Computational Thinking and Creativity Skills in Autistic Youth in a Game Design and Employment Program: Examining Potential Predictors

Theresa Antony, Verrazzano Class of 2024, completed major in Biology

Since I graduated early, I had only one semester to complete my capstone thesis, compared to the usual time period of a year. Nevertheless, I learned a lot through the process and am glad that I ended up doing a thesis for the Psychology department.

My thesis focused on examining computational thinking (CT) and creativity skills among autistic students who were enrolled in a Game Design and Employment workshop. I wanted to examine these skills since previous literature has shown that CT and creativity are skills that are necessary in the workplace. Autistic students have difficulty attaining their employment goals compared to their neurotypical counterparts. As a result, fostering these skills might be useful in helping autistic students to overcome systemic barriers and discrimination in the workplace. Additionally, it will allow us to guide autistic youth to be better prepared for their future jobs and as a result, ultimately improve employment outcomes among autistic people.

CT was measured using assessments derived from previous literature, and creativity was assessed in two ways. One way was to examine the games the students created by the end of the program. This was done by looking at the diversity and the number of frontend game elements, elements in a game that a player can view and interact with that were incorporated into the games by the students. Another way was to look at the originality of the responses the students had to the Alternatives Uses Task (AUT). AUT required the students to list as many possible ways to use a specific item that was provided. After assessing these skills, we investigated the relationship between these skills and constructs we selected before the study commenced. These constructs included student-reported engagement, self-efficacy (the belief in oneself to complete a goal/task), and cognitive skills (sequential reasoning).

I was surprised to see that income was a predictor of creativity in the context of the games. This suggests the need to close the gap between lower and higher income neurodivergent students to reduce digital inequality. Additionally, cognitive skills, in this case, sequential reasoning, and student-reported engagement with workshop activities were predictors of computational thinking. These findings showed that educators can work to facilitate predictors such as engagement in the classroom or cognitive skills such as sequential reasoning to help foster CT and creativity skills among students. From these results, I learned the importance of fostering skills among autistic youth and the need to do so to help them toward their employment goals. I also learned that even within a marginalized group, there can be differences between the individuals (e.g., income level) that place them at an advantage compared to their counterparts.

From this project, I expected more significant relationships between the constructs, but I had interesting findings. I learned a lot from this process, especially since I was on a time crunch. I learned to manage my time, work with new types of data, and write a paper that was quite long. I am also grateful for my mentor and other readers who have provided me with helpful feedback which I believe helped me develop a strong thesis.

Neurodiversity and Self Reflection

 Sergey Shevchuk-Hill, Verrazzano Class of  2021, completed major in Psychology, and minor in English Linguistics 

It feels impossible to describe my capstone experience in any number of pages or words. It feels like it was an eternity ago when I was eagerly looking for opportunities to do clinical research that would help me get into one of oh-so many competitive Clinical Psychology Ph.D. programs. It is strange to think that it was only about two years ago that I approached Dr. Kristen Gillespie-Lynch about doing an independent study with her.

Going into the conversation, I felt a little hesitant. I have ADHD and I was aware that there was some overlap between ADHD and autism in some of the causes as well as in some of the experiences. So, in part, I was worried that I might be entering an oppressive power structure, where I, along with other researchers, would look down smugly onto the “subjects” and make notes regarding their behaviors, in attempts to “solve the puzzle” of autism. That could not be further from reality.

I was very excited when I learned that Kristen’s lab aimed to conduct participatory research through the lens of neurodiversity. Neurodiversity was a concept that I was only marginally familiar with. At the time, I saw the concept as saying that my existence was valid. It seemed to say that when I was in 3rd grade (in Russia) and my classmates said that they could kill me and no one would care because “one idiot more, one idiot less,” or when my teachers graded me based on how fast I could perform on a test rather than how well, and when they chastised me for my infrequent attendance which was caused by me having been bullied and faced with unfair expectations, neurodiversity said that they were wrong. It seemed to say that I was indeed not broken, and that I could amount to something. As such, my hesitation was replaced with eagerness and excitement.

During the two years I spent conducting research with Kristen, I learned more about the concept of neurodiversity, and the disability rights movement surrounding it. I found that I very much agreed with the movement’s goal of opposing those that sought to “cure” neurodivergence, and instead seeking interventions that focus on genuinely improving one’s quality of life as well as changing society to be more accepting of those who are different.

This research also inspired me to take related classes and earn the Advanced Certificate in Autism instead of a second minor. The information I came across in the classes as well as while researching led me to do a lot of self-reflection. For one, I learned about the association between being neurodivergent and identifying as LGBTQ+, including the higher likelihood of being trans, as well as identifying as non-binary. One qualitative research paper I read talked about the experiences of autistic people with gender, and mentioned a non-binary autistic person describe that they never internalized the subtle social messages through which we tend to be taught gender and provided with particular expectations.

That experience resonated with me a lot. Even though I learned as a child how to put on a mask and pretend that my assigned gender roles fit me perfectly for fear of being bullied, I never felt that I fit the mold. This knowledge helped me become more comfortable with my identity, and to become comfortable asking people to acknowledge it in the language they use to talk about me, as well as leading me to stop suppressing it within myself.

So, the last two years were a time of immense personal growth for me, and I feel that my outlook on life is extremely different now than it was two years ago. In my last two years, the world has also changed drastically, and seemingly overnight, bringing with it new horrors as well as new opportunities. And great changes happened in my life, as I got engaged and married to the most wonderful person. As such, it is a little difficult to remember what my life was like before starting my capstone.