User Interface Design of an Interactive Story Application for Autistic Children and Parents

Abstract

The prevalence of autism is increasing year by year. At the same time, the parents of autistic children often suffer from poor mental states, which brings heavy financial and emotional burdens to the family. With the popularization of electronic devices, its prospective to intervene autistic children with applications on electronic devices. It not only doesnt limit when and where we use it, but also enables parents to interact with autistic children while working outside, saving a lot of costs on the therapy. The application is designed to help autistic children solve the problems of stereotyped repetitive behaviors and communication difficulties. This article analyzes the visual, cognitive, and interactive habits of autistic children, and summarizes the preferences of autistic children. In order to encourage the participation of parents, the article also analyzes the ways that parents can get involved in the game, such as training and guidance. Through these analyses, the author summarizes the principles of UI design for autistic children. This article intends to design an application that can connect autistic children and parents through the internet and encourage autistic children to complete the tasks in the games under the guidance of parents voices and stories, which will intervene the autistic childrens therapy effectively. In this way, parents can grasp the learning process of their children, which will reduce parents anxiety and improve the relationship between parents and their children.