Importance: Occupational therapy practitioners should use evidence-based practices, such as video modeling, to address work occupations supporting people with autism spectrum disorder, including those with co-occurring intellectual and developmental disabilities.
Objective: To examine the evidence and relevance of video modeling supporting engagement in work occupations for people with autism and to translate these findings to occupational therapy practice.
Data sources: Cochrane Collection Plus, CINAHL, PubMed, ERIC, ProQuest, and peer-reviewed occupational therapy literature from 2008 to 2018. Study Selection and Data Collection: This review followed Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. Study selection and data collection focused on occupational therapy scope of practice, autism spectrum disorder, co-occurring intellectual and developmental disabilities, video modeling, and work occupations for people age 16 yr and older.
Findings: A total of 464 articles were screened. Six articles met inclusion criteria. Results indicated moderate evidence for video modeling to support work occupations for people with autism, specifically employment seeking and acquisition and specific job-performance skills. Samples were limited to people younger than age 28 yr and represented varied intellectual abilities, indicating potential for benefits across the spectrum of cognitive functioning.
Conclusions and relevance: This systematic review highlights the promising potential of video modeling to address work occupations for people with autism. However, more rigorous effectiveness research is needed, including studies by occupational therapy practitioners. What This Article Adds: Occupational therapy expertise paired with video modeling, as a strengths-based, client-centered, customizable, socially acceptable intervention, can provide meaningful support for work occupations.
Copyright © 2021 by the American Occupational Therapy Association, Inc.