Assistive technology to promote leisure and constructive engagement by two boys emerged from a minimal conscious state

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Post-coma persons with multiple disabilities may represent a challenge to rehabilitation centers, due to their clinical conditions. Moreover, they can failed to engage adaptive responses aimed at the self-management of environmental stimuli. OBJECTIVES: To assess the impact and social rating of a new assistive technology set-up for promoting constructive engagement by two post-coma boys emerged from a minimal conscious state. METHOD: During baseline sessions, the participants were provided with a mouse to manage the computer system. During intervention phases, a new technology was implemented, allowing both participants to manage environmental stimuli with a microswitch instead of the mouse. Furthermore, a social validation assessment was carried out, involving students as raters. RESULTS: Data showed an increasing of constructive engagement by both participants during intervention phases. Sixty psychology students (social raters) favoured the new technology on a six items questionnaire (i.e. enjoyment, suitability, rehabilitation, independence, daily context and support). CONCLUSIONS: The new technology was suitable, affordable, effective and socially preferable.

A microswitch‐based program for promoting initial ambulation responses: An evaluation with two girls with multiple disabilities

“…Although social validation assessments have been conducted in a number of previous studies (e.g., Lancioni, O'Reilly, et al, ), no study on MBP interventions with ambulation responses has included expert ratings of social validity. This procedure of social validation via expert raters is commonly used within the assistive technology approach to corroborate the clinical value of the proposed intervention (Caffò et al, ; Stasolla, Caffò et al, ; Stasolla & De Pace, ).…”

User perceptions of powered wheelchair features.

“…This can create expectancies about the efficacy of the object; and these can directly contribute to the user developing a sense of self-efficacy (Bandura & Adams, 1977), which itself can be predictive of behavior (Carvalho et al, 2015). Finally, the type and frequency of using an object can be affected by the goal that the user has in a certain situation (Lin, 2011), as well as by idiosyncratic features of the context itself, for example, microswitches for those with multiple disabilities and limited physical movement (Lancioni et al, 2010(Lancioni et al, , 2011Stasolla & De Pace, 2014).…”

Recent Technology-Aided Programs to Support Adaptive Responses, Functional Activities, and Leisure and Communication in People With Significant Disabilities

“…The eight studies summarized in this section represent illustrative examples of interventions with support tools relevant for this area (see Table 3). Specifically, the first two studies addressed the leisure problem (75, 76); the following two studies addressed the communication problem (1, 77); and the final four studies targeted both problems within the same intervention context (32, 72, 78, 79).…”

“…Stasolla and De Pace (76) reported the use of a support tool with two participants who had emerged from a minimally conscious state, and presented with extensive motor impairment, and lack of communication and interaction with the environment. The technology included a computer connected to a microswitch (i.e., a touch-sensitive device) through a specific interface.…”

“…Lancioni et al (75) set up and assessed a support tool, which technically resembled that used by Stasolla and De Pace (76), to enable 11 participants with mild or moderate Alzheimer's disease to engage in leisure activities independently. The participants did not have the ability to operate a computer or other device for leisure engagement.…”