Comprehensive intervention for reducing stigma of autism spectrum disorders: Incorporating the experience of simulated autistic perception and social contact

by Masaki Tsujita, Miho Homma, Shin-ichiro Kumagaya, Yukie Nagai

Stigma of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) is a crucial factor leading to a lower quality of life for individuals with ASD. This research evaluated an intervention effect for the stigma through an experience of simulated autistic visual perception and video-based social contact. The intervention was conducted as an experiential workshop for the ASD simulator. Participants (N = 217; 156 women, 61 men; a mean age of 41.3) voluntarily attended the workshop. In the workshop, they received a short lecture on autistic perception, a simulated experience using the ASD simulator, a narrative video of individuals with ASD, and a group discussion. They completed the multidimensional attitudes scale, which was developed to measure four attitudes toward ASD: negative affect, calm, cognitions, and behaviors. The attitudes were measured three times: the period of registration with the workshop, during participation in the workshop, and six weeks after the workshop. With regard to the measure during participation in the workshop, attendees responded to the attitudes at the beginning or end of the workshop, to confirm whether attitudes changes were attributed to the effectiveness of the intervention or artifacts resulting from participation in the workshop. A significant reduction was observed in negative affective attitudes at the end of the workshop and persisted even six weeks afterward, even though not observed in calm, cognitive, and behavioral attitudes. Our findings suggest that implementation of our intervention can bring about reduction of the stigma associated with ASD. Further studies with a random sampling method are needed to validate its generalizability and elaborate the components of the intervention.