Autism and Service Needs for Adults in Maricopa County

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a developmental disability that adversely impacts one’s social, communication, and interpersonal skills, as well as adaptive behaviors (Autism Society, 2024). The purpose of this study is to identify the unmet needs and fundamental causes of these needs for adults with autism in Maricopa County, as well as to identify identities and experiences, such as aging and socioeconomic status, that impact one’s ASD experience and accentuate existing unmet needs. Fifteen participants in fields ranging from speech therapy to day programs and independent living residences agreed that this population’s myriad of unmet needs include positive relationships, accommodative and livable employment, the dismantling (or lack thereof) of stigmas disempowering adults from pursuing relevant services, affordable caregivers for high-support needs adults, and affordable healthcare to name just a few. This study found that adults with autism have intersectional identities and experiences that intensify their unmet needs, but they are too individualistic to generalize to the population in Maricopa County and at large. This study also found that the work that needs to be done to rectify these unmet needs includes destigmatizing adult autism, sharing services colloquially and interprofessionally, and raising awareness about adult autism and its unmet needs at local, county, state, national, and international levels in educational, social, political, and religious sectors. Keywords: autism, aging, adults, unmet needs, employment, intersectionality, stigma