This study intends to verify the potency of a different sort of cellular messaging app called MAAN, for example together in the Arabic, to have grownups with ASD, playing with pre-post data analysis. The goal of MAAN is to try to provide an obtainable, secure, and easy-to-use chatting app to have people with ASD and therefore service the addition when you look at the community. In this study, i hypothesized the second: (1) New accessibility top features of mobile apps (text-to-address [TTS], speech-to-text message [STT], and you will interaction symbols [CS]), that are used on MAAN, can raise the public and telecommunications enjoy regarding people with ASD; and you will (2) The use of new application can reduce social loneliness from inside the people having ASD.
Research Design
A mixed procedures approach are observed in this study. 7 grownups having ASD was basically expected to make use of MAAN along with their caregivers getting 16 days. Before the construction and you may development of MAAN, semistructured interview was used having benefits to discuss the initial recommended software design. The new application framework ended up being modified according to obtained feedback. Next, adults that have ASD in addition to their mothers or caregivers was requested to play with MAAN getting a time period of sixteen months. That it cycle was observed on study of the Laugeson mais aussi al , which recommended when searching personal and communication knowledge interventions, update is only apparent during the 16 months. The analysis started by calling anyone prepared to engage. Due to COVID-19, the original meetings with the participants was in fact presented online. All of the members received a contact getting explaining the research pointers, particularly date and time, and you may a beneficial weblink getting gathering informed agree getting an online conference for the players, their friends, in addition to their moms and dads. After choosing this new participants’ agree, they certainly were asked to fill an on-line prestudy questionnaire manageable to gather demographical suggestions. The parents otherwise caregivers of one’s people was in fact kissbridesdate.com pop over til disse karene and questioned in order to complete an initial variety of this new Public and you may Mental Loneliness Size to own Adults (SELSA-S) questionnaire . The goal of it questionnaire were to determine the fresh personal and you will family members loneliness of one’s players. In a virtual meeting, the principal specialist told me the new software provides in detail and you can answered then questions about the study. The players were plus provided with an effective hotline to statement any topic they might deal with with this studies. To ensure the continuity of information range, the players have been questioned so the brand new application are usually running regarding records.
At the conclusion of the study, all the people having ASD in addition to their caregivers or mothers finished this new Cellular Application Get Measure: affiliate type (uMARS) survey. The fresh uMARS is a simple and you will legitimate equipment which are utilized by end-pages to evaluate the quality of cellular wellness software. It includes a great 20-item measure filled with cuatro goal high quality subscales (involvement, features, esthetics, and you can guidance quality) and 1 personal top quality subscale. The objective of so it survey is to gauge the app’s quality in terms of efficiency. The new participants’ moms and dads otherwise caregivers as well as accomplished the brand new SELSA-S survey again to search for the participants’ personal and you will relatives loneliness prices following studies. Lastly, an effective semistructured interviews having moms and dads otherwise caregivers is presented to gather information regarding new perspective away from software incorporate. The new interview incorporated questions relating to the overall software expertise in conditions out of features, abilities, and you can demands came across while using the app, also suggestions for after that enhancement.
MAAN Application Construction and you may Creativity
The latest app contained another step three fundamental features: TTS, STT, and you may CS. One of several really-understood have that can be also considered as a type of assistive technology is the brand new TTS function, that enables profiles to listen composed text towards the a pc, pill, otherwise track somebody troubled into the understanding and you will decoding terms . Furthermore, STT is an assistive tech ability employed by individuals who fight which have writing. This form of assistive technology allows address to-be converted into text using the computing unit. One another provides have become are not useful to help introduction training configurations . The new app including integrated the brand new CS feature, that is an important part from AAC-offered technologies, and its particular number one objective will be to assist individuals with ASD inside the building sentences. We are really not aware of one chatting application one aids this new utilization of the CS function. TAWASOL icons was indeed useful for new CS feature. They were designed in 2013 by Mada Cardiovascular system, an enthusiastic assistive technical heart for the Qatar. These types of icons depict the present day Practical Arabic code and generally are customized becoming culturally, socially, consistently, and you can linguistically appropriate. TAWASOL is based on new AAC Signs Collection and is brought so you’re able to nonverbal otherwise minimally spoken people that want solution communications options .
