This research intends to be bride Chisinau sure the potency of yet another mobile chatting software titled MAAN, which means that together inside the Arabic, for people that have ASD, playing with pre-post investigation data. The purpose of MAAN is to bring an obtainable, secure, and easy-to-play with messaging application having grownups with ASD and therefore assistance its inclusion in neighborhood. In this analysis, i hypothesized the next: (1) The fresh new use of popular features of cellular apps (text-to-address [TTS], speech-to-text message [STT], and you may communications icons [CS]), which are applied to MAAN, can enhance brand new social and communication experience out-of grownups with ASD; and you can (2) The application of the fresh new software can lessen social loneliness for the grownups with ASD.
Investigation Design
A combined strategies strategy try followed inside investigation. 7 adults having ASD have been asked to use MAAN using their caregivers for 16 weeks. Ahead of the framework and you can development of MAAN, semistructured interview have been used having benefits to talk about the latest first advised app design. The fresh application framework ended up being altered with regards to the received views. Upcoming, grownups which have ASD in addition to their moms and dads or caregivers were expected to use MAAN for a time period of sixteen weeks. That it period is actually implemented regarding studies of the Laugeson ainsi que al , and that ideal that in case researching personal and you may correspondence experiences treatments, improve is just obvious from the 16 weeks. The analysis come by contacting someone ready to participate. On account of COVID-19, the initial group meetings on the people was used on line. Every players acquired an email to possess describing the analysis information, like time and date, and you can good weblink getting get together told concur having an online fulfilling into the people, people they know, as well as their mothers. Just after receiving the latest participants’ consent, they were requested so you can fill an online prestudy questionnaire manageable to gather demographical information. The parents otherwise caregivers of the users were along with requested so you’re able to over a preliminary types of the fresh Social and you will Psychological Loneliness Size to have Grownups (SELSA-S) questionnaire . The aim of which survey would be to dictate the fresh public and loved ones loneliness of people. From inside the an online conference, the primary researcher told me the fresh application has in detail and you will replied after that questions about the analysis. The players was indeed as well as provided with good hotline so you can declaration people thing they could deal with during this study. To be sure the continuity of information collection, the players was in fact questioned to make sure that new software was always running in the record.
After the research, all the participants having ASD in addition to their caregivers or parents finished the Cellular App Score Measure: member version (uMARS) questionnaire. New uMARS is an easy and reliable tool which are used by stop-users to evaluate the quality of mobile health apps. It gives a 20-goods scale filled with cuatro objective top quality subscales (involvement, capability, esthetics, and you will pointers high quality) and you will step one personal quality subscale. The intention of which survey is to assess the app’s quality regarding usability. The fresh participants’ mothers or caregivers in addition to done the new SELSA-S questionnaire once again to search for the participants’ personal and nearest and dearest loneliness prices adopting the research. Finally, an effective semistructured interviews with moms and dads or caregivers try conducted to get information regarding the newest framework off application incorporate. The fresh interviews provided questions about all round app knowledge of conditions of features, capability, and you will challenges found with all the app, along with approaches for then enhancement.
MAAN Application Structure and you may Invention
The fresh new software consisted of next 3 fundamental enjoys: TTS, STT, and you will CS. Among well-recognized enjoys that can additionally be thought to be a variety of assistive technology is the newest TTS ability, which allows profiles to hear authored text message towards the a pc, tablet, otherwise song some body troubled inside the understanding and you will decryption terms . Likewise, STT is actually an assistive technology element employed by individuals who challenge that have writing. This style of assistive technical allows message are turned into text message by using the measuring tool. Each other possess are aren’t employed to service addition studies setup . The newest app plus included the CS element, which is a significant part from AAC-supported tech, as well as number one objective is to try to help people with ASD from inside the creating sentences. We are not aware of one messaging app you to supporting the latest use of the CS ability. TAWASOL signs have been used in the CS ability. They certainly were developed in 2013 from the Mada Cardio, an assistive technology cardiovascular system from inside the Qatar. These types of icons portray the current Simple Arabic code and so are tailored to be culturally, socially, religiously, and you may linguistically appropriate. TAWASOL is dependant on the new AAC Symbols Range in fact it is led so you can nonverbal or minimally verbal people who wanted solution communication solutions .