Teaching job interviewing skills to high school students with autism spectrum disorder using video modeling

Abstract

Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) have difficulties with reciprocal social interactions and interpersonal communication, which may negatively impact the transition from high school to the workplace. In particular, the job interview process can be very challenging for young adults with ASD. This study used a multiple-probe, across participants design to examine the effectiveness of video modeling (VM) in teaching interviewing skills to students with ASD and whether skills learned through VM can generalize to an office setting. The intervention consisted of viewing nine interview videos: one introduction video, seven question-response videos, and one closing video. After each video was viewed, the student role-played the behaviors illustrated in the video. Results of this study indicated that using VM is an effective means to teach job interviewing skills (JIS) to high school students with ASD.