Using off-the-shelf solutions as assistive technology to support the self-management of academic tasks for autistic university students

ABSTRACT

Having the skills to self-manage the demands of academic life in third-level education is critical to the successful completion of courses taken there. Independent study behavior is an aspect of university life that pervades all topics but one that requires the self-management of time in relation to study goals. Individuals with additional educational needs, such as autism, often have difficulty self-managing independent study. This may result in students failing to meet the standards required for successful course completion. The current study (n = 2) used a range bound changing criterion design to evaluate the effects of a behavioral intervention that included assistive technology in the form of a smartphone and wearable smartwatch. The intervention aimed to increase the duration of independent study behavior among university students with autism. The intervention combined self-management (goal setting, self-monitoring, self-recording) together with assistive tech. to prompt engagement in, and recording of, independent study behavior. Findings showed the intervention to be effective at increasing independent study duration for autistic adults attending third-level education.

KEYWORDS:

• ASD
• higher education
• intervention
• self-management
• smart device
• smartphone
• smartwatch

Acknowledgements

We would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge the support provided by The Student Development and Support Service involved in this study and to thank them directly for the help they provided particularly in regard to the recruitment of participants.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Ethics

Ethical approval was granted by Dublin City University. Both participants gave informed consent to participate.

Notes

¹ In this paper, identity-first language is used in keeping with the preferences of members of the autism community that we collaborate with in our research. We recognize that the issue of person first versus identify first terminology can be a contentious one, and the decision that we have made here is one made through collaboration.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by funding from the People Programme (Marie Curie Actions) of the European Union’s Seventh Framework Programme [FP7/2007-2013] and the charity RESPECT under the REA grant agreement no. [PCOFUND-GA-2013-608728].