Autistic‑Delivered Peer Support: A Feasibility Study(IF:5.2)

Lindsay L. Shea, Mi‑Yeet Wong, Wei Song, Katy Kaplan, Disha Uppal, Mark S. Salzer

Abstract

Peer support has been an undeveloped pathway for filling the service gap and to generate employment opportunities for autistic individuals. Peer supports have been deployed widely in mental health and among veterans and understanding the utility of this service modality among autistic individuals illuminates opportunities for research, policy, and practice. This study examined characteristics of participants in an autistic-delivered peer support program and reports on use of and satisfaction with the program. Half of autistic participants had a co-occurring mental health diagnosis. Participants reported multiple areas of unmet needs and participant satisfaction with the program was high (90%). The findings of this study point toward autistic-delivered peer support as a promising avenue for future development.

同伴支持一直是弥补服务差距和为孤独症人群创造就业机会的一条尚未开发的途径。同伴支持已经在心理健康和退伍军人中广泛部署并了解其效用这种服务模式在孤独症个体中的应用为研究、政策和实践提供了机会。这项研究调查孤独症患者同伴支持计划参与者的特征，并报告其使用情况和满意度和程序一起。一半的孤独症参与者同时患有精神健康疾病。参与者报告了多个未满足需求的领域和参与者对计划的满意度很高（90%）。这项研究的发现指向孤独症患者提供的同伴支持是未来发展的一条有希望的途径。

图1：CAPS（i.e. the Community Autism Peer Specialist）发展过程

图2：CAPS概念框架