Authors:
Nicolás Araya
;
Javier Gomez
and
Germán Montoro
Affiliation:
Higher Polytechnic School, Autonomous University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain
Keyword(s):
Autism, Dance Movement Therapy, Creative Coding, Accessibility, Human Computer Interaction.
Abstract:
People diagnosed with an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) have deficits in social interaction, communication and cognitive development. Children with ASD may also present motor difficulties growing up, which motivates interventions of Dance Movement Therapy (DMT) that helps them to develop social skills and integrate in society. Current technological advances have integrated into DMT interventions, enriched with virtual scenarios, projections, sensors and robot partners. These works have positive outcomes in social skills development and motor skills refinement, even though, due to confinement for COVID-19, online DMT has yet to be further explored. We propose a research methodology for the development of a tool that aims to develop self expression for ASD youth, with the creation of an artistic image based on dance and body movements. Our initial study case is Movarte, a web based tool that creates graphic pieces based on body movement and proxemic areas. 15 users evaluated the applic
ation, showing positive outcomes in terms of engagement and novelty, though it was not considered so clear and limited in terms of parameter control. Future research will provide more insight to adapt an interface for DMT in self expression for people with ASD.
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