Tag: research

Autism research journals and papers

Research Journals

Some journals with an electronic presence.
Tip: Some journals have “Open Access” articles for papers that don’t require a subscription to read, look for icons of unlocked padlocks.

Papers

Some papers involving hand held devices

UK autism electronic research networks – divided by a common language

I was looking electronic discussion forums for where you might find UK autism professionals or academics discussing topics of relevance. It seems the two main ones are

and particularly in Scotland

I’m an IT person what immediately strikes me is that both of these discussion forums are “closed” i.e. you have to go through a registration procedure even to just read the messages.

This is a personal opinion – I’m delighted to find these forums and have already found some valuable contacts and projects but wearing my “what about the punters” hat, I feel that having these closed to reading by ‘anonymous’ users is a pity. As a technical administrator of various forums on Scottish websites over the years I usually find from the usage statistics that the ratio of people who read messages on open systems (no registration for reading) to those who actually post a message is about 100 to 1 i.e. about 100 times more people will read a message than will ever contribute.

If web-based electronic research communities require registration to view they are also immediately cutting themselves off from the possibility of their topics and current research discussions ever being found by people using search engines on the web like Google. Thus the general public is effectively blocked from easily ‘stumbling’ on relevant topical material. There’s so little research on autism  available to the general public, most is currently locked up in subscription-only academic journals, every scrap is valuable.

I can understand the need for some locked forums relating to specific individuals/courses/individual privacy notions but for general research and debate?  I find it difficult to understand. One of the features of autism is considered to be “…impaired social interaction…”. Indeed. See irony?

Review of Using iPads in AAC – Augmentative Communication in Practice: Scotland

“Established in 1991, Augmentative Communication in Practice: Scotland (ACiP:S) is a national network that links together specialist AAC services and professionals; children and adults who use AAC (and their families); statutory services and voluntary agencies; and that provides resources, information and support.”

In 2012 ACiP:S had a study day, “Using iPads in AAC” and the papers from that day can be downloaded. What’s useful is that they have many case examples of using particular apps with different people and seeing pros and cons for each individual.

A common finding was that tablet devices (compared to smaller iPod devices) were preferred for children just starting to learn language skills and those with poor dexterity as iPads have larger screens making them easier to use and read but at added expense and they are heavier to hold if no surface is available to rest the tablet on. Accessories used for making devices easier to hold for children and to provide stands for working at a desk included the Big Grips cases.

App reviews

Sally Millar of CALL Scotland has a good review of a selection of apps in her paper

Simple Photo and Video Apps to Support Communication [PDF]

List of apps used in paper case studies

Here’s a list of some of the apps that this group has documented in case studies.

Autism Data – The National Autistic Society Information Centre Library

“Autism Data is the ideal research tool for anyone researching autism and Asperger syndrome. It is, as far as we are aware, the only database of published material on all aspects of autism, open for everyone to access on the web. It lists over 30,000 published research papers, books, articles, videos and other materials.”