A Virtual Conversational Agent for Teens with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Abstract

We present the design of an online social skills development interface for teenagers with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The interface is intended to enable private conversation practice anywhere, anytime using a web-browser. Users converse informally with a virtual agent, receiving feedback on nonverbal cues in realtime, and summary feedback. The prototype was developed in consultation with an expert UX designer, two psychologists, and a pediatrician. Using the data from 47 individuals, feedback and dialogue generation were automated using a hidden Markov model and a schema-driven dialogue manager capable of handling multi-topic conversations. We conducted a study with nine high-functioning ASD teenagers. Through a thematic analysis of post-experiment interviews, identified several key design considerations, notably: 1) Users should be fully briefed at the outset about the purpose and limitations of the system, to avoid unrealistic expectations. 2) An interface should incorporate positive acknowledgment of behavior change. 3) Realistic appearance of a virtual agent and responsiveness are important in engaging users. 4) Conversation personalization, for instance in prompting laconic users for more input and reciprocal questions, would help the teenagers engage for longer terms and increase the system's utility. CCS CONCEPTS • Human-centered computing → Empirical studies in HCI .

Perceptions and Opinions of Patients About Mental Health Chatbots: Scoping Review

“…The most common disorder targeted by chatbots was depression (n=15, 40.5%). Multimedia Appendix 4 shows the characteristics of the intervention in each included study [ 33 - 69 ].…”

“…In total, 20 studies investigated the usefulness of chatbots and/or their features for patients [ 33 - 52 ]. In 3 studies [ 41 , 47 - 49 , 51 ], the overall usefulness of chatbots was rated as high.…”

“…In 3 studies [ 41 , 47 - 49 , 51 ], the overall usefulness of chatbots was rated as high. Participants reported that chatbots are useful for practicing conversations in a private place [ 33 , 46 ], learning [ 37 , 38 , 42 , 46 ], making users feel better [ 40 ], preparing users for interactions with health care providers [ 43 ], implementing the learned skills in daily life [ 46 ], facilitating a sense of accountability from daily check-in [ 37 , 38 ], keeping the learned skills more prominently in users’ minds [ 46 ], increasing users’ self-efficacy [ 46 ], improving users’ self-confidence and readiness for job interviews [ 47 - 49 ], and recalling users’ memories [ 51 ]. However, participants in one study doubted the usefulness of chatbots for smoking cessation [ 39 ].…”

“…Users considered the following components of chatbots useful: real-time feedback [ 33 , 45 , 50 ], diary [ 52 ], weekly summary [ 42 ], presenting the helpline during the conversation [ 36 ], and psychoeducation [ 52 ]. Some studies found that virtual agents embodied in chatbots are useful for motivating users to use chatbots [ 34 ], establishing a relationship with them [ 35 ], and feeling supported by them [ 45 ].…”

“…The ease of use and usability of chatbots were assessed in 20 studies [ 33 , 34 , 36 , 39 , 43 , 46 - 51 , 53 - 61 ]. Participants in 15 studies rated the overall ease of use of chatbots as high [ 36 , 39 , 43 , 47 - 50 , 53 - 55 , 57 - 61 ].…”