Enhancing Community Participation for Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorders through Peer-Mediated Transportation Interventions

This project was designed to determine the effectiveness of a peer-mediated travel training intervention to increase independent use of public transportation for individuals with ASD. A randomized control trial was implemented to evaluate the effectiveness of the peer delivered travel training program on self-efficacy, participation and community mobility outcomes for individuals with ASD. Participants were randomized to either a control or intervention group. Participants in the control group continued use of prior transportation methods as usual. The intervention group received didactic instruction consisting of direct instruction and role play with a peer interventionist and clinic staff person for 2-3 times a week for 1 – 1 ½ hours over a two week period. Following this, participants received 1-1 individualized travel training instruction over 12 sessions ranging between 1-3 hours with a peer leading the training. Participant demographics and characteristics were collected at pre-test. Measures of self-efficacy (General Self-Efficacy Scale, Transportation Appraisal Scale) and community participation (Temple University Community Participation Scale) were administered at pre-test, post-test 1 (immediately following the intervention) and post-test 2 (3-4 months following the start of intervention). Community mobility, including location and movement of participants, was measured using smart phones and AccuTracking software during a two week pre-test period and a two week post-test period of time. Additionally, transportation skills (Progressive Evaluation of Travel Skills) and community mobility goals (Goal Attainment Scaling) were assessed at pre- and post-test 1 for individuals randomly assigned to the travel training intervention group. Data was collected from March 2019 to November 2021.