Impact Of Assistive Technology Research Articles

The Impact of Assistive Technology on the Educational Performance of Students with Visual Impairments: A Synthesis of the Research

This synthesis examined the research literature from 1965 to 2009 on the assistive technology that is used by individuals with visual impairments. The authors located and reviewed 256 articles for evidence-based research on assistive technology that had a positive impact on educational performance. Of the 256 studies, only 2 provided promising evidence-based practices.

Development and validation of a questionnaire to measure the psychosocial impact of assistive technologies for continence in elderly individuals

Development and validation of a questionnaire to measure the psychosocial impact of assistive technologies for continence in elderly individuals

Assistive technology: Impact on education, employment, and independence of individuals with physical disabilities

The purpose of this manuscript is to discuss how assistive technology impacts individuals with disabilities in relation to their education, employment, and ability to live independently. Appropriately selected and utilized assistive technology is imperative for individuals to approach an even par with their non-disabled peers. This paper specifically addresses a number of key questions: How important is assistive technology (AT) to the success of individuals with disabilities in education, employment, and achieving independence? If AT is important, in what ways is it important? What essential need(s) are met by the use of AT in education, employment, and independence? What remain as unresolved issues and questions regarding the use of AT by individuals with disabilities as they pursue postsecondary education, meaningful careers, and living independently? This review notes that AT is a foundational support that produces multiple and life-altering benefits. While we know much about the impact of AT on the lives of individuals with disabilities, many unanswered issues and questions remain.

The Impact of Assistive Technology on Curriculum Accommodation for a Braille-Reading Student

Over 5 months, the authors evaluated the efficacy of electronic assistive technology (the BrailleNote mPower BT-32 notetaker and Tiger Cub Jr. embosser) and associated software components in creating curriculum materials for a middle school Braille-reading student. The authors collected data at the beginning and end of the study from parents, teachers, para- professionals, and the participant through semistructured interviews. Four salient themes emerged from the interviews: efficiency, independence, tech- nology assimilation, and technical limitations. The devices enabled teachers and paraprofessionals who had no experience with the literary Braille code to generate and emboss Braille documents with a minimum of training. Having teachers and paraprofessionals do this work allowed vision specialist teachers to concentrate on teaching their students rather than on translating literary Braille into print.

The psychosocial impact of assistive devices scale (PIADS): Translation and psychometric evaluation of a Chinese (Taiwanese) version

Purpose. Chinese language instruments for measuring the impact of assistive technology are needed. This article reports on the development and preliminary evaluation of a Chinese (Taiwanese) translation of the Psychosocial Impact of Assistive Devices Scale.Method. The language translation process followed standard procedures for cross-cultural adaptation, including: two versions of forward and backward translations, committee review, and pilot testing with bilingual participants. Test – retest reliability, internal consistency, and concurrent validity of the Chinese PIADS (C-PIADS) were evaluated with 60 participants from Taiwan who wear eyeglasses or contact lenses.Results. Cronbach's α values for internal consistency ranged from 0.72 to 0.93 for the C-PIADS total scale and three subscales. Test – retest reliability was evaluated using intraclass correlation coefficient analysis, which produced values ranging from 0.79 to 0.88 for the overall C-PIADS score and three sub-scales. Overall C-PIADS scores were not statistically different from data obtained from a similar device user population in the original PIADS validation study.Conclusions. The results of our preliminary psychometric assessment support continued development of the C-PIADS. Future research should focus on three things: additional data collection from a similar participant population, data collection from people with disabilities using assistive technology in Taiwan; and modification of the C-PIADS for use in other Mandarin-speaking regions, e.g., China and Hong Kong.

The AT continuum in education: Novice to power user

What factors regarding partnership/collaboration on a statement of AT (assistive technology) need result in students obtaining AT that they use and are satisfied in using? This is one of the questions posited in a study, which investigated both quantitatively and qualitatively the impact of assistive technology on quality of life, self-esteem and satisfaction of AT use of students with disabilities. A mixed methods approach was used to gather data from 45 students with disabilities in their final year of second level education. Following data analysis clear groupings emerged signifying key characteristics which defined novice to power users of AT in education.

The impact of assistive technology and environmental interventions on function and living situation status with people who are ageing with developmental disabilities

Purpose : A longitudinal study of 109 people with developmental disabilities, age 35 and older, was done to study the additive impact of mid to later life assistive technology and environmental interventions (AT-EI) on function and living situation status. All subjects were trying to transition out of institutional settings to community settings. Method : Functional status were measured at two times (Time 1 baseline and Time 2 an average of three years post intervention) on 32 functional activities under two conditions: without AT (person only) and with AT (environment adjusted). Rasch analysis was performed to convert ordinal functional scores to equal interval measures, with 95% confidence intervals computed to compare differences in function, with and without AT, across time. Results : Results indicated that over 70% of subjects had better function with AT versus without AT at both time points. Over time, function did not change when rated without AT; however, when rated with AT, 13.6% had better function at Time 2. Subjects living in the community at Time 2 had significantly higher functional scores as compared to subjects in institutions, regardless of AT condition. Additional quantitative and qualitative data on AT-EI use, needs, and barriers and supports to its integration into everyday activities are reported. Conclusions : Results suggest a beneficial impact of later life AT-EI assessment and programming for people who are ageing with developmental disabilities, and qualitatively point to the influence of the social and physical living context upon AT-EI use and relationship to community living decisions long term.

Documenting the Impact of Assistive Listening Technology in the Classroom

Abstract When assistive technology is recommended for an individual or group in a classroom, the professional must be prepared to provide data regarding the impact of the listening system. Teachers, parents, and school administrators require data to document the effectiveness of any recommendation that will ultimately impact their classrooms, children, and bottom line. Traditionally, clinical measurements and questionnaires have been used to document the efficacy of using assistive listening technology for a particular child. Clinical measurements lack the face validity needed to communicate expected results in the classroom. Questionnaires are fraught with problems of bias from the respondees. This article presents a method of structured observation that we have used to evaluate the impact of assistive technology on individual children and classrooms. A case study is presented as an example of the use of this technique.