This paper presents a new method for the solution of multiscale stochastic
differential equations at the diffusive time scale. In contrast to
averaging-based methods, e.g., the heterogeneous multiscale method (HMM) or the
equation-free method, which rely on Monte Carlo simulations, in this paper we
introduce a new numerical methodology that is based on a spectral method. In
particular, we use an expansion in Hermite functions to approximate the
solution of an appropriate Poisson equation, which is used in order to
calculate the coefficients of the homogenized equation. Spectral convergence is
proved under suitable assumptions. Numerical experiments corroborate the theory
and illustrate the performance of the method. A comparison with the HMM and an
application to singularly perturbed stochastic PDEs are also presented