AEDLE: Designing Drama Therapy Interface for Improving Pragmatic Language Skills of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder Using AR

Abstract

This research proposes AEDLE, a new interface combining AR with drama therapy - an approved method of improving pragmatic language skills - to offer effective, universal, and accessible language therapy for children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). People with ASD commonly have a disability in pragmatic language and experience difficulty speaking. However, although therapy in childhood is necessary to prevent long-term social isolation due to such constraints, the limited number of therapists forbids doing so. Technology-based therapy can be a solution, but studies on utilizing digital therapy to improve pragmatic language are still insufficient. We conducted a preliminary user study with an ASD child and a therapist to investigate how the child with ASD reacts to drama therapy using AEDLE. We observed that our ASD child actively participated in AEDLE-mediated drama therapy, used our insights to recommend design suggestions for AR-based drama therapy, and explored various ways to utilize AEDLE.