Abstract
Abstract Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a lifelong developmental condition that affects an individual’s ability to communicate and relate to others. Despite such challenges, early intervention during childhood development has shown to have positive long-term benefits for individuals with ASD. Namely, early childhood development of communicative speech skills has shown to improve future literacy and academic achievement. However, the delivery of such interventions is often time-consuming. Socially assistive robots (SARs) are a potential strategic technology that could help support intervention delivery for children with ASD and increase the number of individuals that healthcare professionals can positively affect. For SARs to be effectively integrated in real-world treatment for individuals with ASD, they should follow current evidence-based practices used by therapists such as Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA). In this work, we present a study that investigates the efficacy of applying well-known ABA techniques to a robot-mediated listening comprehension intervention delivered to children with ASD at a university-based ABA clinic. The interventions were delivered in place of human therapists to teach study participants a new skill as a part of their overall treatment plan. All the children participating in the intervention improved in the skill being taught by the robot and enjoyed interacting with the robot, as evident by high occurrences of positive affect as well as engagement during the sessions. One of the three participants has also reached mastery of the skill via the robot-mediated interventions.
Highlights
The Centers for Disease Control estimates that 1 in 54 children have autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in the United States [1,2]
The research presented in this study extends the existing literature on robots delivering Discrete Trial Training (DTT)-based interventions to individuals with ASD by (1) developing a language acquisition intervention; (2) investigating the efficacy of a robot-mediated intervention that teaches a new skill not already in an individual’s existing repertoire; and (3) integrating the intervention, in place of a human therapist, as a part of an individual’s overall treatment plan at an Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) clinic
Such differences in success are expected because children with ASD often require customized intervention plans due to their differences in capabilities and preferences
Summary
The Centers for Disease Control estimates that 1 in 54 children have autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in the United States [1,2]. The field of Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) has evidence-based treatments for addressing communication and social deficits as well as reducing challenging behaviors in these populations [3]. In order to provide effective treatment outcomes, such methods should begin during early childhood (i.e., 1.5–6 years old), and it is recommended that children receive 20–40 hours a week of one-on-one instruction from a healthcare professional with training in behavior analysis [4]. Such intensive one-on-one treatment limits the number of individuals that healthcare professionals can positively affect. Consequence would be the robot providing verbal praise such as “Great job!” or rewards such as a healthy snack to the child for a correct behavior (i.e., greeting the robot)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
