"I Craft So That I Can Flow": A Comparative Study of Neuro Type to Explore the Relationship Between Job Crafting and Flow and the Mediating Role of Meaningful Work

Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) face significant challenges entering and remaining in the workforce. Those with ASD possess unique attributes such as attention to detail, willingness for repetitive tasks, reliability, and intense focus. To fully engage and include individuals with ASD, a deeper understanding of the cognitive style and talents of individuals with ASD is needed. This comparative study aimed to examine the mediating role of meaningful work in the relationship between job crafting dimensions and flow and whether there are differences in the assessed mediated model by Neuro Type (autistic and non-autistic employees). Mediation analyses revealed that meaningful work mediated the relationship between cognitive crafting and flow. However, meaningful work did not mediate this relationship for task crafting or relational crafting. In addition, the results indicated that there are no differences in the assessed model by Neuro Type. These findings are worthy as they could encourage employers to hire and develop individuals with ASD as there are no significant differences between Neuro Type in how motivated and concentrated they are when performing their work. Theoretical and practical implications for these findings are discussed, and recommendations for future research are included.