Social communication is often targeted as a domain requiring improvement for children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). It is often necessary to repeatedly practice conversational skills such as turn taking and the sharing of appropriate information. This practice often takes the form of structured, rote conversations that are predictable to both the child and their interlocutor, which helps form a model for what a back-and-forth conversation should look like.
However, that kind of structured practice is not always available; parents and other caregivers are busy, and having anticipated, repetitive conversations may not be easy for everyone. Further, children with ASD are sometimes more threatened (at first) by social interactions with real people than they are with computers. Computers, which are generally very predictable, can be controlled, non-threatening partners with which to practice conversational skills.
Ask standard questions that one might ask at a first meeting
Check answers and provide feedback according to the answer’s appropriateness
Guide user back to appropriate conversation when necessary, using a model
The system in question has the ability to record an expected set of responses to memory, set by a power user (like a parent). It also has the ability to check a given response against expected response.
The first time this game is played, a parent would help set up the game so that it would know what answers to expect from the conversation. The setup process would run through a series of questions that could be asked, and guide the power user how to modify the interactions.
Vicky: Hi, I’m Vicky. Let’s start by setting up some questions and answers to keep the conversation flowing. If you don’t want me to ask a certain question, you can say: “Don’t ask that.”
Vicky: What is the name of the person I’ll be talking to?
Parent: Margaret.
Vicky: So I’ll be chatting with Margaret, is that right?
Parent: Yes.
Vicky: Great! Now let’s decide what I should talk to Margaret about. Where does Margaret live?
Parent: We live in Chicago.
Vicky: I see. Margaret lives in Chicago. How about a favorite color?
Parent: Uhhhhh - let’s not ask that.
* [accept any negative + 'ask' as “Don’t ask that” intention.]
Vicky: No problem, I won’t ask about that. Does Margaret have any brothers or sisters?
Parent: Yeah, she has an older sister, Melanie.
Vicky: Okay, Margaret has an older sister.
Vicky: That’s about it! I’m ready to have a conversation. Just say “Ready to talk” whenever Margaret wants to chat.
Margaret: Ready to talk.
Vicky: Hello! What’s your name?
[if match]
Margaret: My name is Margaret.
Vicky: Hi Margaret! My name is Vicky.
[if no match]
Margaret: Just like cousin Vicky. [or] My name is mom.
Vicky: Oh really? My name is Vicky. What’s your name?
Margaret: I’m Margaret.
Vicky: Hi Margaret!
Vicky: Where do you live?
[if match]
Margaret: I live in Chicago.
Vicky: Oh, that’s cool! I live in San Francisco.
[if no match]
Margaret: I can’t have a car. [or] I live in a castle.
Vicky: Hmm, I live in San Francisco. Where do you live?
Margaret: I live in Chicago.
Vicky: Oh, that’s cool!
Vicky: Do you have any brothers or sisters?
[if match]
Margaret: I have a sister.
Vicky: That’s nice! I don’t have any brothers or sisters.
[if no match]
Margaret: My name is Margaret.
Vicky: You could say you have a sister. Do you have any brothers or sisters?
Margaret: I have a sister.
Vicky: That’s nice!
The point of answer matching is not necessarily to get the “right answers”, but to guide conversation down a path that leads to appropriate responses. Knowing that “Chicago” is the expected city isn’t particularly important, but the goal is to encourage answering with a city instead of a non sequitur like “I can’t have a car.”
Knowing the expected response leads to a better understanding of how the child should answer.
Time outs after 2 response errors keep the conversation flowing: “Let’s talk about something else.”
A general time out after a certain number of times playing the game (x number within a 24 hour period) could be enabled to avoid potential obsession.