Virtual Conversation Partner for Adults with Autism

Abstract

Autistic Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is notable for severely impaired reciprocal social interaction skills relative to language and intellectual abilities, presenting a major barrier to social integration and vocational success. Evidence-based interventions to address these needs are lacking. We report on the development of a small, prototype conversation simulation to teach conversational skills to adolescents and adults with ASD and average to superior intellectual abilities. We also report on a test of the feasibility and acceptability of the simulation approach with a sample of the target population. The simulation engages the user in a virtual conversation with an on-screen partner whose reactions provide naturalistic feedback geared to the appropriateness of the learner's response choices. The prototype simulation, which provides for up to 12 potentially unique multi-turn conversations, was used over a period of 2 weeks by 16 adolescents and adults who then rated statements about the system on a linear scale of 1 (disagreement) to 5 (high agreement). The participants highly endorsed the majority of positive statements about the quality and credibility of the interaction and the virtual conversation partner. In contrast, agreement with positive statements about instructional features external to the conversation was moderate. Unexpectedly, most participants strongly agreed that using the simulation had been helpful to them. Further development and testing in the context of a controlled study with randomized assignment to control and experimental groups are needed to determine whether this approach is effective in improving realworld pragmatic language behavior of high-functioning adults with ASD.

A Systematic Review of Psychosocial Interventions for Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorders

“…Unlike what is indicated in systematic reviews of the child ASD literature (Matson et al 1996; Odom et al 2010), more included studies focused on social cognition training than on ABA techniques (Baker et al 2005; Gantman et al 2011; McDonald and Hemmes 2003; Moore 2009; Rehfeldt and Chambers 2003; Shabani and Fisher 2006; Bölte et al 2002; Faja et al 2011; Golan and Baron-Cohen 2006; Trepagnier et al 2011; Turner-Brown et al 2008). The six social cognition training studies (Bölte et al 2002; Faja et al 2011; Gantman et al 2011; Golan and Baron-Cohen 2006; Trepagnier et al 2011; Turner-Brown et al 2008) sought to improve participants’ ability to grasp social cues and, as a consequence, improve social functioning.…”

Brief Report: Examining the Link Between Autistic Traits and Compulsive Internet Use in a Non-Clinical Sample

“…On the positive side, the reduced contextual, auditory, and visual cues in online interactions (Trepagnier et al 2006(Trepagnier et al , 2011 diminish the constraints that individuals with autistic traits experience in offline interactions. Also, the Internet provides people with autistic traits with the opportunity to control the information they want to reveal about themselves.…”

Virtual Reality Job Interview Training in Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder

“…This software has been used to train federal law enforcement agents on interrogation methods (Olsen et al 1999), primary care physicians to perform brief psychosocial intervention to treat alcohol abuse (Fleming et al 2009), and individuals with ASD to improve their social skills (Trepagnier et al 2011). Other virtual reality training systems have been designed to train social skills in individuals with ASD (Kandalaft et al 2013).…”