Narratives of ideal and second-option jobs among young adults with high functioning autism

Abstract

The meaning of work is different for people in different social groups, and research exploring perceptions of meaningful work among adults with high-functioning autism (HFA) is scarce. The aim of this paper is to explore how narratives of satisfactory and meaningful future jobs are portrayed relative to two alternative discourses of work–the ‘obligation to work’ discourse, and the ‘disability rights’ discourse. This group of individuals are high functioning on the one hand, while at the same time holding legally-mandated special disability rights, an exploration of how this group reason about work-life and satisfactory jobs is particularly interesting. Through ethnographic fieldwork in Sweden, seven young adults with HFA were followed, and 17 interviews were conducted. The main findings and conclusions are that jobs that are individually assessed to be ‘ideal’, are put aside in favor of jobs that are more compatible with general labor market demands, as long as enjoyment and meaningfulness can still be experienced.