Self-determination in the educational environment in adolescents with autism spectrum disorder

Abstract

Self-determination constitutes a key dimension in the definition of people's quality of life. This work focuses on analysing this dimension in adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in the school setting, since it is considered one of the most relevant places for personal development at this life stage. Specifically, a systematic review is presented with the aim of obtaining more significant information on the level of self-determination among adolescents with autism within the educational scope, the variables that influence the most in their achievement and the interventions developed for a greater accomplishment of self-determined behaviour. From an initial research of 414 studies, only seven met the defined criteria. Main results achieved reflect low levels of self-determination for this group, where variables such as the level of disability, gender, age, etc., become the main barriers. Added to this is the shortage of self-determination improvement programmes. All this reflects the need for self-determination to gain greater visibility throughout the design of educational programmes.