AutARK – Research Project TU Dresden

News

Workshop at INTERACT 2025

31. March 2025

This workshop is part of the INTERACT conference and will take place on September 8 and 9, 2025. It is a great opportunity for designers, researchers, and neurodivergent individuals to share the latest developments in designing technology for neurodivergence. Learn more about the submission guidelines and attend to discuss new…

Further Training on Neurodiversity for Personal Managers at TU Dresden

25. March 2025

What does the concept of neurodiversity entail? What requirements and needs do neurodivergent employees face in the workplace, and how can managers support neurodivergent employees, such as people with ADHD or those on the autism spectrum? What are common challenges and barriers faced by neurodivergent employees and what special aspects arise in team interaction? These and other questions were the focus of the further training course at TU Dresden, which was run by Christin Engel from AutARK and specifically addresses the needs of managers. The workshop provided the basics and was designed to empower HR managers to deal profitably with diverse teams characterized by different neurological conditions.

Workshop on “Neurodiversity and University” at TU Dresden

7. January 2025

On October 8, 2024, a workshop on “Neurodiversity and University” took place at TU Dresden, providing important insights into the study situation of neurodivergent students. The event, organized by the research project AutARK, the project Neuroqueer@TUD, and conducted by Lars Bönsch, attracted about 20 interested participants and was held parallel…

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Supporting people on the autism spectrum in the professional domain through technical aids

Psychological disorders and developmental disabilities often entail reduced performance and adaptability, frequently leading to impairments in occupational functioning. Despite having received a good professional or scholastic education, individuals on the autism spectrum are significantly more prone to experiencing unemployment or being employed in vocations that have low qualification requirements, as compared to non-autistic individuals. Primary reasons for the low employment rate of autistic individuals in the primary labor market are the challenging work conditions, such as time constraints, information overload, high communicative demands, social competence, too many sensory stimuli, as well as the requirement for a high degree of flexibility.

“We say that individuals with autism lack empathy. No, we lack it. For them.”
Neuroscientist Henry Markram

Autism spectrum disorders are characterized, in particular, by difficulties in communication and social interaction. Perception processing is also often altered, leading many individuals with autism to struggle with an excess of visual or auditory information. These characteristics necessitate a workplace environment that is tailored to the specific needs of individuals with autism in their professional and academic daily lives. Traditional work environments are typically not designed to meet the needs of individuals on the autism spectrum. As a result, many individuals with autism are more frequently affected by unemployment or are employed in vocations that have low qualification requirements as compared to non-autistic individuals. Although many individuals with autism have received a good professional or scholastic education, their chances in the job market are thus lower.

Numbers & Facts

Frequency

Donut chart. The outer ring represents 99% in purple and 1% in green. The center of the circle reads — Approximately 1% of people in Germany are on the autism spectrum.

Unemployment

Donut chart. The outer ring represents 70% in purple and 30% in green. The center of the circle reads — 30% of people within the autism spectrum are affected by unemployment

Primary Labor Market

Donut chart. The outer ring represents 95% in purple and 5% in green. The center of the circle reads — 5% of working-age individuals within the autism spectrum are employed in the general labor market

Source: Autismus Spektrum Portal

OUR GOALS

Supporting People on the Autism Spectrum in the Workplace Context

Sensory Regulation: Reduction of stimuli to avoid sensory overload
Communication: Assistance in verbal and textual communication.
Task management: Providing assistance in structuring and prioritizing tasks and time management.

Discover more about the project

AutARK – Automatic Adaptation of Overstimulating Contexts