Date Presented 04/13/21 This study examined the impact of art interventions on individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in specific OT Practice Framework domains. Findings suggest art interventions can be useful in improving all aspects of performance skills of motor, process, and social interaction in individuals with ASD. Our findings provide evidence for OTs to use art interventions to improve occupation-based outcomes for individuals with ASD. Primary Author and Speaker: Allison E. Bernier Additional Authors and Speakers: Andrea D. Fairman, Dan Ding, and Kristin Messina

Date Presented 04/13/21 Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) experience high rates of unemployment. To address this concern, a systematic review was conducted to examine the efficacy of work-related training for individuals with ASD. The results suggest that various elements of work-related training programs prove efficacious in increasing employment outcomes in individuals with ASD, but further research is needed to determine if these methods would be useful in OT practice. Primary Author and Speaker: Marie-Christine Potvin Additional Authors and Speakers: Mindy Garfinkel

Date Presented Accepted for AOTA INSPIRE 2021 but unable to be presented due to online event limitations. Drowning is a leading cause of accidental death for children with autism. A 10-week therapeutic adaptive swimming pilot study was conducted with individualized swim instruction from an OT or physical therapy student. Parent perspective was investigated to identify the benefits of instruction by a therapist in training. Qualitative themes discovered support swim instruction through an OT lens to increase skills in children with autism. Primary Author and Speaker: Rebecca Woodson Additional Authors and Speakers: Erika Kemp

Date Presented Accepted for AOTA INSPIRE 2021 but unable to be presented due to online event limitations. Trampoline exercise is a movement-based program that has been proposed as beneficial for children with autism or sensory integration and processing challenges. This session shares data from a pretest–posttest study documenting motor and psychosocial improvements in children who participated in a structured trampoline exercise group. Results suggest this is a potentially effective school-based or community-based method to address both the motor and the social needs of these children. Primary Author and Speaker: Sarah A. Schoen Additional Authors and Speakers: Vincentia Ferrari, Virginia Spielmann

Date Presented Accepted for AOTA INSPIRE 2021 but unable to be presented due to online event limitations. The OT-ParentShip protocol is a multidimensional intervention for parents of adolescents with high-functioning autism. Results from a pilot study display a significant improvement in adolescents’ participation and heightened parental resilience. Preliminary feasibility supports OT-ParentShip as a strength-based family-centered intervention program. OT practitioners can benefit from this structured protocol, which enables parents to achieve their prioritized goals. Primary Author and Speaker: Batel Wachspress Additional Authors and Speakers: Einav Kahlon, Adina Maeir, Itai Berger, and Tal Mazor-Karsenty

Date Presented Accepted for AOTA INSPIRE 2021 but unable to be presented due to online event limitations. Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often have sensory processing difficulties that impact their occupations. Data were analyzed comparing SCOPE scores at pre- and posttest for children receiving standard-care OT or Ready to Learn and Play (RtLP) framework plus standard care. The intervention group showed statistically significant improvement in SCOPE scores over the control group. The RtLP framework shows promise as an evidence-based tool to positively impact the occupational performance of students with ASD. Primary Author and Speaker: Janis Leinfuss Additional Authors and Speakers: Erin Ohara

Date Presented Accepted for AOTA INSPIRE 2021 but unable to be presented due to online event limitations. As part of the school health team, OTs should implement antibullying interventions, because bullying has a significant impact on students' participation in school occupations. The purpose of this systematic review was to examine interventions to reduce school bullying of students with autism. Social–emotional learning and social skills training interventions were found to be the most effective in decreasing bullying. Primary Author and Speaker: Janet Njelesani Additional Authors and Speakers: Christina M. Samaan

Date Presented 04/23/21 Children with autism often experience difficulty with gross motor skills, leading to decreased activity engagement. A 10-week therapeutic adaptive swimming pilot study was conducted with individualized instruction from an OT or physical therapy student. Goal Attainment Scaling was used to form individualized goals and track each child's motor control and swim skills. Quantitative data show increased skill attainment and supports the use of OT in the aquatic setting. Primary Author and Speaker: Kelly Walsh

Date Presented Accepted for AOTA INSPIRE 2021 but unable to be presented due to online event limitations. As the number of those with autism spectrum disorder increases, the need for postsecondary transition services does as well. Current research acknowledges parents and caretakers as a vital part of the transition process, but there is currently no standardized way to include them. Through a systematic review process examining parent and family experiences, best practices were developed to increase feelings of preparedness and decrease anxiety for all parties. Primary Author and Speaker: Erin McGee Additional Authors and Speakers: Betti Ahmed Contributing Authors: Christopher Trujillo

Date Presented Accepted for AOTA INSPIRE 2021 but unable to be presented due to online event limitations. Social skills problems are main features of autism. The Over-Pruning Hypothesis suggests that such problems may be due to over-pruning of neural areas important to social skills. Intervention for social skills before age 5 years may strengthen connections, reducing pruning. Process drama may be a particularly effective way to practice social skills. This poster will describe the feasibility of an interdisciplinary (drama, OT, speech-language pathology) process drama program for social skills in preschoolers with autism. Primary Author and Speaker: Lorie Richards Additional Authors and Speakers: Heidi Woolley Contributing Authors: Xan S. Johnson, Pamela Mathy, Stacy Manwaring, Megan Raby, Wendy Wilde, Lise Thornton, and Penelope Caywood

Date Presented Accepted for AOTA INSPIRE 2021 but unable to be presented due to online event limitations. Individuals on the autism spectrum and their families face a host of social obstacles to inclusion in society at large. Data from an ongoing phenomenological study of autism in the community shows that parent anxieties around interactions with police are a significant barrier to community inclusion and participation for individuals with autism spectrum disorder. The experiences of families in the community related to police affect feelings of comfort and safety and may contribute to occupational deprivation. Primary Author and Speaker: David Turnbull Contributing Authors: Contributing Author

Date Presented Accepted for AOTA INSPIRE 2021 but unable to be presented due to online event limitations. This study presents the relationships between different types of feeding challenges for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to specific sensory patterns, parenting stress, and overall adaptive behaviors. The findings of this study suggest children with ASD demonstrate unique patterns of feeding challenges and sensory responses that are significantly connected to parenting stress and adaptive behavior and can inform the development of targeted family-centered feeding interventions. Primary Author and Speaker: Brittany St John Additional Authors and Speakers: Muhammad Al-Heizan, Molly Hamre, and Karla Ausderau Contributing Authors: Kate Dorrance, Colleen Althoff

Date Presented Accepted for AOTA INSPIRE 2021 but unable to be presented due to online event limitations. For young adults and adults with autism, the outcomes related to independence, social relationships, employment status, and living arrangements have been poor. This session will share research using PhotoVoice to explore the lived experience of young adults with autism in a community-based independent-living residence. Challenges and opportunities for independence as seen through photos and reflections on the OT role will be shared. Primary Author and Speaker: Paula J. Thompson-Costello Additional Authors and Speakers: Mackenzie Traub, Eleanor Sweeney, Mallory Schrier, and Hannah R. Dau

Date Presented 04/13/21 Motor challenges are commonly reported in children with autism spectrum disorder and have been linked to challenges with daily living skills (DLS). However, greater specificity is needed to understand which DLS are most associated with motor challenges. This work shows that motor challenges in children are most highly associated with DLS challenges in the domains of dressing, bathing, cleaning, and meal preparation. OTs can use this to inform clinical intervention. Primary Author and Speaker: Brittany Travers Additional Authors and Speakers: Szu-Wei Chen Contributing Authors: Britney Ferri

Date Presented Accepted for AOTA INSPIRE 2021 but unable to be presented due to online event limitations. Adolescents on the autism spectrum have difficulties initiating social interactions, which affects their peer engagement. This study investigated the characteristics of unresponded social initiation among adolescents on the spectrum and their typically developing peers. We investigated the rated characteristics of unresponded initiations among 12 students (six with autism; sixth to seventh grade) and explored the effects of the student group, peer group, and purpose and type of initiations. Primary Author and Speaker: Yu-Lun Chen Additional Authors and Speakers: Kristie Patten

Date Presented Accepted for AOTA INSPIRE 2021 but unable to be presented due to online event limitations. Young adults with autism experience postsecondary challenges transitioning to work. This study extends work on a previously validated manualized soft-skills group intervention by examining the feasibility of having OT fieldwork students deliver the intervention as near-peer facilitators. Results include gains in social and adaptive functioning. The use of fieldwork students as group facilitators shows potential to elicit additional positive change in this population. Primary Author and Speaker: Annemarie Connor Additional Authors and Speakers: Sarah Fabrizi Contributing Authors: Amy Nasamran, Connie Sung

Date Presented Accepted for AOTA INSPIRE 2021 but unable to be presented due to online event limitations. Group interventions have been shown to improve soft skills, a common barrier to employment for individuals with autism. Although telehealth shows promise as a service delivery method, published research on telehealth soft-skills interventions for this population is lacking. Thus, this study explored differences between face-to-face and hybrid delivery of a group soft-skills intervention for young adults with autism. Results detail potential benefits of telehealth-delivered OT. Primary Author and Speaker: Annemarie Connor Contributing Authors: Sanja Dizdarevic, Isayda Gonzalez, Zoey Knece, and Hannah Koedam

Date Presented Accepted for AOTA INSPIRE 2021 but unable to be presented due to online event limitations. Statistical modeling analysis reveal that attention skills mediate the relationship between brain measures of sensory processing (measured by electroencephalography) and behavioral sensory processing in young adults with and without autism. Thus, attention abilities facilitate brain mechanisms to better process sensory stimuli to perform everyday sensory processing activities and social skills. Results suggest that therapy emphasizing attention skills in autism can modify sensory and social participation. Primary Author and Speaker: Jewel Elias Crasta Additional Authors and Speakers: Patricia Davies Contributing Authors: William J. Gavin

Date Presented Accepted for AOTA INSPIRE 2021 but unable to be presented due to online event limitations. The purpose of this study is to obtain deeper understanding of the challenges that young adults with autism spectrum disorder endure in their pursuit of establishing friendships. A mixed-methods study design was used. Participants were interviewed and completed the Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ). Results showed that the participants still showed autistic traits, although each AQ component was similar to the norms. Three themes were emerged from the interview: intrinsic value of friendship, friendship as a partnership, Primary Author and Speaker: Megan C. Chang Additional Authors and Speakers: Evelyn Lechner, Megan Leu, Julianne Maraccini, Carrie Oxaal, and Jessica Patterson

The neurodiversity movement presents a significant opportunity for occupational therapy practitioners to meet the needs of neurodivergent people across the life course The term neurodiverse includes autistic people and people with intellectual disabilities, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, obsessive–compulsive disorder, and several other mental health conditions. Research shows that neurodivergent people continue to need occupational therapy beyond the end of high school, when most supports and services end for them. Despite research showing that the needs of neurodiverse populations continue throughout the life course, research also shows that services for this population seem to taper as they progress through the public school system. The studies in this issue add to the body of literature supporting the role of occupational therapy practitioners in meeting the needs of neurodiverse people for services and supports through all stages of life.