., Gregory, K., & Ryan, J. (2024). Re-authoring career narratives: Exploring identity in contemporary careers practice. British Journal of Guidance & Counselling, 52(1), 7–18.

Monteiro, M. (2006). Family therapy and the autism spectrum. Autism conversations in narrative practice. New York: Routledge.

Russell, S., & Carey, M. (2004). Narrative therapy: Responding to your questions. Adelaide: Dulwich Centre Publications.

Smaldino, P.E. (2020). How to translate a verbal theory into a formal model. Social Psychology, 51(4), 2017-2018.

van Rooij, I., & Baggio, G. (2021). Theory before the test: How to build high-verisimilitude explanatory theories in psychological science. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 16(4), 682-697.

Waterhouse, L. (2013). Rethinking Autism: Variation and Complexity. London: Elsevier Academic Press.

White, M. (2007). Maps of Narrative Practice. New York, NY: WW Norton.

White, M., & Epston, D. (1990). Narrative Means to Therapeutic Ends. New York, NY: W.W. Norton & Co.

Winslade, J. (2002). Storying professional identity. From an interview with John Winslade. International Journal of Narrative Therapy and Community Work, 4, 33-38.

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Relationship In-House

In this unit, we explore how to exploit social interactions to support PoAS  trying to enter the labour market. The unit’s first part focuses on the idea of relationships as mutual influence processes and applies it to the context of the helping relationships established by professionals and PoAS. More specifically, the unit introduces the concepts of Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) and scaffolding, and describes a practice map for applying them in everyday work with PoAS.

In the final section of the unit, we will also go into detail about the practice of re-membering, which is a crucial tool for comprehending the unique experiences and challenges faced by PoAS, assisting them in effectively communicating their needs and desires, and assisting them in overcoming any feelings of social exclusion they may be experiencing as a result of their diagnosis.

As explored more in depth in the WE In-House unit, power dynamics are inherent in every relationship. All the people engaged in a relationship bring their narratives and contribute to the dialogical system with their meanings and knowledge. In other words, people engage in relationships with their personal agencies.  

Consequently, all people involved in a relationship mutually influence each other with their personal ideas, values and actions. Relationships become teaching and learning contexts as a result of this process: every actor teaches his/her interlocutors and, at the same time, learns from them. First and foremost, all actors teach their personal narratives of the world to the others and learn all the others narratives of the world. 

If we think of the relationship between a professional and a PoAS client as one of mutual influence, then we can say that professionals teach their customers about their maps of practice (and maps of the world) in both direct and indirect ways. At the same time, PoAS customers, by incorporating their personal narratives into the relationship, teach the professionals in both direct and indirect ways. 

Taking this into consideration, what if both professionals and PoAS increased their understanding of the teaching and learning aspect of their relationship and leveraged it to more effectively assist PoAS in entering the job market?

The idea of highlighting and exploring the teaching and learning aspect of helping relationships comes from White (2007), who made extensive reference to the work of Russian psychologist Lev Vygotsky (1978, 1987), especially to the concepts of Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) and scaffolding. Vygotsky (1978) emphasised that learning was an achievement not of independent effort but of social collaboration. In this sense, ZPD is “the distance between the actual developmental level as determined by independent problem solving and the level of potential development as determined through problem solving under adult guidance or in collaboration with more capable peers” (p. 86). ZPD crosses the gap between known and possible knowledge, where learning occurs. According to Vygotsky, ZPD is traversed through social collaboration between a learner and some other person with greater—or perhaps just different—knowledge of a concept at hand (Ramey et al., 2010). Only by breaking down the developmental gap into manageable tasks can we achieve ZPD. These initially structured tasks, which facilitate a gradual shift from collaborative to independent performance, serve as a scaffold for children’s conceptual development. Verbal interactions provide the starting point for concept formation. The learning collaborator or partner assists the learner to distance themselves from their immediate experience and thereby to “stretch her or his mind” (White, 2007, p. 272), making new connections that lead to the development of higher-level thinking. This makes it possible for concepts about life and identity to develop, which supplies the foundation for deliberate actions to shape the course of life (Ibid.).

Related to ZPD is the process of scaffolding, which identifies the support of the learning process by providing a first complete orientation basis in the form of instructions or food for thought. Once the learner is able to complete certain subtasks on his or her own, this scaffolding is gradually removed, like scaffolding on a building site (Shvartz & Bakker, 2019).

As the application of ZPD and scaffolding concepts in working with PoAS is well documented (e.g., Vivanti & Rogers, 2014; Myburgh et al., 2020), we at NARRATE believe that White’s Scaffolding Map (White, 2007), which is inspired by Vygotsky’s ideas, is a useful map of practice for professionals helping PoAS in their journey to the labour market. In the Scaffolding Map, the professional’s role is elucidated as supporting people in distancing themselves from the known and familiar that is reproduced in their relationships with problems. Professionals provide scaffolding by asking incremental questions that support movement from the “known and familiar” to “what is possible to know and do”. Both professionals and clients work in partnership to traverse ZPD. Professionals’ scaffolding allows clients to distance themselves from aspects of problems so that they can develop new conceptions of self, identity, problems, and resources. Distance and increased mastery over concepts invite clients to gradually exercise personal agency over the problems they are struggling with or with the solutions they may have already begun to find, but that may be lacking a strong foundation for continuance (Ramey et al., 2010). 

According to Chan et al. (2020), the Scaffolding Map is a hierarchy of questions with increasing levels of generalisation. The following table outlines the steps. The questions proposed in the table are just examples professionals can use as inspiration to construct all the questions they need to ask, considering the specific contexts of their customers’ stories.

DISTANCING LEVEL

EXAMPLES OF QUESTIONS

FROM WHAT IS KNOWN OR FAMILIAR

Naming the problem / Naming the initiative taken to solve a specific problem

How would you name the problem you experience in the pathway to finding a job?

Can you tell me about an initiative you have already taken to solve this problem?

Exploring the consequences of the problem / the initiative on the person’s life

Could you identify three consequences that result from the difficulty you are having in finding a job? 

Can you describe how this initiative affected your career goals?

Evaluating the consequences of the problem / the initiative on the person’s life

From 0 to 10, how would you rate the problem of not managing a successful job interview? 

Would you say that the initiative you took to search for a job was a more positive or a more negative experience?

Considering the lesson learnt from analysing this experience

What can you learn from the exploration of the problem of finding a job we have done so far?

What does the initiative you took say about you as a person?

TO WHAT IS NOT KNOWN YET

Developing an action plan for change based on the lesson learnt

Considering the lesson learnt, what is the very first step you would take?

How would you improve your approach to the working dress code with this new knowledge you have gained?  

 Table 1. Scaffolding Map (White, 2007)

The Scaffolding Map is an example of how to consciously exploit social interaction as a way to improve professionals’ and PoAS’ knowledge and skills.

What can PoAS teach us?

An intriguing consequence of considering relationships as mutual influence processes and applying this idea to working with PoAS is the assumption that, while we can teach PoAS, they can teach us as well.

We at NARRATE believe that applying this idea by asking PoAS questions to explore how they can influence other people’s lives with their story could be very useful for their empowerment. This practice invites PoAS to reflect on their personal agency because it highlights that they are the experts of their lives. Therefore, only they can explain how they live, use their skills, and build their own solutions. If we believe that everyone is an active agent in the world and that their actions always have an effect, whether they realise it or not (for a deeper look at personal agency, see the WE In-House unit), then this practice shows that PoAS’ knowledge about their own lives can benefit others. Examples of questions could be:

  • If you decided to share with others the story of your journey into the labour market, what do you think they would learn in the first place?

  • What lessons could your family learn from your preparation for the job interview?

  • How could you positively influence the company’s working environment with your personal values? 

Investigating the lessons PoAS can impart to professionals could be an intriguing topic to delve into. If PoAS—like all types of people—always impact the world somehow, they obviously influence professionals’ lives, too. Some professionals may perceive this practice as “dangerous,” as it deconstructs their role as all-knowing experts. In this regard, White (1994) suggests that the helping relationship does not simply benefit the client. The contact with clients benefits professionals’ lives as well. Therefore, professionals are privileged because they are invited into others’ struggles and successes. Professionals can experience inspiration as they see people change their lives in spite of formidable odds. Through interaction with clients, professionals have the opportunity to experience new ideas, strategies and solutions that they can use in their personal lives. We at NARRATE believe that White’s suggestion is really meaningful and allows us to explore untrodden paths in terms of professional growth. 

From the PoAS’s side, the idea that they can influence with their thoughts, decisions and actions the professional’s life can be very empowering, as it exploits the dominant narrative of professionals as all-knowing experts and consequently experts of PoAS’ lives and experiences, too. That is, although you are defined as a PoAS, you can impact people’s lives with your story, even the lives of the experts supporting you. 

Professionals themselves could spontaneously share with their clients what they learnt from them and ask them for feedback. Alternatively, professionals could ask questions; here are a few examples:

  • What do you think you taught me during the period we worked together?

  • What do you think I can learn from the reflection you shared with me in this session concerning how to handle a job interview? 

  • If you thought about one important lesson you gave me, what could it be?

  • Would it be a problem if I shared what you taught me with other colleagues of mine?

Re-membering practices stem from the notion that our relationships with others shape our identities. White (1997) posits that a metaphorical club of life, rather than a core self, shapes our identities. The significant figures and identities from a person’s past, present, and projected future comprise this club of life, their voices influential in shaping their identity. The club of life represents people who have positively impacted the PoAS life and identity. This can include friends, family, mentors or historical figures. This can also include prominent figures in the world of autism, which can be an inspiration and add meaning to that identity (Temple Grandin, Greta Thunberg, etc.). You can also find or build the club of life closer to home; for instance, autism activism and activist groups can significantly influence an individual’s life goals and aspirations. Activism can bring people together around common values and goals, creating a sense of belonging and solidarity. These shared connections can become part of an individual’s club of life and add identity and purpose. 

In NARRATE, re-membering plays a pivotal role in understanding the experiences and challenges faced by PoAS. Thinking about PoAS’ lives as clubs with members offers new possibilities for supporting them. The hyphen is important in thinking about the distinctions between re-membering and remembering, as it draws our attention to this notion of membership rather than to a simple recall of history.

Within NARRATE, the process of re-membering involves working together to rebuild the stories that shape a person’s understanding of themselves and their experiences with autism, especially in the area of work inclusion. By engaging in this collaborative process of re-membering, PoAS  can cultivate a more authentic and empowering understanding of themselves, grounded in their own lived experiences and aspirations. This process not only promotes psychological well-being and resilience but also contributes to a broader cultural shift towards more inclusive and affirming perspectives on autism .

Through the process of re-membering, PoAS and their carers can:

    • Explore and make sense of past events, interactions, and emotions within the context of their unique life .  Examples of questions:

  • Can you tell me about one initiative you took in the past to find a job?

  • Which loved ones would be glad to know you took this step? Why?

      • What does the taking of this initiative tell about you as a person? And as a worker? 

    • Examine the broader narratives that shape one’s identity and sense of self. For PoAS, re-membering may involve reflecting on their journey of self-discovery, navigating social interactions, and overcoming obstacles in the workplace or educational settings. By engaging in this process of re-membering, PoAS can reclaim agency over their narratives, challenge societal stereotypes and misconceptions, and construct empowering narratives that celebrate their strengths, resilience, and unique perspectives. Example of questions:

  • Have you ever been in a situation where you experienced a significant sense of distress? If so, could you describe how you handled the situation?

  • Could you identify three skills you used to handle that situation?

  • Who taught you these skills? 

  • Imagine using these three skills to find a job. What would happen?

    • Change the memberships of their club of life: upgrade some, downgrade others, honour some, revoke others, grant authority to some voices on personal identity, and disqualify others.

  • Is there anyone in your circle who has imparted a valuable lesson that you can utilise in your job search?

  • Has this person ever said something kind to you in this period while you are looking for a job?

  • If he/she knew you were here getting help from me in your quest for a job, what would he or she say?

    • Think of the autism experience as a shared culture among all individuals receiving the diagnosis and their support systems. The narratives of the individuals directly involved in autism (PoAS and their entourages) and the social narratives about autism (such as scientific literature and therapeutic models) continuously shape this culture. In this case, the point is supporting PoAS in reflecting on the autism culture as they live it and considering whether and how to reshape their role in the autism community in a more suitable way for them.

  • What value can you bring to the job as a PoAS?

  • Imagine that the autism condition gives you both disadvantages and advantages. What advantages do you get from being a PoAS? What particular strengths and skills do you have for being a PoAS? How can these skills and strengths aid you in your career journey?

  • What benefits would the company environment receive from interacting with you as an autistic person?

In other words , re-membering becomes a transformative tool for fostering self-awareness, resilience, and empowerment for PoAS. In the process of re-membering we can encourage  PoAS  to reflect on who has been or could be part of their “club of life”. The conversations that happen during the process of re-membering create opportunities to reconnect with forgotten or undervalued relationships. However, it is also a beneficial idea to envision welcoming new members who could be future mentors, role models, or even aspects of themselves they want to enhance. When building new memberships, seeking out new tools, communities, or practices in the form of self-help can also contribute to the club of life. Joining a support group, attending workshops, or participating in online forums can expand the club of life with people who share similar goals and challenges, fostering resilience and growth. 

There are a number of exercises in the NARRATE Resource Kit that can help train on re-membering practices, for instance:

  • Identify areas of support, which aims identify dimensions of an individual’s life that can be enhanced through significant and nurturing relationships

  • My personal and social network, which help PoAS reflect on how to effectively exploit their club of life

  • What is connecting us, which helps PoAS train their social skills and reflect on their club of life. 

Re-membering and possible work scenarios

An intriguing way to apply the concept of re-membering to job seeking could be starting conversations with PoAS about including new people from work—for example, managers and co-workers—in their club of life in case they managed to find a job.  This helps PoAS reflect on possible scenarios regarding the establishment of important relationships and interactions with new people who, at some level, share with PoAS goals and values. Possible questions could be:

  • How would your life change in case you obtained the job and started to interact with your colleagues?

  • How could you react to manager pressure?

  • How would you handle invitations from your colleagues to spend the coffee break together?

    • How can you effectively communicate to your employer the potential impact of loud noise on your work performance in the company context?

  • How could you handle possible criticisms from your managers about, for instance, the way you relate to your colleagues or your way of organising work?

  • Imagine a scenario where you could work in the company of your dreams. On a scale from 0 to 10, how would you rate the effectiveness of communicating your needs in that scenario? What is the very first step you could do to increase this rate?

Conversations about hypothetical working situations, we believe, can be really helpful to PoAS, inviting them to take responsibility for their approach to life and effectively communicate their needs and desires at work. We empower them to confidently communicate their needs and challenges in everyday work life, and to understand the framework conditions at their workplaces. In this way, we can support PoAs to actively navigate the labour market by showcasing their strengths and fostering a perception among others that they are the true experts of their own lives.

Case Study

Background: Maria, a 28-year-old woman on the autism spectrum, has struggled to find stable employment. 

Intervention: Choosing to utilise the NARRATE approach, the professional assisting Maria encouraged her to delve deeper into it, as some prevailing societal narratives had influenced her perspective on the workplace. The professional posed questions to Maria about her work beliefs and her understanding of autism. Apparently, Maria had internalised a deficit narrative about PoAS in the world of work. In fact, she believed she lacked the skills necessary for meaningful work. These beliefs limited her confidence and narrowed her opportunities. Also,  by recognising  the inherent power dynamics in their relationship, the professional positioned themselves not as an all-knowing expert but as a collaborator. Together, they identified Maria’sstrengths, such as her attention to detail, organisational skills, and ability to hyper-focus on complex tasks.

To address the challenges Maria faced in the labour market, the professional used their positional power constructively in the following ways:

  1. Deconstructing Dominant Narratives: The professional facilitated a re-membering process, encouraging Maria to reflect on past successes and the supportive relationships that had shaped her resilience. For instance, Maria recounted her volunteer work organising a community library, which had previously gone unnoticed in her self-narrative. This re-membering shifted her focus from perceived deficits to the strengths that defined her identity.

  2. Advocating with Employers: The professional leveraged their influence to educate a potential employer about Maria’s unique skills. They reframed the dominant narrative of autism as a “challenge” to one of opportunity, emphasising how Maria’s strengths aligned perfectly with a data analysis role in their organisation. 

  3. Navigating Power Dynamics with Maria: The professional invited Maria to reflect on how societal norms had shaped her self-perception. Through this exploration, Maria gained an understanding that these norms were not absolute truths, but rather socially constructed narratives that were subject to challenge and reshaping.

  4. Engaging the Family and Workplace: At the same time, the professional worked with Maria’s family to help them recognise the positive aspects of her identity and support her aspirations. At the beginning they were quite negative, while on the surface they were not dismissive about Maria working a full-time job. The professional slowly invited Maria’s family to focus from her shortcomings to her strengths. At the end, they also collaborated with the employer to create a work environment inclusive of neurodiverse individuals, ensuring Maria felt valued and supported.

Result: By employing this multifaceted approach, Maria was able to secure a data analysis position that valued her hyper-focus and organisational skills. This success not only transformed Maria’s self-perception but also began shifting her employer’s narrative about autism and the value of neurodiverse talent.

Reflection: This case illustrates the importance of using professional power productively—not as a means to dominate but as a tool to dismantle oppressive narratives and create pathways for inclusion. By balancing advocacy, collaboration, and narrative deconstruction, the professional helped Maria reclaim her identity and find her place in the labour market.

Most likely, professionals have already explored the importance of social interactions to empower PoAS in their journey into the labour market. We at NARRATE believe that the concepts of ZPD, scaffolding and re-membering give a framework that allows both professionals and PoAS to enrich the social experience with narratives that are usually poorly explored, like the idea that relationships are mutual influence processes and that other people—the expert professional included—can learn useful lessons for PoAS. Furthermore, taking the idea of the “club of life” for granted allows us to assume that PoAS are always entangled in a social network of meaningful relationships. Therefore, the question arises: how can we assist PoAS in managing their roles within these relationships to maximise their benefits?

What do you think of the concept of relationships as mutual influence processes?

How do the ideas of ZPD and scaffolding enrich your work with PoAS?

How might the process of re-membering be advantageous to support PoAS in your work?

What is the most important lesson you learnt from the content of this unit?

Chan, C., Tsang, C., Chiu, W., Au-Yeung, H., & Tsui, H. (2020). Assessing narrative practice conversations from a scaffolding lens. International Journal of Humanities and Social Science Invention, 09(2), 48-56.

Myburgh, L., Condly, J., & Barnard, E. (2020). Pedagogical approaches to develop social skills of learners with Autism Spectrum Disorder: Perceptions of three Foundation Phase teachers. (2020). Perspectives in Education, 38(2), 241-254.

Ramey, H.L., Young, K., & Tarulli, D. (2010). Scaffolding and concept formation in Narrative Therapy: A qualitative research report. Journal of Systemic Therapies, 29(4), 74-91.

Shvarts A., & Bakker A. (2019). The early history of the scaffolding metaphor: Bernstein, Luria, Vygotsky, and before. Mind, Culture, and Activity, 26(1), 4-23.

Vivanti, G., & Rogers, S. J. (2014). Autism and the mirror neuron system: Insights from learning and teaching. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological Sciences, 369(1644), 20130184.

White, M. (1994). The politics of therapy: Putting to rest the illusion of neutrality. (Mimeographed). Adelaide: Dulwich Family Centre.

White, M. (1997). Narratives of therapists’ lives. Adelaide: Dulwich Centre Publications.

White, M. (2007). Maps of narrative practice. London: W.W. Norton & Co.

Vygotsky, L.S. (1978). Mind in society: The development of higher psychological processes (M. Cole, V. John-Steiner, S. Scribner, & E. Souberman, Eds.). Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

Vygotsky, L.S. (1987). ‘Thinking and speech’. In R. W. Rievery & A. S. Carton (Eds.) & N. Minnick (Trans.), The collected works of L. S. Vygotsky, Volume 1: Problems of general psychology (pp. 39–285). New York: Plenum Press.

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Knowledge In-House

This unit proposes the practice of re-authoring through strength-based conversations. In fact, we can use re-authoring in a conversation with our clients to understand their past, present, and future aspirations (White, 2007). Re-authoring is also mentioned in the OWNERSHIP In-House unit. In that context, we describe re-authoring as a practice to alter the narratives of problems and challenges PoAS encounter during their jobsearch to enhance their sense of ownership and feel that they can talk about their problems in different ways. But re-authoring is not just that. Professionals can use it to identify clients’ strengths, interests, and needs. Key considerations include identifying competencies through a narrative lens, creating contingency plans for unpredictable work situations, and promoting self-advocacy in the workplace. 

Re-authoring through strength-based conversations enriches PoAS knowledge about themselves as persons, professionals, and workers by inviting them to pay attention to aspects of their lives they are poorly aware of (or they are absolutely not aware of). Overall, this approach fosters empowerment, independence, and realistic career exploration for PoAS.

At NARRATE, we apply the metaphor of “landscape” (White, 2007) to describe our clients’ experiences. We can observe a landscape from different standpoints. If we admire it from the viewpoint, we can see some details; if we observe it from the river down in the valley, we can notice other elements that we could not see from the viewpoint; and so on. We can develop a different description of the landscape depending on our point of view. 

Similarly, we can describe our experience from different standpoints. We can describe our life from what is not working, from the lens of our fears, weaknesses and limitations. This is what we call a “problem-based” approach. Alternatively, we can describe our life by what works, our skills and abilities, and how we can achieve our goals. In other words, adopting a more strengths-based attitude (Akyol & Bakanli, 2019). The main takeaway is having conversations that strengthen the individual through the identification, construction, and implementation of solutions. The following table shows the difference between a more problem-focused approach and a more “solution-orientated approach” in career building.

Problem-Based Approach

Strengths-Based Approach

  • centres on reducing the “problem” (What makes you struggle with job interviews?)

  • looks at what clients are doing “wrong” 

  • emphasises what clients do not want

  • highlights what could be done better

  • seeks to eliminate negative client weaknesses

  • interested in “why” the problem happens (e.g., what “causes” & “maintains” the problem)

  • centres on enhancing the “solution” (How can you effectively face a job interview?)

  • looks at what clients are doing “right”

  • emphasises what clients do want

  • highlights what is already being done well

  • seeks to accentuate positive client strengths

  • interested in when the problem does not happen (e.g., exceptions to the problem) 

Table 1. Problem-focused approach VS Solution-focused approach

These two approaches are not necessarily at odds with each other. The point is that by solely focusing on what is not working, we only consider a portion of our experience, thereby overlooking all the elements that indicate what is working. This happens when we only consider what is working and ignore what is not.

Based on our work experience and the research we did for NARRATE, we think that PoAS often talk about what isn’t working in their lives. This could be because of the social and personal dominant narratives that affect them, such as the medical model of autism as an illness, which is explored in more detail in the WE In-House unit. They don’t seem to be aware of what they are actually able to do, what they have already accomplished, or what they could ultimately accomplish.

Such a tendency appears particularly problematic when we want to professionally support PoAS in their journey to finding a job or an occupation. PoAS’ narratives about what is working in their lives can be very weak, lacking in details and success stories, while narratives about what is not working can be stronger, richer in details and full of examples. In a similar situation, PoAS will most likely tend to choose problematic life descriptions because the more positive ones are weaker and less detailed. This, in turn, can create difficulties for them while trying to enter the labour market; the risk is that they lack awareness about their skills and competencies, so that they are not able to express them starting from job interviews. Thus, the idea is helping PoAS develop stronger, richer and more solution-orientated narratives that can compete with the negative ones. 

Focusing on strengths and positive aspects has the potential to bring a person happiness (Määttä & Uusitalo, 2008). Finding employment is just one aspect where these strengths and talents can provide motivation and empowerment. One of the main aims of NARRATE is to help professionals reflect on how to practically support PoAS in finding a job where they can successfully use their skills, interests, and talents. Such strengths can be occupational skills, distinguished characteristics of an individual, or personal strengths (Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi 2000). This can help the PoAS handle themselves with compassion and value their unique skills and characteristics to form a more positive narrative about themselves as job seekers and as future employees. 

At the same time, professionals should also keep in mind the challenges that can arise during employment. We can identify these together with the PoAS, even when they might not be aware of them.  In fact, according to some authors, while PoAS can excel in certain areas, they might be facing challenges in other areas, for example, performing adaptive every-day tasks that our neurotypical society requires (Bennie, 2010). However, they might not always be aware of these challenges and might need more clarification in order to overcome them. For instance, if the PoAS job seeker starts a job in logistics but the employer later informs him/her that he/she does not meet the job requirement, we can analyse this information and determine in which areas more additional skill development is required. This information could also direct the client towards alternative job domains where they can apply their skills and talents. Professionals can use a broad skills assessment as a practical tool when they encounter new job seekers, with exercises available in the Resource Kit.  Early job search stages allow for the straightforward identification of areas that benefit from additional support and skill development. Exploring situations and potential scenarios could be beneficial to identify areas where additional support might be helpful (see KNOWLEDGE In-House unit for a more in-depth analysis of the concept of “future talk”). 

PoAS might also need additional support to develop these skills, and this is where extra training and practice can offer an answer. A degree is not always the only criteria for deciding which jobs are available. Practicing skills that need additional development and redirecting the job search can increase the outcome for PoAS on their path towards suitable employment.

How can we help PoAS review their experience from an effective rather than ineffective perspective? The practice of asking reflective questions can be very useful. 

We at NARRATE believe that narrative-inspired questions can help support PoAS in this self-reflecting process. Narrative-inspired questions, in fact, are not just tools for conversation; they are keys to unlocking personal narratives and reshaping them in empowering ways. These questions challenge assumptions, explore alternative perspectives and, ultimately, reshape narratives. They guide PoAS on a journey of self-exploration, leading towards a deeper understanding of themselves and their place in the world. More specifically, narrative-inspired questions are:

  • Generative: they help building possible alternatives, possible futures, possible new ideas,

  • Circular: they can help people develop a clearer idea of what they are going through, how things, events, people, and relationships are influencing them and are in turn influenced by them,

  • Respectful: their intent is to influence the person respectfully, in an enabling and invitational way.

Through questions, PoAS can explore new perspectives about themselves and the way they relate to the rest of the world. Questions can help PoAS explore their skills, competencies and employment goals, but in order to do that, they need to be very specific. They need to go into details so that the new narratives developed will be richer and stronger. 

An example of conversation to help PoAS explore their professional aims and their skills in their journey into the labour market can be as follows. First, we can ask them questions to explore what their employment goals are:

  • Can you identify three employment goals while you look for a job? Why do you have such goals? Why is it important to you to reach such goals? 

  • Is there one or more values of yours that you want to express in a possible working context? Why is it important to you to express these values?

Then, we can ask them which skills or abilities they can apply to achieve their employment goals:

  • Can you identify three skills you believe you have that could be useful for managing a job interview? 

  • Can you identify three skills you believe you have that could be helpful in a working context?

  • Could you share an instance where you successfully used at least one of these skills?

  • What is the first step you can take to get the job you want? What is the second step? What is the third step?

These types of questions help to explore PoAS’ landscapes of meaning and enrich their personal and professional narratives about themselves and the world of work. Exploring PoAS’ real-life examples of positive outcomes can instill hope and confidence. They can serve as a source of empowerment, demonstrating that change is possible and achievable. By highlighting instances of success, we can assist PoAS in reframing their stories, focusing on their strengths, resilience, and achievements rather than only on the challenges and difficulties. We can engage in collaborative storytelling sessions to find examples of success stories, encouraging PoAS to share their experiences of success, growth, and positive change. The professional has the role of putting emphasis on those experiences to help the client see their personal victories and encourage them to envision a future aligned with their goals and aspirations. By exploring these stories, PoAS can focus on those elements that have helped create those successes and find coping strategies, problem resolutions, or moments of resilience to help them overcome challenges in their journey towards employment. 

The Resource Kit includes exercises that can assist in exploring the concept of re-authoring through strength-based conversations. For examples:

  • Desires and requirements for the workplace

  • Positive redifinition 

  • Time management and setting priorities in my private life 

  • Work wishes  

  • What do you know about the autism spectrum?

  • Worklife direction   

Enhancing motivation on individual level

Motivation is a key component in empowerment and plays a major role in the PoAS’ journey to the labour market. Personal interests and motivations can help PoAS to be persistent and keep moving forward in their journey towards employment, while a lack of interest and motivation can cause the opposite and make steps in the journey towards employment practically impossible. 

Professionals can help in the process of finding key elements to keep PoAS motivated during the job search. According to Chevallier (2012), PoAS might not have a high drive to seek acceptance and avoid rejection. Consequently, peer and social pressure do not seem to have as big an impact on PoAS in terms of conforming and finding employment. 

Instead, a more personal motivator, specific to the single individual, might have more effect. For example, a goal or objective that helps the PoAS get motivated in his/her journey towards work. Having specific goals at regular intervals throughout the employment journey can be a useful tool to maintain a high level of motivation for the job seeker. 

Together with the PoAS, the professional could do a SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) to identify any potential threats to motivation in the journey towards work. A SWOT analysis may serve as a tool to evaluate the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats that the PoAS encounters on their path to employment. It helps identify internal strengths and weaknesses, such as skills and limitations, as well as external opportunities and threats, such as job market trends and potential challenges. Understanding these factors enables the development of tailored strategies that leverage strengths, address weaknesses, seize opportunities, and mitigate threats, ultimately enabling PoAS to achieve their employment goals. The exercise in the Resource Kit, SWOT Analysis, can be used to practice these concepts. 

Enhancing motivation at social level

Mentorship and peer support play a crucial role in the NARRATE approach, fostering a sense of belonging and empowerment within supportive networks. Professionals facilitate connections where individuals can share experiences, gain insights, and collectively contribute to a narrative of community and mutual growth. It is a collaborative journey that navigates challenges, celebrates strengths, and ultimately empowers individuals on the autism spectrum to take genuine ownership of their road towards employment without losing track of the skills where they need additional training and support. 

The social dimension can be explored by the professional and the PoAS as it can be helpful at least in three ways.

First, it can provide circles of support from peers, friends, family, and the community. Such circles can be helpful in identifying the strengths, interests, talents, and challenges that sometimes the PoAS themselves might not be aware of. They can provide support and motivation to PoAS in difficult times, even in longer periods. The exercise from the Resource Kit My professional and social network can be a useful starting point to explore our clients’ social assets and reflect on how to rely on them. 

Second, the social context can be helpful as it can provide success stories that can inspire our PoAS clients. Peer success stories can inspire PoAS in addition to their own success stories. People with similar experiences and characteristics can share their stories and highlight the elements that they believe have helped them cope with or even flourish in certain situations. Sharing these stories in group settings can help PoAS get a better understanding of strategies and coping mechanisms they can use in their own journey towards employment. The exercise from the Resource Kit Success stories of famous PoAS standing in the public eye can be used to share success stories and their outcomes.

Third, the social setting can greatly affect the rights of workers, as set out by national laws and collective agreements that apply to jobs in the PoAS. Work legislation and collective agreements can specify the minimum wage, working hours, holidays, sick pay, and terms of notice when the employer has decided to terminate employment. These rules vary between countries, and the differences in employees’ rights can widely vary, even inside the European Union (Jobmarket Finland, 2023). These discourses usually refer to both employees’ rights (minimum salary of wages, maximum number of working hours per week, characteristics of the working contract, etc.) and obligations (compliance to the working timetable, compliance to the working role requirements, etc.). 

PoAS can feel motivated by knowing that their worker rights are secure, and they can find solace in knowing that the obligations they need to follow are set out in predetermined rules. 

Enhancing social skills and job interviews

Social skills may represent an area in which our PoAS clients face different challenges. The term “social skills” usually refers to common customs that non-PoAS use in interactions with others. They are usually based on non-PoAS preferences (Gerlach, 2023), while PoAS sometimes have a different set of social customs. Consequently, applying the non-PoAS-dominanted social skills in the process of job searching can be challenging for PoAS, and this can lead to anxiety. PoAS need to learn or enhance communication skills that allow them to create bridges with the world of work. For example, they need to learn to explain their strengths, skills and needs in a way that is understandable to their (possible) employer. 

Professionals can explore with PoAS concepts that are considered “effective communication skills” from a non-PoAS standpoint, for instance:  active listening, using body language, communicating in a clear and purposeful way and delivering messages with empathy and respect (Sturrock et al., 2022). You may use the Resource Kit Social skills self-reflection exercise to put these concepts into practice.

Working on PoAS’ social skills can be particularly helpful in preparation for job interviews, which are complex conversations where one needs to effectively convey their interest in a job as well as their personal strengths to do well in the job (Huffcut et al., 2001). A good way to prepare for a job interview is to practice it and go into detail about what might happen during the interview. Getting inspiration from the “Aware-Explore-Apply” model (Niemiec et al., 2021), we propose a three-step approach that professionals can use to assist PoAS in preparing for job interviews.

    • Awareness. The NARRATE Skill Cards (in the Resource Kit) can be a useful starting point to discuss with PoAS clients about the skills they believe to possess. This phase serves to answer the following questions: 

  • What are your interests and skills?

  • What skills are you already using?

  • What do these skills mean to you?

      • How does the idea of having values enrich the idea you have about yourself, and how does this enrichment impact the job search?

  • Exploration. This step aims to strengthen the narrative of the skills described in the previous phase. Guiding questions could be:

  • How do you use these skills in your everyday life?

  • Can you describe an episode when these skills have been really helpful to you? 

  • Is there anyone within your entourage that can testify you actually possess such skills?

  • How does the idea of being a person with a diagnosis on the autism spectrum and, at the same time, a person with skills and values affect the way you see yourself as a possible worker?

  • Application. This final step aims to define how to effectively apply these skills in the context of a job interview. Here are some examples of questions you could ask in this step:

  • What is the very first skill you would use in a job interview? Why? How would you apply it?

  • What is the first step you can take in your job search process to apply your values?

  • How would applying one or more of the skills we identified earlier improve your job interview approach?  

  • What impact on the employer would you get if you applied those skills?

  • How could you practically use your strengths to look for a job?

  • Which strengths and special features would you like to communicate to the outside world as part of your professional future (in the workplace and also towards colleagues)?

Once more, we recommend training PoAS to approach job interviews with a solution-focused mindset. We present a number of exercises in our NARRATE Resource Kit to assist you in preparing your clients for job interviews. For example:

  • Dress code ideas for job interviews, which aims to enhance customers’ self-confidence by inviting them to take care of their appearance with a more solution-orientated attitude. 

  • Job interview roleplay prepares customers for potential interview questions and encourages them to provide more solution- and skill-focused responses.

An important feature of supporting PoAS entering the labour market is helping them develop career prospects. In our opinion, we can encourage PoAS to think that, in principle, all or many activities offered by the labour market are suitable for them, but that they must learn to define which framework conditions they personally need. 

In order to get an idea of where the strengths of PoAS can lie in the work context, Simone (2010) describes the characteristics below. However, these abilities may or may not be present because the basic premise is always, “If you know a person with autism, you know one manifestation of autism”.  Each PoAS is different and individual in their overall approach to life. Knowing the potential strengths of PoAS is an important point in job preparation, as these can be a special incentive for future employers and can also be advantageous to competitors for a job advertised for PoAS.  With their overall approach to life, PoAS can contribute their particular strengths to the company. Simone highlights the following points, which hold particular significance for PoAS: 

  • Focus and diligence

  • Independent, unique thinking

  • Higher fluid intelligence

  • Visual, three-dimensional thinking

  • Attention to detail

Professionals may highlight these particular strengths and encourage PoAS to communicate them.

We believe that in enhancing the career prospects of PoAS, it’s crucial to motivate them to articulate their essential workplace needs to colleagues and employers, and to develop the ability to communicate these needs effectively.  Role-plays that represent different stages of the job searching process, from the application process to daily training with PoAS, can be very helpful in discussing how others may perceive corresponding behaviours.  These real-life situations can be (Blodig, 2016):

  • Situations in the workplace with potential for conflict

  • Customer contact

  • Organising breaks at the workplace

  • Job interviews

  • Small talk situations

  • Non-verbal communication

Preißmann (2012), a PoAS herself, describes which necessary framework conditions—regardless of the respective career choice—should be accounted for by PoAS in terms of their working environment:

  • Activities that require minimal flexibility and creativity.

  • Activities where the type and scope can be precisely defined.

  • Activities that require little contact with the public and customers.

  • Activities that require little teamwork and cooperation skills. 

  • Activities in which leadership and management skills are not absolutely necessary. 

  • Activities that can be carried out one after the other (little multitasking) and ideally without time pressure. 

  • Activities that you can carry out in a calm, consistent environment. 

  • Activities where accuracy has a higher priority than speed. 

  • Activities that do not require much social interaction. 

  • Activities that require a good memory for details but little (fine) motor skills.

Preißmann suggests that professionals can discuss with PoAS their future respective working environments. The exercise from the toolbox, Dream job workbook, can be a useful starting point for establishing such a discussion. 

In a further step, professionals can support PoAS on this topic directly in the workplace by encouraging them to pass on this acquired knowledge to their working environment. This aspect is discussed in more detail in the KNOWLEDGE In-Company unit. Through self-reflection, PoAS have the chance to actively shape their professional future and to reflect on their upbringing and environment. However, we need to keep in mind that the social systems they live in (family, school, group of peers, etc.) may play an important role in affecting their job aspirations and choices. Families or other social environments might have strong ideas about which professional fields, working times, and education are desirable and which ones are not. Some family members may hold the expectation that everyone will graduate from university, earn a degree, secure a traditional job, and work from 9 to 5. As professionals, we can help this process along by telling PoAS to show their parents how to be strong and independent, to figure out and separate their own ideas about a professional future, and to look for areas where they may have gone in a direction because of family stories that didn’t match the development of all of their skills and needed them to re-discover and redefine.

Another aspect to consider in the course of job preparation with PoAS is promoting self-reflection in PoAS for realistic occupations that match their abilities. This is a way for PoAS to stimulate career ideas—independent of their family environment—and to develop their own perspectives. To this end, the following questions can be beneficial for the reflection process of PoAS—if necessary, also together with the professionals:

  • What do I want? 

  • Which professions suit me?

  • Do I have the personal prerequisites for this career aspiration?

  • What else do I need to realise this career aspiration?

  • Regardless of suggestions from companies or parents about professions suitable for PoAS, what can I offer the job market?

  • As a PoAS, how can I effectively communicate the strategies for communicating needs that I have learnt to future employers and colleagues, ensuring successful job matching?

Addressing social influences on job prospects

Many readers would agree that PoAS often describe social expectations as really impactful in their job preparation, so that their job prospects are often aligned with the prevailing narratives about the world of work in their everyday environments.  We can support the re-authoring process with questions about the influence of environmental culture on PoAS’ lives and choices:

  • What areas of professional activity did your school teachers encourage you to pursue?

  • What perspectives on career prospects for PoAS have your family and school conveyed to you so far in your life? 

  • Is this employment your wish or your parents’?

  • Have your family members ever underestimated, misjudged, or overestimated you during your job preparation simply because you have an autism diagnosis?

When job preparation occurs at the intersection of school and work, young professionals may face the challenge of exploring their personal affairs and life issues to shape their professional future, free from the influence of their parents, who may have handled much of this work for them thus far.  

Alternative, strength-based stories developed through re-authoring practices create new possibilities for living (Morgan, 2004). We ask PoAS to retell and reframe the world so they can come up with different ways to describe the problems (using the problem mapping and externalisation techniques taught in the OWNERSHIP In-House unit) and talk about their ideal futures at work (using the strength-based conversation techniques taught in this unit) (Milojević, 2014).  

With this perspective, we can reframe the practice of contingency planning—which some of our readers may already be using in their daily work—as a method to develop and articulate potential futures within the working context.

  1. Problem-focused contingency plan: Externalisation and mapping of possible problems at work

A contingency plan is usually understood as a handbook for what to do in challenging and unpredictable situations; this should be an individual guide and be explored together with the professional and the PoAS. We believe this guide works best if the structure and topics are decided upon together with the professional and the PoAS. 

Life, including work life, can be abundant with unpredictable situations that require a spontaneous response from an individual. This sometimes means that reactions to situations need to happen quickly and seamlessly. While some scenarios may offer clear and straightforward solutions, navigating other situations may not be as straightforward. Some PoAS might find comfort in routines and predictability, which could reduce their reactions to unpredictable events. Some studies have shown that people who receive a diagnosis on the autism spectrum exhibit a preference for routines and predictability in their daily lives (McAuliffe et al., 2018). Together with the professional, PoAS can deal with possible changes in the work environment and in performing work tasks. Together, the professional and the PoAS can write down guidelines for specific situations, which the PoAS can then follow when these situations occur. We try to anticipate as many situations as possible so that the PoAS can feel prepared. While we cannot anticipate every scenario and possibility, we can prepare for numerous recurring situations. We can leverage the experience and expertise of professionals, along with the knowledge of the PoAS, to anticipate potential challenges during the employment process. To explore these concepts, you can find the exercises, Identifying areas of support in the NARRATE Resource Kit. 

We can use externalising and problem-mapping questions to develop an effective and useful contingency plan. We can discuss the following topics, among others:  

  • Self advocacy

  • Communication strategies

  • Navigating job search platforms

  • Handling rejection and feedback

  • Time management and organisation

  • Transportation and travel arrangements

  • Managing stress

  • Wage negotiation

  • Legal rights 

We think that the above-mentioned topics, together with the PoAS, can provide safety in addressing potential stressors, sensory sensitivities, and communication preferences. It ensures that in unexpected situations, the PoAS has a plan that they can follow so that situations can be approached with clarity and preparedness. It outlines clear instructions and communication methods tailored to the unique needs of individuals, offering strategies for maintaining safety during unforeseen circumstances. Whether it involves sensory overload or unexpected changes (like interview times and locations), the plan equips individuals with the tools to navigate these situations safely and effectively. 

Example of questions to ask PoAS to develop a problem-focused contingency plan:

  • What should I do if I cannot find any interesting jobs? 

  • What happens when I forget to say things I prepared for a job interview?

  • What if I notice discrimination? 

  • What if my employer asks about my diagnosis?

  • What are some challenges I anticipate encountering in a professional setting, and how can I develop strategies to address or mitigate them?

Strength-based contingency plan

To strengthen the alternative preferred stories, we can develop with PoAS a contingency plan describing in detail scenarios that could happen in case they managed to successfully apply some of their skills and strengths or effectively find a solution to a problem during their journey into the world of work.

The strength-based contingency plan follows the same structure as the problem-focused one, but it introduces questions that encourage PoAS to envision potential positive outcomes of their actions. In this way, they can reflect on how to act and behave in a way that maintains these positive effects through time. Example of questions:

  • How would I react if I managed to find my dream job?

  • How would I react if I handled the job interview successfully?

  • How would my life change if I had a salary?

  • How would my relationships with my family positively change if I got a job?

  • How would I react if I got a compliment from my manager?

  • How would I react if coworkers thanked me for helping them?

  • Can I identify three everyday actions I can take to maintain my professional image in a positive light?

  • How do I envision my ideal work environment, considering factors such as level of social interaction, structure, and sensory stimulation?

  • How can I effectively communicate my needs and preferences to potential employers or colleagues, ensuring a supportive and accommodating work environment for myself?

Re-authoring through strength-based conversations invites PoAS  harness knowledge about themselves to navigate the complexities of the job market with confidence and resilience. Moreover, the development of contingency plans underscores the importance of proactive knowledge in anticipating and addressing challenges. Ultimately, by leveraging knowledge to foster understanding, empowerment, and advocacy, we can create more inclusive and supportive environments where individuals on the autism spectrum can thrive in their professional endeavours.

Introduce the concept of re-authoring through strength-based conversations in your daily work: what action would you take first?

What are, in your opinion, the benefits of strength-based conversations? What are the challenges?

What strategies could you adopt or improve upon to better assist PoAS in identifying and pursuing suitable employment opportunities?

Given the challenges associated with preparing PoAS for job interviews, how can you effectively support them in addressing their social skills through the implementation of the NARRATE approach?

What is the most important lesson you learnt from the content of this unit?

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Bennie, M. (2010). “The third part of the triad: The uneven cognitive profile”. https://autismawarenesscentre.com/the-third-part-of-the-triad-the-uneven-cognitive-profile/ [red 27th Feb 2024].

Blodig, I. (2016). Hochfunktionale Autisten im Beruf. Paderborn: Junfermann Verlag.

Chevallier, C., Kohls, G., Troiani, V., Brodkin, E.S., & Schultz, R.T. (2012). The social motivation theory of autism. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 16(4), 231–239.

Gerlach J. (2023). The Psychosis and Mental Health Recovery Workbook: Activities for Young Adults from ACT, DBT, and Recovery-Oriented CBT. London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers.

Määttä, K., & Uusitalo, T. (2008). ‘Ihmisen vahvuudet auttavat selviytymään’. In K. Määttä, & T. Uusitalo (Eds.), Kasvatuspsykologian näkökulmia ihmisen voimavarojen tueksi (pp. 7-9). Lapland University Press.

McAuliffe, T., Thomas, Y., Vaz, S., Falkmer, T., & Cordier, R. (2019). The experiences of mothers of children with autism spectrum disorder: Managing family routines and mothers’ health and wellbeing. Australian Occupational Therapy Journal, 66(1), 68–76.

Milojević, I. (2014). Creating alternative selves: The use of futures discourse in narrative therapy. Journal of Futures Studies, 18(3), 27-40.

Niemiec, R.M., & Pearce, R. (2021). The practice of character strengths: Unifying definitions, principles, and exploration of what’s soaring, emerging, and ripe with potential in science and in practice. Frontiers in Psychology, 11: 590220.

Preißmann, C. (2012). Asperger – Leben in zwei Welten. Stuttgart: Trias Verlag.

Seligman, M.E.P., & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2000). Positive psychology: An introduction. American Psychologist, 55(1), 5–14.

Simone, R. (2010). Asperger’s on the job. Must-have advice for people with Asperger’s or high functioning autism and their employers, educators, and advocates. Arlington, TX: Future Horizons.

Sturrock, A., Chilton, H., Foy, K., Freed, J., & Adams, C. (2022). In their own words: The impact of subtle language and communication difficulties as described by autistic girls and boys without intellectual disability. Autism: The International Journal of Research and Practice, 26(2), 332–345.

White, M. (2007). Maps of Narrative Practice. New York, NY: WW Norton.

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