Collaborative puzzle game: A tabletop interactive game for fostering collaboration in children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)

A. Battocchi, F. Pianesi, D. Tomasini, M. Zancanaro, G. Esposito, P. Venuti, A. Ben Sasson, E. Gal, P. L. Weiss

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contributionpeer-review

Abstract

We present the design and evaluation of the Collaborative Puzzle Game (CPG), a tabletop interactive activity developed for fostering collaboration in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The CPG was inspired by cardboard jigsaw puzzles and runs on the MERL DiamondTouch table [7]. Digital pieces can be manipulated by direct finger touch. The CPG features a set of interaction rules called Enforced Collaboration (EC); in order to be moved, puzzle pieces must be touched and dragged simultaneously by two players. Two studies were conducted to test whether EC has the potential to serve as an interaction paradigm that would help foster collaborative skills. In Study 1, 70 boys with typical development were tested and in Study 2 16 boys with ASD were tested. Results show that EC has a positive effect on collaboration although it appears to be associated with a more complex interaction. For children with ASD, EC was also related to a higher number of "negotiation" moves, which may reflect their higher need of coordination during the collaborative activity.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationITS 2009 - The ACM International Conference on Interactive Tabletops and Surfaces, Proceedings
Pages197-204
Number of pages8
DOIs
StatePublished - 2009
Event4th ACM International Conference on Interactive Tabletops and Surfaces, ITS 2009 - Banff, AB, Canada
Duration: 23 Nov 200925 Nov 2009

Publication series

NameITS 2009 - The ACM International Conference on Interactive Tabletops and Surfaces, Proceedings

Conference

Conference4th ACM International Conference on Interactive Tabletops and Surfaces, ITS 2009
Country/TerritoryCanada
CityBanff, AB
Period23/11/0925/11/09

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Hardware and Architecture
  • Human-Computer Interaction

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