Abstract
This community-based participatory research and qualitative interview study identified avenues for suicide prevention for the autistic community that OTPs can build into their practice, future research, or both.
Primary Author and Speaker: Anne V. Kirby
Contributing Authors: AASPIRE Suicide Prevention Project Team
Suicidality is common among autistic youth and adults. Mental health and suicide prevention are also top concerns stakeholders want addressed in research. Despite frequently working with autistic clients, occupational therapy practitioners often do not feel confident to support suicide prevention. In the current study, we aimed to improve understanding of suicide risk and avenues for prevention for the autism community. We used a community-based participatory research (CBPR) approach in partnership with 7 autistic adults, and qualitative interview methods to gather insight from: (1) autistic adults who have experienced suicidality (N = 16), (2) family members of any age autistic person who has experienced suicidality (N = 8), and (3) mental health providers who have worked with at least fifteen autistic clients experiencing suicidality (N = 14). We conducted 38 virtual semi-structured interviews to gather information about suicide risk and prevention for the autistic community. We analyzed the data using reflexive thematic analysis. The analysis resulted in 14 themes subsumed within the following broad thematic concepts: (1) Pervasive negative attitudes and neurotypical standards have an indelible impact on autistic people’s lives, (2) Challenges and stressors add strain, making life feel overwhelming and hopeless, and (3) Difficulty regulating and managing emotions can increase the likelihood of suicidal feelings and actions. These findings point to a need for suicide prevention efforts that address person and environmental factors. Therefore, this study suggests clear paths for occupational therapy practitioners to impact suicide prevention for the autistic community by addressing ongoing challenges and stressors experienced by autistic people, by supporting self-regulation, and through advocacy and stigma reduction. To support knowledge translation, our CBPR team’s next steps include developing and pilot testing a community-based suicide prevention educational program.
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