Virtual worlds for people with autism spectrum disorder: a case study in Second Life

Abstract

Anecdotally Wolf's experiences suggest that people with ASD enjoy using a virtual world and may feel more comfortable communicating in the virtual world context than the physical world. Virtual worlds offer a venue for people with ASD to be a part of a virtual society, lowers communication barriers experienced in the physical world, and gives the participant a unique opportunity to create and maintain friendships. Virtual worlds offer an arena for people with ASD to meet their peers on equal terms, not being dependent on social cues, which in the physical world can be a barrier for communication for this group. Further research in this area is required.

What Role Can Avatars Play in e-Mental Health Interventions? Exploring New Models of Client–Therapist Interaction

“…For instance, Stendal and Balandin (28) illustrated how text-based communication in Second Life reduced communication barriers for a participant with autism spectrum disorder by reducing the ambiguity of social and emotional cues during his interactions with online peers. The participant reported feeling a sense of security and control that he perceived his disability did not afford him in the “real world,” empowering him to develop personally valued online friendships.…”

Brief Report: A Pilot Study of the Use of a Virtual Reality Headset in Autism Populations

“…The term, VRT, remains fairly broad and includes VR head-mounted displays (VR-HMD; Strickland et al, 1996), virtual environment simulations (VES; Mitchell, Parsons, & Leonard, 2007;Parsons, Mitchell, & Leonard, 2004, 2005, collaborative virtual environments (VE; Fabri, Moore, & Hobbs, 2004), immersive virtual environments (IVE; Wallace et al, 2010), and virtual worlds (VW; Kandalaft, Didehbani, Krawczyk, Allen, & Chapman, 2013;Newbutt, 2013;Stendal & Balandin, 2015).…”

Collaborative Virtual Environment to Facilitate Game Design Evaluation with Children with ASC

“…The COSPATIAL project, for example, focused on the use of Collaborative Virtual Environment (CVE) technology for supporting and developing communication skills for children with autism (Parsons, Millen, Garib-Penna, & Cobb, 2011). CVEs offer a way for students with ASC to communicate without the need for face-to-face communication which they may find difficult ; social cues which can cause barriers to people with autism feeling able to communicate are lowered in VEs (Stendal & Balandin, 2015). There are further several potential benefits of VE technologies for users with autism, as described by Myles, Swanson, Holverstott, and Duncan (2007):…”