Participation in Daily Activities of Young Adults with High Functioning Autism Spectrum Disorder.

McCollum et al. (2016) tested a new card sort for young adults with high-functioning autism. The tool is called the Adolescent and Young Adult Activity Card Sort (AYA-ACS).

Participants sorted picture cards into piles showing what they do, what they want to do, and what blocks them. The team then checked if the sort gave steady answers and truly caught real-life barriers.

The AYA-ACS passed the psychometric tests. It gave the same results when re-done, and the barriers it flagged matched parent reports.

In short, the card sort is a quick, valid way to spot participation strengths and trouble spots for high-functioning young adults on the spectrum.

Murphy et al. (2014) did a similar job for younger kids with DCD. They also built a parent questionnaire and showed it was reliable. Both studies prove you can create short tools that catch daily-life problems.

Van Naarden Braun et al. (2009) looked at the same age group but with a wide lens. They found that severe ID or multiple impairments predict activity limits, while isolated issues do not. Mary et al. zoom in on autism only and give you a tool to find those limits fast.

Capio et al. (2013) showed that youth with developmental disabilities are stuck in solitary passive leisure even though they want social play. The AYA-ACS now lets you measure exactly where the gap is for each client with ASD.

Transition plans often list vague goals like "increase community participation." With the AYA-ACS you can pin down which activities the client cares about and what blocks them in one 15-minute sort. Use the results to write clear, self-directed goals and show payers why the skills matter.