Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Can an online mentoring social network assist students with intellectual disabilities or autism in coping with special needs and accumulating social capital?

  • Published:
Education and Information Technologies Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

This study examined whether and how an online mentoring social network (SN) assists students with special needs—Intellectual Disabilities (ID) or Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), in coping with their disabilities and accumulating bonding and bridging types of social capital. The study used a qualitative research paradigm—Netnography to crosscheck observations of the participants' online activities with content analysis of their posts and a network analysis of the participants' interactions with four mentor types – students with disabilities, high-school students, undergraduates and teachers. The findings showed that the online mentoring SN functioned as an assistive technology for students with ID and ASD who actively interacted with other members to accumulate social capital, share information and receive support. The most prevalent categories in the analysis were sharing of personal experiences and interests, and emotion processing, whereas coping with disability and self-introduction were less common. Surprisingly, undergraduate mentors and most of the teachers interacted only within their own groups and not with students. Theoretical and educational implications are discussed.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4
Fig. 5

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Abbas, R., & Mesch, G. (2018). Do rich teens get richer? Facebook use and the link between offline and online social capital among Palestinian youth in Israel. Information, Communication & Society, 21(1), 63–79.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders: DSM-5. Arlington, VA.

  • Amichai-Hamburger, Y. (2008). The contact hypothesis reconsidered: Interacting via internet: Theoretical and practical aspect. In A. Barak (Ed.), Psychological aspects of cyberspace. Theory, research, applications, (pp. 209–222). Cambridge University Press.

  • Attwood, A. (1997). Asperger’s syndrome: A guide for parents and professionals. Jessica Kingsley Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Blau, I., & Neuthal, T. (2012). Tweeting educational technology: A tale of professional community of practice. International Journal of Cyber Society and Education, 5(1), 75–80.

    Google Scholar 

  • Blau, I., Mor, N., & Neuthal, T. (2013). Interacting for learning: Digital portfolios for a learning community in a university course. Learning, Media and Technology, 38(3), 241–255.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Benford, P., & Standen, P. J. (2009). The internet: A comfortable communication medium for autistic people? Journal of Assistive Technologies, 3(2), 44–53.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Boniel-Nissim, M., & Barak, A. (2013). The therapeutic value of adolescents’ blogging about social-emotional difficulties. Psychological Services, 10, 333–341.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Borgström, Å., Daneback, K., & Molin, M. (2019). Young people with intellectual disabilities and social media: A literature review and thematic analysis. Scandinavian Journal of Disability Research, 21(1), 129–140.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2006). Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 3(2), 77–101.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cassiani, C., Stinson, J., & Lindsay, S. (2020). E-mentoring for youth with physical disabilities preparing for employment: A content analysis of support exchanged between participants of a mentored and non-mentored group. Disability and Rehabilitation, 42(14), 1963–1970.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Day, S. L., & Edwards, B. J. (1996). Assistive technology for postsecondary students with learning disabilities. Journal of Learning Disabilities, 29, 486–492.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dubrovsky, V. J., Kiesler, S., & Sethna, B. N. (1991). The equalization phenomenon: Status effects in computer-mediated and face-to-face decision-making groups. Human-Computer Interaction, 6(2), 119–146.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ellison, N., Steinfeld, C., & Lampe, C. (2007). The benefits of Facebook ‘“friends”’: Exploring the relationship between college students’ use of online social networks and social capital. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 12(3), 1143–1168.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Eshet, Y. (2012). Digital literacy: A revised model. Issues in Informing Science and Information Technology, 9, 267–276.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Esterling, B. A., L’Abate, L., Murray, E. J., & Pennebaker, J. W. (1999). Empirical foundations for writing in prevention and psychotherapy: Mental and physical health outcomes. Clinical Psychology Review, 19, 79–96.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gonzales, A. L., & Hancock, J. T. (2011). Mirror, mirror on my facebook wall: Effects of exposure to facebook on self-esteem. Cyberpsychology Behavior and Social Networking, 14(1–2), 79–83.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hershkovzt, A., & Forkosh-Baruch, A. (2017). Teacher-student relationship and Facebook-mediated communication: Student perceptions. Comunicar: Media Education Research Journal, 25(53), 91–100.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Holmes, A., & Silvestri, R. (2012). Assistive technology use by students with LD in postsecondary education: A case of application before investigation? Canadian Journal of School Psychology, 27(1), 81–97.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kasperski, R., & Blau, I. (2020). Social capital in high-schools: Teacher-student relationships on an online social network and their association with in-class interactions and learning. Interactive Learning Environments. https://doi.org/10.1080/10494820.2020.1815220

  • Kozinets, R. V. (2002). Using netnography for marketing research in online communities. Journal of Marketing Research, 39(1), 61–72.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lacava, P. G., Golan, O., Baron-Cohen, S., & Smith Myles, B. (2007). Using assistive technology to teach emotion recognition to students with Asperger syndrome: A pilot study. Remedial and Special Education, 28(3), 174–181.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Leavitt, A., Burchard, E., Fisher, D., & Gilbert, S. (2009). The influentials: New approaches for analyzing influence on Twitter. A publication of the Web Ecology Project. Retrieved April 17, 2020 from http://tinyurl.com/lzjlzq

  • Liu, S., Xie, W., Han, S., Mou, Z., Zhang, X., & Zhang, L. (2018). Social interaction patterns of the disabled people in asymmetric social dilemmas. Frontiers in Psychology, 9, 1683.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mahmood, Q. K., Zakar, R., & Zakar, M. Z. (2018). Role of Facebook use in predicting bridging and bonding social capital of Pakistani university students. Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment, 28(7), 856–873.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Manca, S., & Ranieri, M. (2017). Implications of social network sites for teaching and learning. Where we are and where we want to go. Education and Information Technologies, 22(2), 605–622.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Martin, A. J., Strnadová, I., Loblinzk, J., Danker, J. C., & Cumming, T. M. (2021). The role of mobile technology in promoting social inclusion among adults with intellectual disabilities. Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 34(3), 840–851.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mazurek, M. O. (2013). Social media use among adults with autism spectrum disorders. Computers in Human Behavior, 29(4), 1709–1714.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Noakes, M. A., Schmitt, A. J., McCallum, E., & Schutte, K. (2019). Speech-to-text assistive technology for the written expression of students with traumatic brain injuries: A single case experimental study. School Psychology, 34(6), 656.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nowell, L. S., Norris, J. M., White, D. E., & Moules, N. J. (2017). Thematic analysis: Striving to meet the trustworthiness criteria. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 16(1), 1609406917733847.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Perelmutter, B., McGregor, K. K., & Gordon, K. R. (2017). Assistive technology interventions for adolescents and adults with learning disabilities: An evidence-based systematic review and meta-analysis. Computers & Education, 114, 139–163.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Putnam, R. D. (2000). Bowling alone: The collapse and revival of American community. Simon & Schuster.

    Google Scholar 

  • Salimkhan, G., Manago, A., & Greenfield, P. (2010). The Construction of the virtual self on MySpace. Cyberpsychology: Journal of Psychosocial Research on Cyberspace, 4(1), article 1.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sallafranque-St-Louis, F., & Normand, C. L. (2017). From solitude to solicitation: How people with intellectual disability or autism spectrum disorder use the internet. Cyberpsychology: Journal of Psychosocial Research on Cyberspace, 11(1), 79–96.

  • Shamambo, L., Niemann, M., Jonas, R., & Douglass, L. M. (2020). Mentorship for youth with chronic neurological conditions in the digital era: An innovative approach to supporting transition. Journal of Seminars in Pediatric Neurology, 36, 100857. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.spen.2020.100857

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shillingsburg, M. A., Bowen, C. N., & Shapiro, S. K. (2014). Increasing social approach and decreasing social avoidance in children with autism spectrum disorder during discrete trial training. Research in Autism Spectrum Disorders, 8(11), 1443–1453.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shkedi, A. (2010). Multiple case narratives: A qualitative approach to studying multiple populations. John Benjamins.

  • Shpigelman, C. N. (2018). Leveraging social capital of individuals with intellectual disabilities through participation on Facebook. Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 31(1), e79–e91.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shpigelman, C. N., Reiter, S., & Weiss, P. L. (2008). E-mentoring for youth with special needs: Preliminary results. CyberPsychology & Behavior, 11(2), 196–200.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wetherby, A. M., & Prizant, B. M. (2000). Autism spectrum disorders: A transactional developmental perspective. Paul H. Brooks.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

This study supported by The Open University of Israel Research Authority Foundation.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Gordon Academic College of Education, Haifa, Israel

    Ronen Kasperski

  2. Shaanan Academic College of Education, Haifa, Israel

    Ronen Kasperski

  3. Department of Education and Psychology, The Open University of Israel, P.O.B. 808, 1 University Road, 43107, Ra’anana, Israel

    Ina Blau

Authors
  1. Ronen Kasperski
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Ina Blau
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ina Blau.

Additional information

Publisher's note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Kasperski, R., Blau, I. Can an online mentoring social network assist students with intellectual disabilities or autism in coping with special needs and accumulating social capital?. Educ Inf Technol 28, 6027–6047 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-022-11390-0

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-022-11390-0

Keywords

Search

Navigation