scholarly journals The Development of a Virtual Escape Room to Trigger Social Interaction and Communication between High-Functioning Children with Autism and their Peers: An Iterative Design Approach (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gijs Terlouw ◽  
Derek Kuipers ◽  
Job van 't Veer ◽  
Jelle T Prins ◽  
Jean Pierre E N Pierie
Keyword(s):  
Social Interaction ◽  
Design Process ◽  
Design Research ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Serious Game ◽  
Boundary Object ◽  
High Functioning ◽  
Iterative Design ◽  
Children With Asd ◽  
The Right

BACKGROUND Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have social deficits that affect social interaction, communication, and relationships with peers. Many interventions focus mainly on improving social skills in a clinical setting. However, developed social skills are not necessarily applied to children's daily life at school, and children with ASD face challenges in forming and maintaining relationships with peers. In addition to the direct-instruction-based programs, more activity-based programs could be of added value, especially to bridge the relational gap between children with ASD and their peers. OBJECTIVE This paper describes an iterative design process of the development of a virtual escape room as an activity-based serious game and describes the development of a game as a boundary object. The purpose of the serious game is to facilitate and trigger direct communication between high-functioning children with ASD and their peers. During the design research process, we examined in small steps whether the developed prototypes are feasible and whether they have the potential to achieve the objective of the serious game. METHODS This study is structured around the Design Research Framework to develop the escape room through an iterative-incremental process. Three playful test sessions (n=12; n=21; n=12) with different prototypes were initiated to eventually develop a beta-prototype. The beta-prototype was subsequently tested with children (n=12) and experts (n=12). RESULTS By testing various prototypes, including a paper prototype and an augmented reality prototype, different insights were found to get the design right. Insights were gathered to find the right theme, content, practical constraints, and shape of the serious game. Eventually, a multiplayer virtual escape room, AScapeD, was developed. Three children can play the serious game together in the same room on tablet devices. The first tests show that the game triggers social interaction and communication between the children. CONCLUSIONS This paper presented the iterative design process of AScapeD. AScapeD triggers social interaction and connection in a playful way between children with ASD and their peers. The conceptual structure of an escape room contributes to the natural emergence of communication and cooperation. The iterative design process has been beneficial to finding the right design, getting the design right, and contributed to the design of a serious game as a boundary object which mediates the various objectives of different stakeholders. The developed prototype is feasible and has the potential to achieve the aim of the serious game.

scholarly journals The Development of an Escape Room–Based Serious Game to Trigger Social Interaction and Communication Between High-Functioning Children With Autism and Their Peers: Iterative Design Approach

10.2196/19765 ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. e19765
Author(s):  
Gijs Terlouw ◽  
Derek Kuipers ◽  
Job van 't Veer ◽  
Jelle T Prins ◽  
Jean Pierre E N Pierie
Keyword(s):  
Social Skills ◽  
Design Process ◽  
Design Research ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Serious Game ◽  
Boundary Object ◽  
High Functioning ◽  
Iterative Design ◽  
Children With Asd

Background Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have social deficits that affect social interactions, communication, and relationships with peers. Many existing interventions focus mainly on improving social skills in clinical settings. In addition to the direct instruction–based programs, activity-based programs could be of added value, especially to bridge the relational gap between children with ASD and their peers. Objective The aim of this study is to describe an iterative design process for the development of an escape room–based serious game as a boundary object. The purpose of the serious game is to facilitate direct communication between high-functioning children with ASD and their peers, for the development of social skills on the one hand and strengthening relationships with peers through a fun and engaging activity on the other hand. Methods This study is structured around the Design Research Framework to develop an escape room through an iterative-incremental process. With a pool of 37 children, including 23 children diagnosed with ASD (5 girls) and 14 children (7 girls) attending special primary education for other additional needs, 4 testing sessions around different prototypes were conducted. The beta prototype was subsequently reviewed by experts (n=12). During the design research process, we examined in small steps whether the developed prototypes are feasible and whether they have the potential to achieve the formulated goals of different stakeholders. Results By testing various prototypes, several insights were found and used to improve the design. Insights were gained in finding a fitting and appealing theme for the children, composing the content, and addressing different constraints in applying the goals from the children’s and therapeutic perspectives. Eventually, a multiplayer virtual escape room, AScapeD, was developed. Three children can play the serious game in the same room on tablets. The first test shows that the game enacts equal cooperation and communication among the children. Conclusions This paper presents an iterative design process for AScapeD. AScapeD enacts equal cooperation and communication in a playful way between children with ASD and their peers. The conceptual structure of an escape room contributes to the natural emergence of communication and cooperation. The iterative design process has been beneficial for finding a constructive game structure to address all formulated goals, and it contributed to the design of a serious game as a boundary object that mediates the various objectives of different stakeholders. We present 5 lessons learned from the design process. The developed prototype is feasible and has the potential to achieve the goals of the serious game.

From Learning to Assessment. Utilizing Blockchain Technologies in Gaming Environments to Secure Learning Outcomes and Test Results

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 172-192 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Black ◽  
Lloyd Donelan ◽  
Trevor Higgins ◽  
Nikolaus Koenig ◽  
Brenton Lenzen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Learning Outcomes ◽  
Design Process ◽  
Serious Games ◽  
Digital Games ◽  
Serious Game ◽  
Test Results ◽  
Iterative Design ◽  
Category System ◽  
Secure Learning

This study, pursues the following three goals, namely the introduction and discussion regarding Blockchain technologies in education in general and serious games in particular; a definition and proposal of a category system for digital games with the aim not only to teach but also to assess; and a description of the serious game Gallery Defender, one of the very first games which maps grades/certificates for the player/learner as well as further information for the teacher on Blockchain. This game is currently in the middle of an iterative design process and the authors describe the used Blockchain approach of the first iteration of the game to inspire further developments in this direction, especially for the Maltese audience, as Malta is perceived as the leading EU country in the field of Blockchain regulation.

scholarly journals Formation of emotionally-valued lexis in high-functioning ASD preschoolers

2017 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
pp. 38-48
Author(s):  
V.M. Samoilova ◽  
Y.A. Kostenkova ◽  
E.K. Lobacheva
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorders ◽  
Social Environment ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Moral Norms ◽  
High Functioning ◽  
Children With Asd ◽  
Adequate Understanding ◽  
Spectrum Disorders

Limited use of emotionally-valued lexis of speaking children with autism spectrum disorders indicates the lack of understanding and assimilation of the moral norms of society, because words determine representations of objects and phenomena. Adequate understanding of emotionally-valued words and correct use of them in children with ASD are crucial for adaptation and socialization in the conditions of modern social environment. Authors disclose the features of the work on the formation of emotionally-valued lexis in senior preschoolers with ASD on the basis of a training experiment conducted in Center for Curative Pedagogics. The methods, tricks and conditions of correctional and habilitation work with 14 children at each stage are described in detail. Specific practical materials and recommendations about formation of emotionally-valued lexis are given.

scholarly journals Optimlisasi Kemampuan Interaksi Sosial Anak di PAUD Inklusi Ahsanu Amala Yogyakarta

2017 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 17-26
Author(s):  
Nadlifah Nadlifah
Keyword(s):  
Early Childhood ◽  
Social Interaction ◽  
Social Interactions ◽  
Classroom Environment ◽  
School Environment ◽  
Social Process ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
The Right ◽  
Social Interaction Skills ◽  
Interaction Skills

Education is a social process that can't happen without interaction between individuals Learning is a personal and social proccess when the child is in touch with other children in building understanding and knowledge together. Generally, Early Childhood have a low social interactions skill. This is evidenced by the frequent fights with his friend and selfish. Similarly in general, children who have mental disorders such as children with autism, Down syndrome, the hearing impaired etc, has the low skill ability in social interaction and communication. children who have maximum social interaction skills will be easier to be accepted in the school environment, especially in a classroom environment. Therefore it the children of inclusion is still an early age need to be assisted in improving the ability of social interactions at school, because the period of early childhood is a period of development the right to develop, improve and optimize all the capabilities of a child, even this period is an effective time to train and familiarize children to develop social interaction skills of children.

scholarly journals Engaging people with dementia in designing playful and creative practices: Co-design or co-creation?

Dementia ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 19 (3) ◽  
pp. 915-931 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emmanuel Tsekleves ◽  
Amanda F Bingley ◽  
Maria A Luján Escalante ◽  
Adrian Gradinar
Keyword(s):  
Social Interaction ◽  
Qualitative Study ◽  
Social Interactions ◽  
Design Process ◽  
Design Research ◽  
Design Space ◽  
Considerable Contribution ◽  
People With Dementia ◽  
Participatory Arts ◽  
Practical Recommendations

Stimulating active, social interactions for people with dementia is an important and timely challenge that merits continuing attention in design research. The idea of using participatory co-design to engage people with dementia is attracting increased interest. In this paper, we draw on our qualitative study that used a playful, participatory arts approach to explore the ways co-design could be implemented in a group of 12 people with dementia and their carers, and developed practical recommendations, in the form of a set of playing cards, for other researchers and caregivers to work in similar ways. The emphasis is on the value of play and playfulness, providing a ‘magic circle’ (Huizinga, 1955) that fosters the required conditions for a co-creative, co-design space. This aims to encourage social interaction between people with dementia, to stimulate imagination and creativity; and engage even the most the reticent, less confident members. Our observations, however, suggest that the exact notion and nature of co-design within the context of working with people with dementia is unclear. We critically explore whether such participatory creative practices that engage people with dementia can be considered as purely co-design. In conclusion, we argue that such interaction is better described as co-creation and that this definition can still embrace considerable contribution and involvement by people with dementia in a co-design process.

scholarly journals Effects of a Therapeutic Horseback Riding Program on Social Interaction and Communication in Children with Autism

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (5) ◽  
pp. 2656
Author(s):  
Mengxian Zhao ◽  
Shihui Chen ◽  
Yonghao You ◽  
Yongtai Wang ◽  
Yanjie Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Social Interaction ◽  
Communication Skills ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Control Group ◽  
Horseback Riding ◽  
Therapeutic Horseback Riding ◽  
Children With Asd ◽  
Post Test ◽  
And Control ◽  
Experimental Group

Various therapeutic interventions have been studied and found to be effective in reducing the stereotypical behaviors of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). There has been increasing interest in using animal-assisted interventions (AAIs) as an alternative approach to therapeutic rehabilitation for children with ASD, and many studies have reported that AAI has significant benefits for the cognitive, psychological, and social behavior of children with ASD. The present study was designed to examine the effects of a 16 weeks therapeutic horseback riding program on social interaction and communication skills in children with autism. Eighty-four children diagnosed with ASD, aged between 6 and 12 years old, were recruited for this study. All selected participants met the DSM-V criteria, and a total of sixty-one participants (N = 61) completed the study. A quasi-experimental design with an experimental group and control group was implemented for this study, taking measurements at pre-test, interim-test, and post-test to monitor the behavior changes in social and communication throughout the 16-week intervention. Repeated measures ANOVA and the independent sample t-test were used for data analysis, to assess the difference between the experimental group and control group. The results indicated that the THR program had positive influences on overall social skills and communication, based on the SSIS and the ABLLS-R scores, compared to the control group (p < 0.05). A notable improvement in the overall social interaction score was observed from the interim-testing point to post-test. In addition, participants in the therapeutic horseback riding (THR) group achieved significant improvements on six out of seven items in their communication evaluations. In conclusion, after 16 weeks of intervention, the THR program significantly enhanced the subdomains of social and communication skills in the areas of social interaction, communication, responsibility, and self-control, compared to the control group.

scholarly journals A Pilot Study Using Two Novel fMRI Tasks: Understanding Theory of Mind and Emotion Recognition Among Children With ASD

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yu Han ◽  
Patricia A. Prelock ◽  
Emily L. Coderre ◽  
Joseph M. Orr
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Social Interaction ◽  
Pilot Study ◽  
Theory Of Mind ◽  
Social Interactions ◽  
Emotion Recognition ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Children With Asd ◽  
Neuroimaging Data

AbstractChildren with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) struggle with social interactions due to deficits in theory of mind (ToM). In this study, we collected behavioral and neuroimaging data from 9 children with ASD and 19 neurotypical children between the age of 7 and 14 years old, particularly in the area of emotion recognition to better understand those skills needed for meaningful social interaction. The results suggest impaired abilities in multiple ToM metrics and brain deficits associated with ToM-related emotion recognition and processing among children with ASD. Findings from this study are expected to establish connections between behavior and brain activities surrounding ToM in ASD, which may assist the development of neuroanatomical diagnostic criteria and provide a way to measure intervention outcomes.

scholarly journals Design of a Digital Comic Creator (It’s Me) to Facilitate Social Skills Training for Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder: Design Research Approach

10.2196/17260 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (7) ◽  
pp. e17260
Author(s):  
Gijs Terlouw ◽  
Job TB van 't Veer ◽  
Jelle T Prins ◽  
Derek A Kuipers ◽  
Jean-Pierre E N Pierie
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Social Skills ◽  
Design Research ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Added Value ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Mutual Understanding ◽  
Social Situations ◽  
Children With Asd

Background Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often face difficulties in social situations and are often lagging in terms of social skills. Many interventions designed for children with ASD emphasize improving social skills. Although many interventions demonstrate that targeted social skills can be improved in clinical settings, developed social skills are not necessarily applied in children's daily lives at school, sometimes because classmates continue to show negative bias toward children with ASD. Children with ASD do not blame the difficult social situations they encounter on their lack of social skills; their main goal is to be accepted by peers. Objective This study aims to design a comic creator—It's me—that would create comics to serve as transformational boundary objects to facilitate and enact a horizontal interaction structure between high-functioning children with ASD and their peers, aiming to increase mutual understanding between children at school. Methods This research project and this study are structured around the Design Research Framework in order to develop the comic through an iterative-incremental process. Three test sessions, which included 13, 6, and 47 children, respectively, were initiated where the focus shifted in time from usability during the first two tests to the initial assessment of acceptance and feasibility in the third session. A stakeholder review, which included six experts, took place after the second test session. Results A digital comic creator, It's me, was produced within this study. Children can create their own personal comic by filling in a digital questionnaire. Based on concepts of peer support, psychoeducation, and horizontal interaction, It's me has a rigorous base of underlying concepts that have been translated into design. Based on the first test sessions, the comic has shown its potential to initiate personal conversations between children. Teachers are convinced that It's me can be of added value in their classrooms. Conclusions It's me aims to initiate more in-depth conversations between peers, which should lead to more mutual understanding and better relationships between children with ASD and their peers. The first test sessions showed that It's me has the potential to enact horizontal interaction and greater understanding among peers. It's me was designed as a boundary object, aiming to connect the objectives of different stakeholders, and to trigger reflection and transformation learning mechanisms. The applied design research approach might be of added value in the acceptance and adoption of the intervention because children, professionals, and teachers see added value in the tool, each from their own perspectives.

Self-regulation and social interaction skills among children with autism across time

2014 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 271-279 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lucy Barnard-Brak ◽  
Julie Ivey-Hatz ◽  
Angela Kris Ward ◽  
Tianlan Wei
Keyword(s):  
Social Interaction ◽  
Self Regulation ◽  
Children With Autism ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
The Self ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Children With Asd ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Social Interaction Skills ◽  
Interaction Skills

Purpose – In the current study, the purpose of this paper is to examine the self-regulation and social interaction skills of children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) as compared to children with intellectual disabilities (IDs) across time. Design/methodology/approach – Drawn from the Special Education Elementary Longitudinal Study (SEELS), our sample consisted of 1,016 children diagnosed with ASD and 597 children diagnosed with ID. The self-regulation and social interaction skills were measured using relevant subscales of the Scales of Independent Behavior-Revised across three time points evenly spaced at two years apart. Findings – Results revealed that children with ASD have significantly worse self-regulation (p<0.01, η2=0.12, Cohen's f=0.36) and social interaction skills (p<0.01, η2=0.05, Cohen's f=0.21) as compared to children with ID across time. The results of the current study support the results of Bieberich and Morgan (2004) that children with ASD have significantly worse self-regulation and social interaction skills as compared to children with ID across time. Originality/value – The paper suggests that our results may be considered as more generalizable given the utilization of data from the SEELS as a large, nationally representative, and community-based sample of children with disabilities across the USA examined longitudinally.

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