Robot child interactions as an intervention tool for children with autism

机器人儿童互动作为自闭症儿童的干预工具

• 批准号: 8306714
• 负责人: Anjana Narayan Bhat
• 金额: $ 14.77万
• 依托单位: UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT STORRS
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 财政年份: 2009
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2009-09-30 至 2014-08-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/8306714
• 关键词: 8 year old; Adult; Autistic Disorder; Behavior; Behavioral; Child; Child Language; Clinical; Cognitive; Communication; Communities; Complex; Control Groups; Data; Data Collection; Diagnosis; Environment; Equilibrium; Equipment and supply inventories; Florida; Frequencies; Gestures; Goals; Health; Hour; Incidence; Intervention; Literature; Mainstreaming; Manuals; Measures; Modeling; Morphology; Motor; Motor Skills; Movement; Nonverbal Communication; Performance; Phase; Pilot Projects; Posture; Process; Protocols documentation; Psychological Transfer; Research; Research Design; Research Personnel; Robot; Robotics; Social Interaction; Standardization; System; Systems Development; Techniques; Training; Treatment Protocols; Variant; autism spectrum disorder; base; design; improved; innovation; joint attention; limb movement; novel; peer; programs; response; skills; social; social communication; teacher; tool

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The rising incidence of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) challenges researchers to develop novel intervention techniques for children with ASD. Nevertheless, the majority of the research on ASD interventions is focused on traditional and contemporary Applied Behavioral Analysis approaches that target a child's language, cognitive, and preacademic skills. These approaches typically require a child with ASD to engage in intensive 1:1 intervention for 30-40 hours per week. In contrast, administering robot child interactions as an intervention technique may be a significant innovation for various reasons. A robot could serve as an adjunct to a clinician to administer components of an assessment or treatment protocol with some level of standardization and may assist in the data collection process. The programmability of a robot allows us to systematically increase the complexity of social interactions within treatment. Evidence also suggests that children with ASD enjoy interacting with robots due to their simple and predictable behaviors. Most of all, robots are embodied beings that encourage a child with ASD to engage in whole body interactions involving imitation, turn taking, and joint attention bids. Aims: The overall goal of this research is to develop novel intervention techniques for children diagnosed with ASD. Specifically, the proposed project will examine the efficacy of robot child interactions for enhancing social, communication, and perceptuo-motor skills of children with high and low functioning ASD. Our preliminary data on typically developing (TD) children who underwent short-term training with a humanoid robot suggested that all children enjoyed interacting with the robot. The young children performed behaviors such as looking at the robot, greeting the robot, and talking to the robot. They also imitated the complex limb movements performed by the robot. In terms of non-verbal communication, they engaged in turn taking and joint attention behaviors with their teachers and peers. In the proposed project, we have two phases of study. In the first R21 phase we examine robot child interactions in three different projects: a) interactions of TD children between 4 and 8 years of age during short-term training, b) interactions of the same group during interpersonal synchrony tasks, c) Robotic systems development and d) a 5-week intervention for children with ASD using a single subject design. In the R33 phase, we conduct a group design study in which 12 children with ASD between 4 and 8 years of age will receive a 10-week robot child interaction protocol and be compared to a control group of children with ASD. Pre- and post-training assessments will include the PDD- Behavioral Inventory, Movement-ABC, and the Florida Apraxia Battery. We expect the children in the training group to demonstrate advances general social communication measures as well as specific improvements in imitation, nonverbal communication, as well as motor coordination during robot-child interactions. Overall, robot based social intervention is an uncharted, promising intervention tool for enhancing social, communication and motor skills in children with ASD.

描述（由申请人提供）：自闭症谱系障碍（ASD）的发病率上升，挑战研究人员为ASD儿童开发新颖的干预技术。然而，关于ASD干预措施的大多数研究都集中在传统和当代应用的行为分析方法上，该方法针对儿童的语言，认知和预性技能。这些方法通常要求患有ASD的孩子每周进行30-40小时的强化1：1干预。相反，由于各种原因，将机器人儿童互动作为干预技术可能是一项重大创新。机器人可以用作临床医生的辅助人员，以一定程度的标准化管理评估或治疗方案的组件，并可以帮助数据收集过程。机器人的可编程性使我们能够系统地增加治疗中社交互动的复杂性。证据还表明，由于简单且可预测的行为，患有ASD的儿童享受与机器人的互动。最重要的是，机器人是体现的生物，鼓励患有ASD的儿童进行涉及模仿，转弯和关注关注的全身互动。目的：这项研究的总体目标是为被诊断为ASD的儿童开发新颖的干预技术。具体而言，拟议的项目将检查 机器人儿童互动的功效可以增强高功能ASD儿童的社交，沟通和感知运动技能。我们有关使用类人动物机器人进行短期培训的典型发展（TD）儿童的初步数据表明，所有儿童都喜欢与机器人互动。幼儿执行的行为，例如看机器人，向机器人打招呼，并与机器人交谈。他们还模仿了机器人执行的复杂肢体运动。在非语言交流方面，他们依次与老师和同龄人进行联合关注行为。在拟议的项目中，我们有两个研究阶段。在第一个R21阶段，我们检查了三个不同项目中的机器人儿童相互作用：a）在短期培训期间4至8岁之间的TD儿童相互作用，b）在人际关系同步任务期间同一组的相互作用，c）机器人系统开发和d）使用单个主题设计对儿童进行5周干预。在R33阶段，我们进行了一项小组设计研究，其中12名ASD在4至8岁之间的儿童将获得10周的机器人儿童互动方案，并与ASD对照组的儿童进行比较。培训前和培训后的评估将包括PDD行为清单，运动-ABC和佛罗里达替补失调电池。我们希望培训小组中的孩子们能够展示一般社会交流措施以及在机器人孩子互动期间的模仿，非语言交流以及运动协调的特定改进。总体而言，基于机器人的社会干预是一种未知的，有前途的干预工具，可增强ASD儿童的社交，沟通和运动技能。