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International Conference on Intelligent Technologies and Applications

INTAP 2021: Intelligent Technologies and Applications pp 132–143Cite as

A Perspective on Intervention Approaches for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Part of the Communications in Computer and Information Science book series (CCIS,volume 1616)

Abstract

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder that affects 1 in 160 children globally. Autism is characterised by abnormalities in communication, social interactions and behavioural challenges. Sensory processing difficulties affect two-thirds of children with autism. This causes anxiety and typically leads to repetitive behaviour referred to as problem behaviours. Stereotypy and aggression are some of the most frequently observed problem behaviours. Behavioural interventions may help manage symptoms and develop cognitive skills, thus promoting a child’s participation in social activities. A growing body of literature suggests that technological advancements in mobile health (mHealth) systems can be utilised to develop various intervention modalities. The central goal is to help children with ASD adapt to their surroundings by managing their problem behaviours. A promising possibility is to monitor physiological signals with wearable sensors to anticipate the onset of problem behaviour and provide intervention through wearable assistive devices. This paper presents a new perspective to manage problem behaviour and concept guidelines for a potential mHealth framework to deliver vibrotactile and thermal stimuli for sensory-based intervention.

Keywords

  • Autism
  • Wearable devices
  • Vibrotactile intervention
  • Thermal intervention
  • mHealth

This research is funded by the Top Research Centre Mechatronics (TRCM), University of Agder (UiA), Norway.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Agder (UiA), Grimstad, Norway

    Saishashank Balaji, Filippo Sanfilippo & Martin W. Gerdes

  2. University of Siena, 53100, Siena, Italy

    Domenico Prattichizzo

Authors
  1. Saishashank Balaji
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  2. Filippo Sanfilippo
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  3. Martin W. Gerdes
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  4. Domenico Prattichizzo
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Correspondence to Saishashank Balaji .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. University of Agder (UiA), Grimstad, Norway

    Assoc. Prof. Filippo Sanfilippo

  2. University of Agder (UiA), Grimstad, Norway

    Ole-Christoffer Granmo

  3. Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Gjøvik, Norway

    Sule Yildirim Yayilgan

  4. The Islamia University of Bahawalpur (IUB), Bahawalpur, Pakistan

    Prof. Imran Sarwar Bajwa

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Balaji, S., Sanfilippo, F., Gerdes, M.W., Prattichizzo, D. (2022). A Perspective on Intervention Approaches for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder. In: Sanfilippo, F., Granmo, OC., Yayilgan, S.Y., Bajwa, I.S. (eds) Intelligent Technologies and Applications. INTAP 2021. Communications in Computer and Information Science, vol 1616. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-10525-8_11

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