Technologies to enhance communication for persons with autism spectrum disorder

Technologies to enhance communication for persons with autism spectrum disorder

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 5th edition, categorizes the challenges faced by individuals with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) as focusing
on two domains: (1) impaired social communication and interaction and (2) restricted, repetitive behaviors and fixed interests. Such challenges have far-reaching implications for the ways that individuals with ASD interact within their social, educational,
professional, and personal environments. Additionally, people with ASD have been considered to have difficulties with executive functioning, or the organizational aspects
of cognition. Such challenges may mean that areas such as problem solving, planning, and working memory are negatively affected in people with ASD. The possibilities
afforded by emerging advance technologies and social media provide a crucial tool in the living and sharing of experiences and understandings of people with ASD that
would not have been possible previously. Similarly, technology may provide a mechanism through which to manage some of the challenges posed by differences in executive functioning. Technology can therefore potentially act as both a mediator of communication and a tool for intervention and strategies to promote the development of
self-management.

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