Training work-related social skills in adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder using a tablet-based intervention

While multiple studies suggest that social skills are considered as essential in promoting employment, literature highlights a deficit in these skills among workers with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) for whom difficulties in communication and social interaction are often reported. In this article, we explain how we used a User-Centered Design to identify and define in detail the work-related social skills that need to be trained. The aim was to develop social scenarios to train work-related social skills relevant for people with ASD using a digital app on a tablet. Participatory Design in our study included a needs analysis with questionnaires and interviews, as well as focus-groups and workshops with professionals of several disability employment services and workers or job seekers with ASD. Sixty-six social scenarios were written and 28 social skills were identified as relevant. This approach allowed us to design a tablet-based intervention which is an intelligent system by design since its content and structure target the social skills which require training for users with ASD.