Assessment of home environment for autistic individuals: a literature review of the existing tools.

BACKGROUND

Autism Spectrum Disorder is a neurodevelopmental disorder, and its prevalence is estimated at 1% worldwide. The home environment can influence activities and roles for autistic individuals, however there are limited assessments that focus on the home environment for this population.

PURPOSE

To identify existing assessment tools of home environment for autistic individuals in the literature.

METHODS

We explored five databases. Initial search on databases was made in 2019 and updated in 2022. Documents selection was made in two phases: 1) title and abstract screening, 2) full-text reading of selected publications. The included studies were analyzed.

RESULTS

We identified seven home environment-related assessment tools that can be used with the autistic population. Most of the tools included few items related to the non-human environment and do not include specific elements of the environment (e.g.: details about sensory stimuli or assessment of the layout). Six of them are design for children or youths and only one out seven is specific to autistic people.

CONCLUSIONS

The identified tools do not allow for a detailed assessment of the non-human environment of autistic individuals only the identification of environment-related difficulties. More research and the development of new tools are needed to improve it.