The autism advantage: a communications campaign to combat the autism employment gap in Singapore

Running from 14 December 2022 to 22 March 2023, The Autism Advantage is a communications campaign that aims to advocate for more holistic support for the employment of persons with autism (PWAs) in Singapore. As laid out in the Autism Enabling Plan drafted by Autism Network Singapore (2021), the employment continuum is a high priority area, with many PWAs either unemployed or underemployed. Given that most employees and employers hold existing misconceptions on PWAs abilities and lack knowledge and professional guidance on employing PWAs, the team aimed to raise knowledge levels, receptiveness towards inclusive hiring as well as behavioural intention to hiring PWAs. Anchored on an abilities-centered messaging approach, the campaign utilised a mix of online and offline activations to educate the business community on autism and increase positive perception towards the abilities of PWAs, by spotlighting their strengths through real-life testimonies. Developed in partnership with SG Enable, Singapore’s focal disability organisation, prominent executions include an inclusive hiring playbook and a week-long public exhibition that managed to amass over 1000 visitors and a total of 388 pledges to make the workplace more inclusive. The campaign managed to increase the target audiences’ knowledge by an average of 42.9%, increase attitudes towards PWAs by 13% and increase behavioural intention by 8.5%. The discussion and recommendations of The Autism Advantage show how a targeted campaign across online and offline channels can be effective in targeting the business community and has implications for future communication campaigns in Singapore and abroad.Bachelor of Communication Studie