I Don’t like the Talking Part: the Use of Videogames to Facilitate Grief Therapy for Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Adolescents with Autism Spectrum Disorder often experience difficulties interacting with peers and expressing their emotions, characteristics that may complicate their grief experiences. This qualitative study was designed to explore the experiences of four adolescents with ASD who participated in grief therapy facilitated through the use of videogames. Each participant engaged in 10 weekly grief counseling sessions. Participants and caregivers were interviewed prior to counseling, mid-way (participants only), and after completion of therapy. All counseling and interview sessions were video- or audio-recorded, and transcripts were created from these recordings. All data were analyzed and coded through the lens of the different periods of grief according to Lamb’s (1988) process theory. These codes were analyzed for themes, and a cross-case analysis was completed. Results from this study indicated that adolescents with ASD experience grief in a manner similar to their neurotypical peers, though on a longer timeline. The use of videogames seemed to facilitate participants’ exploration of grief and death through the use of different characters in the game. The incorporation of videogames into more traditional therapy may assist adolescents with ASD to process their emotions associated with bereavement. Although these results are promising, additional research is needed to establish whether the use of videogames is a beneficial technique for use with adolescents who are experiencing grief over the death of loved one

Using Video Games For Decreasing Pain Caused By Acute Painful Crisis In Adolescents With Sickle Cell Pain

Purpose: The most common symptom of sickle cell disease is pain, which occurs as the cells clump compromising further blood flow to distal organs. Despite the advancement in pain management, many children and adolescents\u27 pain remains under treated. The purpose of this study is measure the effectiveness of a videogame as a developmentally appropriate non-pharmacological modality on pain in adolescents 12-21 years of age with sickle cell crisis. Methods: A one-group repeated measure quasi-experimental design was used to evaluate the effectiveness of using videogames on pain in a sample of adolescents 12-21 years of age. Using a repeated measures design permits intensive scrutiny of within-patient variability. Quasi-experimental study designs have been developed to provide alternative means of examining causality in situations not conducive to experimental controls. A sample of 30 hospitalized adolescents (12-21 years of age) diagnosed with sickle cell disease pain were enrolled. Recruitment of participants was undertaken at University of Illinois Children\u27s Hospital and Advocate Children\u27s Hospital. Results: The Cronbach\u27s alpha coefficient for the 19-item in level of engagement instrument was 0.82. The presence self-assessment manikin scores selected by participants after playing the videogame were 63.3% for the score of 1, 26.7% for the score of 2 and 3.3% for the scores of 3, 5 and 6. The decrease in pain level from baseline to after playing the videogame was statistically significant (F = 29.28, p \u3c 0.0001). Additionally, the decrease in pain level from each time point and the adjacent time point was statistically significant; pain 0 minute vs pain 15 minutes (p \u3c0.0001), pain 15 minutes vs pain 30 minutes (p \u3c0.0001) and pain 30 minutes vs pain 45 minutes (p \u3c0.006). Although the data analysis did not yield statistically significant results, an inverse relationship has been found between the levels of pain and engagement. Conclusion: Results from this study were consistent with prior literature that used similar technologies with different populations such as burn care, painful medical procedures and cancer pain. The use of videogames as a distraction modality has been proven to show positive and significant results in the treatment of acute pain. Results from this study show promising findings related to pain management that can be more accessible to adolescents with sickle cell pain at home and in the hospital setting

Motion-based technology to support motor skills screening in developing children: A scoping review

Background. Acquiring motor skills is fundamental for children's development since it is linked to cognitive development. However, access to early detection of motor development delays is limited. Aim. This review explores the use and potential of motion-based technology (MBT) as a complement to support and increase access to motor screening in developing children. Methods. Six databases were searched following the PRISMA guidelines to search, select, and assess relevant works where MBT recognised the execution of children's motor skills. Results. 164 studies were analysed to understand the type of MBT used, the motor skills detected, the purpose of using MBT and the age group targeted. Conclusions. There is a gap in the literature aiming to integrate MBT in motor skills development screening and assessment processes. Depth sensors are the prevailing technology offering the largest detection range for children from age 2. Nonetheless, the motor skills detected by MBT represent about half of the motor skills usually observed to screen and assess motor development. Overall, research in this field is underexplored. The use of multimodal approaches, combining various motion-based sensors, may support professionals in the health domain and increase access to early detection programmes.Funding for open access charge: Universidad de Málaga / CBUA

Can videogames be addicting? An investigation into the specific game features and personal characteristics associated with problematic videogame playing

The number of individuals who play videogames has increased dramatically in recent years. Unsurprisingly, the frequency with which patients seek psychotherapeutic services to help cope with problematic videogame playing (PVGP) behaviors has also risen. Thus, explorations into the specific characteristics of PVGP are essential now more than ever before. However, the current state of the literature primarily relies on comparisons between PVGP and pathological gambling, utilizing modified measures of the latter to assess the former. To date, no studies have attempted to adapt the diagnostic criteria for substance use disorder (SUD) in an effort to understand PVGP within the context of addiction. Further, few studies have explored the specific game characteristics and individual factors that contribute to the presence of PVGP. The current study sought to address these questions by adapting the SUD criteria to address videogame-related behavior via a measure labeled as the Videogame Addiction Scale (VGAS). Comparisons of the psychometrics and criterion validity of the VGAS and leading measures of PVGP suggested the former was superior. Further, results indicated that higher levels of addiction were present in players who prefer the MMORPG and Shooter genres over all other types of games, with the former yielding significantly higher VGAS scores than the latter. Further, many of the structural characteristics of videogames were considered to be more enjoyable, important, and associated with longer playtimes for individuals with higher “addiction” scores than their low scoring counterparts. Lastly, a model of videogame addiction was generated that aligns with the current literature on substance use disorders. Specifically, impulsivity, maladaptive coping, weekly playtime, and particular structural characteristics all seem to relate to videogame addiction

The state of psychological services for people with physical and cognitive disabilities: an integrative systematic review

The present study investigated the state of psychotherapy for people with physical and cognitive disabilities in a systematic review. Specifically, this study analyzed qualitative and quantitative studies which examined therapists’ abilities to conceptualize disability as a dimension of cultural competence, the models and conceptualizations of disability and psychotherapy being used with people with disabilities (PWD) in psychotherapy, and the experiences of PWD in psychotherapy. This study analyzed 18 empirical studies and integrated both qualitative and quantitative methods. Source eligibility criteria for this systematic review was the same for both qualitative and quantitative studies. Eligibility criteria included being: peer-reviewed journal articles, international and domestic locations, in the English Language, and published after 2010. This review excluded case studies. The researchers appraised the quality of each study using the Critical Appraisal Form, and recorded the research variables from each study using the Data Collection and Extraction Form. Data was then entered into customized Excel spreadsheets in the form of Evidence Tables. A synthesis of important findings was conducted to describe the similar themes found in the data. The findings of this research point to the need for further research which includes PWD in psychotherapy, such as improving therapists’ cultural competence, more variety of psychotherapy orientations and models for PWD, and increased narratives of PWD in psychotherapy

Violent dad in child shoes: a moment before : ViDaCS serious game in a multi-dimensional action research promoting awareness about gender-based violence perpetrators

[Italiano]:Il volume descrive obiettivi, strategie e azioni di ViDaCS (Padri nei panni di un figlio/a), il progetto (numero 810449) iscritto nel programma europeo REC (Diritti, Eguaglianza e Cittadinanza 2014-2020). Il sottotitolo, Un momento prima, pone l’attenzione su un protocollo innovativo per il controllo delle emozioni da parte di padri autori di violenza domestica. Esso risponde alla finalità di prevenire e contrastare la violenza di genere attraverso il “trattamento degli autori”, al fine di prevenire tale comportamento e la sua reiterazione. Il volume scaturisce da un'esperienza collettiva, volta a presentare il modello ecologico VidaCS insieme a interventi di formazione e di trattamento degli autori di violenza; è un'esperienza vissuta nei panni del bambino/a che assiste alla violenza del padre, proponendo scene domestiche alternative in cui il padre possa fermarsi un attimo prima di compierla. Peculiarità del volume è proporre all’autore di violenza la autoregolamentazione delle emozioni sottostanti ai suoi comportamenti attraverso un gioco immersivo con tecnologie 4.0 ./[English]: The volume describes the goals, strategies and actions of ViDaCS (Violent Dad in Child’s Shoes), a project framed in the European Programme REC (Rights, Equality and Citizenship Programme 2014-2020), namely project grant number 810449.Its subtitle is A Moment Before to focus on developing an innovative multi- agency protocol for the self-assessment of intimate violence by perpetrators; it addresses the EU call purpose of preventing and combating gender-based violence under the main priority of “Treatment of perpetrators”, in order to prevent reoffending.ViDaCS’ book is a collective experience presenting an ecological model explaining gender-based violence, training and intervention issues on this topic; it is an experience, in the shoes of the child witnessing domestic violence, proposing alternative “domestic scenes”where the father decides and assumes “new” behaviours that avoid violent behaviour. Moreover it present and discuss a self-assessment of emotional burden and violent behaviour based on exploratory and 4.0 CTS serious game