Autistic Users Research Articles

Building Narratives and Probing Concepts: Preparing Materials for Co-Design with Autistic Livestreamers

Based on ten semi-structured interviews with autistic Twitch streamers, we introduce a series of scenario-based design narratives coupled with technology design concepts as a starting point for co-design discussion about autistic streaming. This work builds on prior thematic analysis of the unique intersection between autism and livestreaming. Our user-centered scenarios highlight the needs, goals, and challenges of autistic individuals in livestreaming contexts. By using evocative narratives, the scenarios serve to facilitate empathy and deeper engagement with the needs of autistic users, and help facilitate and support co-creative dialogues and discussions about new technology designs. We contribute this starting point for researchers and technology designers to co-create more inclusive and supportive online environments for autistic users.

“Can I be More Social with a Chatbot?”: Social Connectedness Through Interactions of Autistic Adults with a Conversational Virtual Human

The development of AI to function as communicators (i.e., conversational agents), has opened the opportunity to rethink AI’s place within people’s social worlds, and the process of sense-making between humans and machines, especially for people with autism who may stand to benefit from such interactions. The current study aims to explore the interactions of six autistic and six non-autistic adults with a conversational virtual human (CVH/conversational agent/chatbot) over 1–4 weeks. Using semi-structured interviews, conversational chatlogs and post-study online questionnaires, we present findings related to human-chatbot interaction, chatbot humanization/dehumanization and chatbot’s autistic/non-autistic traits through thematic analysis. Findings suggest that although autistic users are willing to converse with the chatbot, there are no indications of relationship development with the chatbot. Our analysis also highlighted autistic users’ expectations of empathy from the chatbot. In the case of the non-autistic users, they tried to stretch the conversational agent’s abilities by continuously testing the AI conversational/cognitive skills. Moreover, non-autistic users were content with Kuki’s basic conversational skills, while on the contrary, autistic participants expected more in-depth conversations, as they trusted Kuki more. The findings offer insights to a new human-chatbot interaction model specifically for users with autism with a view to supporting them via companionship and social connectedness.

Design Principles for Participatory XR Design with Autistic Users

This longitudinal study describes the iterative development of inclusive, participatory, and co-design principles for extended reality (XR) learning interventions tailored to autistic users. Drawing upon multiple cycles of design-based research (DBR) performed on an XR project entitled Virtuoso, the resultant design principles emphasize active involvement of stakeholders in the co-creation of XR experiences, including customization, accessibility, and adaptive scaffolding. This longitudinal research highlights practical implications and challenges of designing XR interventions with and for autistic learners. Using a blend of theory and practice, this research provides guidance for instructional designers, educators, and researchers seeking to design, implement, and evaluate XR interventions with and for autistic users in an inclusive and ethical manner. All research studies published related to Virtuoso are summarized and synthesized, detailed design principles are provided, and a corresponding design conjecture is proposed.

How to co-create content moderation policies: the case of the AutSPACEs project

Abstract The moderation of user-generated content on online platforms remains a key solution to protecting people online, but also remains a perpetual challenge as the appropriateness of content moderation guidelines depends on the online community that they aim to govern. This challenge affects marginalized groups in particular, as they more frequently experience online abuse but also end up falsely being the target of content-moderation guidelines. While there have been calls for democratic, community-moderation, there has so far been little research into how to implement such approaches. Here, we present the co-creation of content moderation strategies with the users of an online platform to address some of these challenges. Within the context of AutSPACEs—an online citizen science platform that aims to allow autistic people to share their own sensory processing experiences publicly—we used a community-based and participatory approach to co-design a content moderation solution that would fit the preferences, priorities, and needs of its autistic user community. We outline how this approach helped us discover context-specific moderation dilemmas around participant safety and well-being and how we addressed those. These trade-offs have resulted in a moderation design that differs from more general social networks in aspects such as how to contribute, when to moderate, and what to moderate. While these dilemmas, processes, and solutions are specific to the context of AutSPACEs, we highlight how the co-design approach itself could be applied and useful for other communities to uncover challenges and help other online spaces to embed safety and empowerment.

Social Media as a Tool for Understanding the Role of Motor Differences in Neurodivergent Identity and Lived Experience.

Social media offers an exciting opportunity for the field of motor development and behavior research. With platforms such as Twitter offering access to historical data from users' public bios and posts, there is untapped potential to examine community perspectives on the role of motor differences in identity and lived experience. Analysis of online discourse offers advantages over traditional qualitative methods like structured interviews or focus groups, including a less-contrived setting, global geographic and cultural representation, and ease of sampling. The aim of this special section is to present a pipeline for harvesting and analysis of Twitter data related to users' identities and discourse characteristics, specifically situated in the context of motor development and behavior. This pipeline is demonstrated in two independent studies, one on autistic users and one on developmental coordination disorder (DCD)/dyspraxic users. These studies demonstrate the utility of Twitter data for research on neurodivergent and disabled people's perspectives on their motor differences, and whether they are expressed as part of their identity. Implications of results are discussed for each study, as well as in the larger context of future research using a variety of approaches to analysis of social media data, including those from predominantly image- and video-based platforms.

Identity and Discourse Among #ActuallyAutistic Twitter Users With Motor Differences.

Despite a growing awareness of the prevalence of motor differences in the autistic community, their functional impact is poorly understood. Social media offers the ideal setting to observe this discourse in a less-contrived setting than lab-based structured interviews. The aims of the present study were (a) to determine the proportion of Twitter users who self-identify as autistic and dyspraxic/having developmental coordination disorder, relative to autistic alone, and (b) to identify common themes emerging from two moderated chat threads with motor-related prompts. Using the Twitter research application programming interface, we harvested data from users' public profiles and tweets containing terms related to autism and developmental coordination disorder within a 1-month time period. We also harvested data from two #AutChat threads related to motor skills, which included 151 tweets from 31 unique autistic users (two with co-occurring developmental coordination disorder). Of these tweets, 44 were explicitly about motor differences, while the remainder consisted of discussion topics more loosely associated with motor skills. The following common themes were quantified: manual dexterity, lower extremity, oral motor, gross motor, posture, balance, stimming, movement pain, and coordination. Together, these findings indicate that motor differences are highly recognized and discussed among autistic individuals but are not overtly integrated into their identities at the same rate.

Toward a strengths-based model for designing virtual reality learning experiences for autistic users.

Virtual reality has been studied for its potential in supporting individuals with autism, but existing research often focuses on deficits and lacks consideration of individual preferences and strengths. This article introduces a framework that emphasizes the strengths and abilities of autistic individuals when designing virtual reality interventions. It builds upon an existing taxonomy of educational technology affordances and extends it to align with the unique needs of autistic individuals. The framework provides guidance for incorporating virtual reality technology that supports and amplifies autistic strengths, such as visual perception and response to positive feedback. The framework has implications for practice, research, and policy. For practitioners, it offers a tool for designing virtual reality experiences that cater to the strengths of autistic individuals, enhancing engagement and educational outcomes. Researchers can utilize the framework to guide the development of user-centered virtual reality interventions and expand our understanding of the potential benefits of virtual reality for autistic populations. Policymakers and educators can consider this framework when incorporating virtual reality into educational settings, ensuring that virtual reality technology is used in a way that aligns with the strengths and needs of autistic learners. Overall, the framework promotes a strengths-based approach in utilizing virtual reality technology for individuals with autism, fostering inclusivity and maximizing the benefits of immersive experiences.

On making libraries and museums more accessible for autistic people

This article explores how libraries and museums can become more accessible, and in turn also more inclusive, for autistic users. Through a small survey, a literature review and a short case study, it evaluates what steps to take in order to make these places more accessible for this part of the population. The survey had 126 participants, where 12 were diagnosed as autistic and 28 self-diagnosed as autistic. The survey shows that over half of the participants struggled with sensory overload, social interactions and anxiety in these places. A list of ideas on how to make these spaces more suitable for autistic people is offered in the conclusion, including different types of sensory-friendly and social provisions.

Understanding Autistic Adults' Use of Social Media

Autism is a developmental condition that impacts 1 in 100 people \citeNationalAutisticSociety2021. It affects autistic people's interactional and sensory preferences and behaviours. Autistic people can find interactions difficult in part due to sensory overwhelm. Interacting online can provide a positive alternative that allows for interactions on their own terms. However, most social media platforms are designed by neurotypical standards and can therefore inhibit full participation by autistic users. We demonstrate through the analysis of 34 semi-structured interviews with autistic adults that current social media design is not sufficient for creating an inclusive environment and enabling participation from autistic adults. We identified six themes across the interviews: (1) 'Social Media compared to In-Person Interactions', (2) 'Social Media as Enabling/Overwhelming', (3) 'Perceived Social Norms', (4) 'Keeping Connected and Finding New Communities', (5) 'Keeping Control through Systematic Practices', and (6) 'Being Authentic'. The themes demonstrate the attention that autistic adults give to online interaction, suggesting that online interactions may be just as fraught as in-person interactions have been shown to be. In order to become more inclusive of autistic adults, we recommend that social media platforms expand low-effort participation features, provide increased control over algorithmic content, support expression of intent and tone, aid discovery of interactional norms, and reinforce interest-based sociality.

Exploring user reviews to identify accessibility problems in applications for autistic users

The Google Play Store provides various user reviews that can provide information about user experience, usability, and accessibility. Despite multiple studies addressing these reviews’ importance and contributions to improving interactive systems, accessibility for users with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is still little discussed in this context. Considering the potential of user reviews, this article presents a textual analysis of reviews extracted from eight educational applications available in Portuguese with a focus on autistic children, namely: “ABC Autismo”, “Aprendendo com Biel e seus amigos”, “AutApp Autismo”, “Autismo projeto integrar”, “Jade Autismo”, “Matraquinha”, “OTO (Olhar Tocar Ouvir)” and “Teacch.me”. We conducted an analysis based on the Guidelines for Accessible Interfaces for People with Autism (GAIA) and the BBC Mobile Accessibility Guidelines to classify user reviews.

Participatory Methods to Engage Autistic People in the Design of Digital Technology: A Systematic Literature Review

PurposeMany technology designers strive to involve end users in the design process, aiming to produce better outcomes. However, designers may struggle to engage autistic users effectively due to a lack of understanding of autistic characteristics and preferences. This systematic literature review aimed to identify how autistic adolescents and adults can best be engaged in effective participatory design activities.MethodsSeven databases were searched for articles reporting technology design involving autistic people, returning 276 results. Using the PRISMA approach, 258 were excluded due to not meeting the inclusion criteria. The remaining 18 articles were then quality assessed.ResultsA thematic analysis revealed five core themes: (1) Engagement: the importance of investment in, and ownership of, the design process to create engagement, (2) Relationships: building relationships through collaboration and careful facilitation, (3) Skills development: the development of personal skills such as teamwork, design and self-advocacy in order to grow confidence, (4) Structure: providing context and structure to make the design experience feel safe and predictable, and (5) Support: the importance of support and consideration of individual needs as well as discouraging negative behaviours.ConclusionValuing participants as equal partners in design emerged as an, arguably, universal principle. The specific needs and preferences of autistic people must be understood and respected by designers. This goes beyond obvious accommodations such as providing a quiet and safe environment, and requires a deeper, more personal engagement with the individuals and their interests. We provide tangible recommendations for increasing engagement and aiding the design process.

Learning Experience Design of Project PHoENIX: Addressing the Lack of Autistic Representation in Extended Reality Design and Development.

This paper presents Project PHoENIX, which stands for Participatory, Human-centered, Equitable, Neurodiverse, Inclusive, eXtended reality. The project aims to co-produce research with autistic users to create a virtual reality (VR) environment that is highly usable, accessible, and sensitive to the needs and preferences of these individuals. Project PHoENIX utilizes participatory design within a learning experience design (LXD) frame to locate autistic people, their caregivers, and providers centrally in the processes of immersive technology design and development, as well as research design and execution. An overarching literature review on VR and autism and issues of limited design precedent of VR environments with autistic participants is provided, as well as details on the Project PHoENIX design framework, project description, and project design outcomes. Details are provided on how the online VR environment was co-designed and co-developed through collaborative research with autistic stakeholders while being sensitive to their needs and preferences. Research findings and implications are discussed regarding the design process, constraints, principles, and insights. The paper concludes by discussing lessons learned and how this project can provide much-needed design precedent for advancing the field towards a more inclusive, human-centered, and neurodiverse VR research and development paradigms.

Comparing desired spatial ratios among autistic and non-autistic children

PurposeAlthough some architects have found spatial order and proportion strategy effective in designing the environment for autistic children, it is not clear what spatial ratios are preferred for autistic people. Therefore, this study aims to find the desired ratio among autistic and non-autistic children.Design/methodology/approachThe scale model questionnaire was chosen to determine the difference in the ratio preferences for autistic and non-autistic children, whereas two access types between the space zones are also considered. The questionnaire was administered to 50 autistic children, with a half-and-half distribution of moderate and mild autism groups, while males are twofold. It was also administered to 50 non-autistic children, approximately equal in terms of gender division. The scale model was designed in the form of a dollhouse to be played with a doll in 6 varied rooms categorized by 3 different ratios (1:1, golden ratio, 1.6:1 and 5:2) and 2 access types (linear and radial access) to measure how many times each room was selected by each group to run numerical analysis.FindingsIt was shown that, although the golden ratio has been previously considered in space design for autistic children, they appealed to the ratio of 2:5 with high frequency. While there is a significant difference between the spatial ratios preferred by autistic and non-autistic children choosing the golden ratio, the same type of space access system is preferred by both groups in their results.Originality/valueDespite the prevalent use of the golden ratio in design for autism design, this research shaped an empirical study for autistic users concluding a different perspective in design for autism.

User Interface and User Experience Design in Digital Learning Applications for Autistic Users with the Human-Centered Design Method

Currently in Indonesia there are millions of school-age children. Some of them still have difficulty in accessing education, including children with special needs. Children with special needs are part of a society that is classified as vulnerable. Some institutions state that they are 10 times more likely to be out of school. Even when they go to school, the learning they receive tends to be not optimal, especially for autistic children. Autism is a disorder of overall human development that results in barriers to socialization, communication, and behavior. With the various obstacles they have, the learning process they receive tends to be less than optimal if it is not balanced with adequate facilities and infrastructure. Therefore, in this study, researchers want to design a digital learning application for autistic users based on a website, where the User Interface (UI) and User Experience (UX) of the learning application are tailored to the user's needs. By using the Human-Centered Design (HCD) method that focuses on humans in its manufacture. With these grounds and reasons, it is hoped that this research can produce a UI UX with a good level of usability, effectiveness, and user satisfaction.

Programming for generalization: Confronting known challenges in the design of virtual reality interventions for autistic users

This study explored how to program for generalization using a fully immersive virtual reality (VR) intervention for teaching transportation skills to autistic adults related to using a university shuttle. Using multi-methods, this research sought to identify similarities and differences in behavior between the VR environment and the real-world, participants’ perceptions of telepresence in the VR environment, and how participants characterized similarities and differences between the VR environment and the real-world. Male adult participants (N ​= ​6) completed training and then engaged in two VR-based training sessions of increasing complexity, after which they enacted what was learned in the real-world. Fidelity of implementation was high across VR and real-world sessions and no significant differences were found in behaviors between the VR and real-world sessions, providing evidence for skills generalization from the contrived VR setting to the naturalistic real-world setting. Participants reported high perceptions of telepresence (e.g., being there) and social presence (e.g., being there with others), and qualitative evidence suggests they made connections between the virtual world and real-world. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.

Video-Based Virtual Reality Technology for Autistic Users: An Emerging Technology Report

Video-Based Virtual Reality Technology for Autistic Users: An Emerging Technology Report

Autistic sociality on Twitter: Enacted affordances and affiliation strategies

While there is an increasing focus on the use of online networks among autistic users, how autistic adults communicate in social networking sites remains underexplored. The article puts forward an argument for combining systematic observation of digital practices with analysis of evaluative language in order to provide a situated account of ‘autistic sociality’ in social media. Drawing on practice-based theories of social media affordances and discourse analysis research on online self-presentation and affiliation we show how autistic Twitter users rely on association, content persistence and editability in order to signal social engagement through different forms of interaction and alignment. We discuss how the proposed framework can provide a new perspective on communicative practices of autistic social media users and advance development of inclusive digital networking platforms.

Not perfect but good enough: a primer for creating spherical video-based virtual reality for autistic users

PurposePrevious research provides promising insights to the role of spherical video-based virtual reality (SVVR) applied with and for autistic users. Work already conducted in this area suggests that SVVR delivered via a range of head-mounted displays (HMDs) are useable, acceptable, can enable skill acquisition, can be relevant for delivering training, can help to reduce discomfort and promote skills generalization. However, to date very little research articulates methods or approaches to the design and development of SVVR. Here, the authors share the experiences of working in this space and designing SVVR content with and for autistic groups.Design/methodology/approachThe authors draw upon two case studies/projects that were previous worked on with the intention to extrapolate key parts of the production process of SVVR development. The authors also outline key theoretical contexts as related to SVVR development in this field.FindingsThe goal of this primer on SVVR is to provide researchers and practitioners with an overview of using this technology. The authors provide a set of recommendations that should inform others in creating their own content and developing SVVR for/with/by autistic people.Originality/valueThis work combines and outlines theoretical, conceptual and practical considerations for practitioners and stakeholders seeking to build and deploy SVVR content; aspects not reported in previous research.

Supporting people with autism spectrum disorders in the exploration of PoIs

The suggestion of Points of Interest (PoIs) to people with autism spectrum disorders challenges the research about recommender systems by introducing an explicit need to consider both user preferences and aversions in item evaluation. The reason is that autistic users' perception of places is influenced by sensory aversions, which can cause stress and anxiety when they visit the suggested PoIs. Therefore, the management of individual preferences is not enough to provide these people with suitable recommendations. To address this issue, we propose a Top-N recommendation model that combines information about the user's idiosyncratic aversions with her/his preferences in a personalized way. The goal is that of suggesting the places that (s)he can like and smoothly experience at the same time. We are interested in finding a user-specific balance of compatibility and interest within a recommendation model that integrates heterogeneous evaluation criteria to appropriately take these aspects into account. We tested our model on 148 adults, 20 of which were people with autism spectrum disorders. The evaluation results show that, on both groups, our model achieves superior accuracy and ranking results than the recommender systems based on item compatibility, on user preferences, or which integrate these aspects using a uniform evaluation model. These findings encourage us to use our model as a basis for the development of inclusive recommender systems.

Recommendation Optimization of Physical Education for Developing the Intelligence of Autistic Children following Intelligent Collaborative Filtering Algorithm

Autism, a developmental disorder affecting social and communication skills, differs from most the mental handicap in showing a characteristic pattern of poor, intact, and even superior cognitive abilities. This study aims to solve the mismatch of the teaching content and mental health education for autistic children. Inspired by artificial intelligence, an improved neural network matrix factorization (NeuMF) model is designed based on the theory of collaborative filtering, and time data is added to improve the NeuMF by using the K-means clustering algorithm. Several evaluation indexes such as root mean square error (RMSE) and mean absolute error (MAE) are selected to assess the performance of the proposed model. Results show that RMSE and MAE of the improved NeuMF model are 1.251 and 0.625, respectively, which are better than collaborative filtering and traditional neural network factorization models. Moreover, the proposed model is used to recommend the activities of physical education (PE) for developing the intelligence of autistic children. This proves that the optimized model has better performance and can be used to recommend online courses for autistic users. This dynamic personalized curriculum recommendations model can help autistic children recover in a short time.