Teaching Social safety skills to Autistic children via digital learning

Abstract

The rise in sexual abuse and abduction incidents has become a persistent societal problem in Pakistan which requires an inclusive response. However, one of the most neglected group out of this vulnerable population is of autistic children. The statistics from South-Asia estimate that there may be 350,000 autistic children in Pakistan. Individuals with ASD may be at an increased risk of danger including abduction or sexual abuse and might face difficulties discriminating between safe and unsafe situations. The aim of this study is to teach social safety skills --abduction and sexual abuse prevention-- to autistic children. This study employs a digital interventional methodology enabling autistic children to learn social safety skills in an easier way. An experimental design framework is selected for the purposes of this research. 6 autistic children, 5 male and 1 female, aged 12-14, sampled through convenience sampling participated in this research. Questionnaires and open-ended surveys were used as data collection tools. Results showed that the video-game methodology was effective in teaching social safety skills to children with autism. There was a significant difference between pre-test and post-test outcomes and results were maintained during a 5 week follow up.