Exploring Correlations of Unemployment, Underemployment, and Well-Being Among Autistic Job Seekers by Race in the United States

Autistic adults have high levels of unemployment and underemployment, which may have detrimental effects on their financial and psychological well-being. In the current project, we explore correlates of psychological and financial well-being, as well as depressive symptoms, with different levels of employment while examining whether race moderates these relationships.

We utilized survey data from autistic job seekers in the United States who expressed interest in a larger clinical trial of a supported employment program.

Among the 710 participants, 248 (34.9%) were currently employed; among the employed participants, 127 (51.2%) met at least one criterion for underemployment. In general, there were no significant differences by employment status in depressive symptoms, psychological well-being, or financial well-being. However, when controlling for age, gender, and education level, race/ethnicity significantly moderated the relationship between employment status and depressive symptoms and between employment status and psychological well-being, but not with financial well-being. Specifically, fully employed Asian American participants had significantly better psychological well-being and significantly fewer depressive symptoms compared to their underemployed counterparts. Additionally, Asian Americans with no employment history had higher levels of depressive symptoms compared to their fully employed counterparts.

The present study highlights the nuances of employment status and well-being among diverse autistic individuals, especially Asian American autistic individuals.