“My Sensory Experiences Tool”: A Neurodiversity‐Affirming Therapeutic Tool to Support the Sensory Challenges and Preferences of Autistic Children and Adults

BACKGROUND: My Sensory Experiences Tool (MYSET) is a picture-based card-sort tool designed to support conversations with autistic people about their sensory experiences with a view to enabling better understanding and accommodation of their sensory challenges. PURPOSE: This study aimed firstly to describe MYSET and the considerations that guided the development of the tool, and secondly to explore the perceptions of autistic people, family members and professional practitioners of the usefulness of MYSET and ways it could be improved. METHOD: We gathered the perspectives of 18 professional practitioners, five autistic individuals and four family members through semi-structured interviews and focus groups. The data was analysed through inductive content analysis. FINDINGS: The participants perceived that MYSET enabled the gathering of individualised qualitative information about the person's sensory experiences. MYSET was also perceived to be accessible, including people ranging in age from 5 years to adulthood and people with abilities ranging from mild intellectual disability to average/high IQ. The tool facilitates conversations about the links between the person's sensory responses and their daily life experiences. A key perceived outcome of MYSET was the enhancement of others' capacity to understand and accommodate the autistic person's sensory challenges. The tool was refined in response to participant feedback. CONCLUSION: MYSET enables the gathering of detailed, individualised qualitative data on the sensory experiences of an autistic person and the collaborative design of accommodations that are compatible with their lifestyle.