Examining the Effects of a Job Entry Intervention

Autism Spectrum Disorder Clinical Trial

— IMPRESSIVE  

Official title:

Examining the Effects of a Job Entry Intervention

Clinical Trial Details — Status: Completed

Administrative data

• NCT number: NCT04771338
• Other study ID #: R-1078-19
• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Start date: September 1, 2019
• Est. completion date: July 26, 2023

Study information

• Verified date: January 2024
• Source: Kessler Foundation
• Contact: n/a
• Is FDA regulated: No
• Study type: Interventional

Clinical Trial Summary

The current study will examine the efficacy of a virtual reality (VR) intervention as well as a newly developed Kessler Foundation STRength IDentification and Expression tool (VR-STRIDE) with adolescents diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder.

Description:

The current study will examine the efficacy of a virtual reality (VR) intervention entitled "IMPRoving Expression of Skills and Strengths In Interviewing in a Virtual Environment" (IMPRESSIVE) which targets social competency skills needed for successful job interviewing. Specifically, 2 VR tools are utilized in the IMPRESSIVE intervention. The first tool is VR-Job Interview Training, a VR program which offers the opportunity for repeated practice with a virtual human interviewer. Preliminary evidence suggests that the VRprogram is successful in adults with ASD and schizophrenia in improving interview abilities. However, the efficacy of it has not been evaluated in adolescents with ASD. This represents a significant void in our knowledge, as we do not know whether this program is effective for youth. In addition to VR training, a newly developed tool is included in the currently proposed intervention: the Kessler Foundation STRength IDentification and Expression tool (VR-STRIDE). KF-STRIDE is focused on improving the ability to express personal strengths during the job interview, a skill that is not taught with VR training. The proposed IMPRESSIVE intervention, which combines the learning of 2 critical abilities (social skills and strength identification), has never been examined in individuals with ASD. Thus, the current proposal will be the first to examine the efficacy of these 2 combined tools in this at-risk population.

Recruitment information / eligibility

• Status: Completed
• Enrollment: 34
• Est. completion date: July 26, 2023
• Est. primary completion date: June 22, 2022
• Accepts healthy volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers
• Gender: All
• Age group: 15 Years to 24 Years

Eligibility

Inclusion Criteria:

• Diagnoses of ASD
• or am a typically developing adolescent
• Able to speak and read English fluently

Exclusion Criteria:

• History of stroke, traumatic brain injury, or any other neurological injury or disease
• History of significant psychiatric illness (bipolar, schizophrenia or psychosis)
• Uncontrolled seizures
• Any other unstable medical complications

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• ASD
• Autism
• Autism Spectrum Disorder
• Autistic Disorder

Intervention

Behavioral:
• VR-JIT/KF-STRIDE
Treatment group will receive 12 sessions of job interview training protocol.

Locations

Country	Name	City	State
United States	Kessler Foundation	East Hanover	New Jersey

Sponsors (1)

Lead Sponsor	Collaborator
Kessler Foundation

Country where clinical trial is conducted

United States, 

Outcome

Type	Measure	Description	Time frame	Safety issue
Primary	Mock Job Interview Change	Mock Job Interview skills will be assessed by having blinded raters trained to assess job interviews scoring participants across a number of domains including expressing personal strengths and sounding professional. This rating scheme has been used in previous research (Smith et al., 2014; 2015),	8 weeks
Secondary	Self-reported job interview skills	Questionnaire to assess self-perceived skills	8 weeks
Secondary	self-reported job interview anxiety	Questionnaire to assess self-perceived anxiety	8 weeks
Secondary	Employment readiness	Questionnaire to assess self-perceived employment readiness	8 weeks
Secondary	Job Search Behavior	Questionnaire to assess self-perceived job search behaviors	8 weeks