A Review of the State-of-the-Art of Assistive Technology for People with ASD in the Workplace and in Everyday Life

Abstract

Autism, also known as autism spectrum disorder (ASD), is an incurable brain-based disorder that refers to a wide range of complex neurodevelopment disorders characterised by marked difficulties in communication and social skills, repetitive behaviour, highly focused interests and sensory sensitivity. Autism can present challenges for affected people at the work environment and in everyday life. The barrier for individuals with ASD increases further with changing environmental situations. Individuals with ASD have limited abilities to isolate their Five senses and often experience over- or under-sensitivity to sounds, touch, tastes, smells, light, colours or temperatures. In this perspective, individuals with autism may experience extraordinary challenges during a regular day for most people, especially in non-conductive crowded environments like workplaces. This work presents a survey of the state-of-the-art implementation as well as research challenges of assisting technology for people with ASD in the workplace and in everyday life. An overview of relevant key technologies and methods is outlined by focusing both on the therapeutic perspective as well as on the technological viewpoint. The aim of this paper is to provide a better understanding of the design challenges and to identify important research directions in this increasingly important area.