Effectiveness of the Program "Acqua Mediatrice di Comunicazione" (Water as a Mediator of Communication) on Social Skills, Autistic Behaviors and Aquatic Skills in ASD Children.

The study aims to analyze the effectiveness of a swimming program on interpersonal skills, autistic mannerisms, and aquatic abilities in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Research on aquatic therapy showed improvements in motor skills, whereas there is little evidence of effectiveness of this approach on social impairments of ASD. Participants included 25 children, 13 in the experimental group and 12 in the control group, matched for gender, age and autism score.

Effect of interface type in the VR-based acquisition of pedestrian skills in persons with ASD.

Possession of `social' skills is crucial for persons with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) to maintain a certain independence and a better quality of life, and interaction with virtual environments seems an effective learning aid. In a previous study, we reported that in adults with ASD interaction with a virtual environment (a virtual city) is beneficial to the acquisition of pedestrian skills (street crossing and street navigation). Interaction was based on a gesture-based interface (Microsoft Kinect).