Two women with multiple disabilities communicate with distant partners via a special text messaging system

Use of a Smartphone for Leisure and Communication by People with Blindness and Motor Disabilities

“…The results indicate that the smartphone with the activation of the voice recognition function and the specific arrangements of the contacts unit and the media player suited participants with blindness and extensive motor impairment who were verbally skilled, and allowed them to manage leisure and communication events independently (McDougall, Evans, & Baldwin, 2010). These data represent an important extension of earlier evidence on the effectiveness of a computeraided program to provide leisure or communication opportunities to persons with multiple disabilities (Hatakeyama, Watanabe, Takahashi, Doi, & Fukuda, 2015;Lancioni et al, 2013Lancioni et al, , 2014Lancioni et al, , 2016.…”

“…A growing awareness of the negative personal and social implications of this problem has shown the need for assistive technology solutions to improve the situation (Meder & Wegner, 2015;O'Rourke et al, 2014;Stasolla et al, 2015). Recently, a computer-aided program was developed for helping these persons access leisure options such as songs, or to make telephone calls or exchange text messages independently (Lancioni et al, 2013(Lancioni et al, , 2014(Lancioni et al, , 2016. The program's first function was to present the options available (for instance, music or telephone).…”