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

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.

LifeSeeker: an interactive concept-based retrieval system for lifelog data.

Lifelogging was introduced as the process of passively capturing personal daily events via wearable devices. It ultimately creates a visual diary encoding every aspect of one's life with the aim of future sharing or recollecting. In this paper, we present LifeSeeker, a lifelog image retrieval system participating in the Lifelog Search Challenge (LSC) for 3 years, since 2019. Our objective is to support users to seek specific life moments using a combination of textual descriptions, spatial relationships, location information, and image similarities. In addition to the LSC challenge results, a further experiment was conducted in order to evaluate the power retrieval of our system on both expert and novice users. This experiment informed us about the effectiveness of the user's interaction with the system when involving non-experts.

Expert Consensus on the Resource Needs of Autistic Children and Young People in Ireland During the Early Months of the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought significant changes across society. This Delphi study aimed to gain expert consensus on challenges faced and resource needs for autistic children during the COVID-19 pandemic. Round 1 of the Delphi method employed semi-structured interviews with experts (N = 24) which were thematically analysed in order to identify needs, resource targets and resource development. In a follow-up Round 2 survey participants rated emergent need and resource in order of priority. Round 2 provided consensus on challenges faced with anxiety, routine and wellbeing ranked most important. Direction on resource design was also obtained. Consensus on the challenges and resources was achieved and is being integrated into a needs-based transition resources toolkit. Future studies could make use of the Delphi method to quickly gain consensus on focus of needs in other contexts and communities.

Understanding the relationship between sleep and quality of life in type 2 diabetes: A systematic review of the literature.

Living with type 2 diabetes (T2D) can elicit psychological distress and diminish quality of life (QoL) in patients. Research has also elucidated a link between sleep and quality of life. Thus, the current review aimed to clarify the relationship between sleep and QoL in T2D patients, and determine the prevalence of sleep problems in this cohort. A systematic search across four databases yielded 23 relevant studies, which were synthesized narratively. Between 17.8 and 79% of patients had sleep problems, and a direct, significant relationship was established between sleep and QoL. An indirect relationship between sleep and QoL was established through exacerbation of psychological factors and biological symptoms of T2D. Findings are clinically relevant and highlight the importance of screening for sleep problems during routine patient appointments. Future research should employ either longitudinal or prospective study designs to enable further understanding of the intricacies of this relationship.

The Effect of Schedule Thinning on Student Behavior During the Caught Being Good Game.

The Caught Being Good Game (CBGG) is a classroom management intervention which is described as a variation of the classic Good Behavior Game (GBG). It is based on the principle of positive reinforcement, such that teams of students can earn points for following the class rules during the game. Points are awarded by the teacher at different intervals during the game and these intervals were the focus of the current study. We aimed to determine if the CBGG is effective with an initially dense schedule of reinforcement which is progressively thinned. The efficacy of the CBGG in targeting academic engagement and disruptive behavior was demonstrated for one primary school class and for two target students in that class. The game remained effective when the reinforcement schedule was thinned from 2 minutes, up to 5 minutes. This has potential implications for teacher time saving while playing the game.

Examining the relationship between obstructive sleep apnoea and eating behaviours and attitudes: A systematic review.

BACKGROUND: Between 60 and 90% of adults with OSA are reported as overweight. The co-existence of obesity and OSA can greatly increase an individual's risk of type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular disease. To better understand this relationship between OSA and weight, this review aimed to investigate if there is evidence of certain eating behaviours or eating attitudes that might be found in adults living with OSA. METHODS: We searched four databases (MEDLINE, Embase, PsycInfo and Web of Science) on January 17th, 2022, to identify studies assessing the association between eating patterns and OSA in adults. Twenty-one studies met the inclusion criteria. A narrative synthesis was conducted on the included studies, following the vote-counting method. RESULTS: There is preliminary evidence that the time of day when calories are consumed is associated with lower OSA severity. No other clear patterns of eating behaviours or attitudes were identified however this may be due to disparity within research studies and their reported results. CONCLUSION: Further research is needed to examine the relationship between eating times and OSA severity. We recommend standardising the approach to examining the eating patterns of those living with OSA and the relationship that this might have on OSA symptoms as well as looking at attitudes towards food in this population. This may prove helpful in providing a better understanding of the relationship between OSA and persons with overweight and help in future intervention development.

Sleep mediates the relationship between having an autistic child and poor family functioning.

Sleep is an important biological necessity, a lack of which can have many cognitive, psychological, social, and physical impacts. Children with autism are known to present with sleep difficulties more frequently than their typically developing peers but despite this, there is relatively little research looking at the impact of sleep on the family. To investigate the effect of sleep on families of autistic and typically developing (TD) children, we conducted a study of sleep disturbances among children, sleep quality of their parents in association with their family function. In our study, 239 parents of autistic children and 227 parents of TD children participated. These parents completed a survey about their child's sleep disturbances, their own sleep quality, and their family function, along with a series of demographic questions. Analyses indicated that autistic children experience more sleep difficulties than TD peers, that children's sleep disturbances are associated with parental sleep quality and that parents of autistic children report decreased sleep quality compared to parents of TD children. Parental sleep quality, and child sleep quality were both found to partially mediate the relationship between autism diagnosis and family function.

Study protocol for autism specific transition resources (T-Res Study): developing a flexible resource package for dealing with the loosening and/or lifting of COVID-19 related restrictions.

Autism specific transition resources (T-Res) aims to develop a flexible resource package to support children and young people with a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), as well as their families and educators, during the loosening and/or lifting of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) related restrictions on movement. A secondary aim is to determine the current and long-term impacts of the COVID-19 related restrictions on the wellbeing of individuals with autism spectrum disorders and their parents/caregivers. Measuring and addressing the psychosocial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and related restrictions in movement is of prime importance at this time.  The impacts of this crisis will be far reaching and many may not be realised for many years. The proposed research will focus on children and young people with a diagnosis of ASD, their families and educators.  The ASD population alone is sizable with 14,000 (or 1.55%) of students in schools holding a diagnosis. When parents, teachers, tutors and special needs assistants (SNAs) are also considered this is a considerable group. The proposed research has the potential to have impacts that are social, psychological, educational and economic. This will be achieved through development of an online transition package to guide parents and educators in preparing children and young people for the resumption of regular daily routines following the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions.  This resource will be developed based on the needs of families and young people, as measured through surveys, as well as expert consensus on the targets and means of intervention.  This ambitious project can be commenced quickly and is designed to produce outputs quickly, which will in turn be disseminated to key stakeholders.

Assistive technology: Understanding the needs and experiences of individuals with autism spectrum disorder and/or intellectual disability in Ireland and the UK.

Assistive technologies (ATs) aimed at improving the life quality of persons with Autism Spectrum Disorder and/or Intellectual Disability (ASD/ID) is an important research area. Few have examined how this population use and experience AT or their vision for future uses of AT. The present study aimed to update and extend previous research and provides insight from caregivers, and other stakeholders (n = 96), living in Ireland and the United Kingdom, on their experiences of assistive technology (AT) for ASD/ID. Caregiver and professional responses to an anonymous online survey showed that focus individuals were rated low in terms of independent and self-management skills, with scheduling and planning and communication identified as desirable future AT functions. Overall, positive experiences of AT were reported, with AT use more than doubling in recent years.

The impact of staff training on special educational needs professionals' attitudes toward and understanding of applied behavior analysis.

BACKGROUND: Research-based evidence points to the efficacy and value of applied behavior analysis (ABA) in meeting the needs of individuals with learning disabilities and autism. Nonetheless, public, government, and professional perception of ABA can be negative. The current study was designed to measure the impact of a short intervention on professionals' attitudes toward, and knowledge of, ABA. METHOD: Teachers and classroom assistants from two separate schools for children with severe learning difficulties completed a self-report survey on knowledge of and attitudes toward ABA. They were then presented with a 90-min training module designed to increase their knowledge of the history of ABA and their functional assessment skills. Following training, the self-report was readministered. RESULTS: The mean scores for each group increased only after the training had been delivered. Discussion and conclusions: Further research is needed to address the impact of training on classroom practice.

Effects of state anxiety on performance using a task-switching paradigm: an investigation of attentional control theory.

Low- and high-anxious participants performed arithmetical tasks under task-switching or nontask-switching conditions. These tasks were low or high in complexity. The task on each trial was either explicitly cued or not cued. We assumed that demands on attentional control would be greater in the task-switching condition than in the nontask-switching condition, and would be greater with high-complexity tasks than with low-complexity ones. We also assumed that demands on attentional control would be greater when cues were absent rather than present. According to attentional control theory (Eysenck, Derakshan, Santos, & Calvo, 2007), anxiety impairs attentional control processes required to shift attention optimally within and between tasks. We predicted that there would be greater negative effects of high state anxiety in the task-switching condition than in the nontask-switching condition. Our theoretical predictions were supported, suggesting that state anxiety reduces attentional control.

Acquired equivalence in human discrimination learning: the role of propositional knowledge.

The current study investigated the role of propositional knowledge in human acquired equivalence effects. Across 5 experiments, human adults were trained to associate different visual stimuli. Subsequent procedures presented training that was either consistent or inconsistent with the previous associations. More accurate responding in the consistent versus inconsistent condition reflected an acquired equivalence effect. The results of Experiment 1 indicated that a previously reported divergence between verbal and associative processes was likely due to instructional control. Experiments 2-5 further examined the role of verbal processes and demonstrated that acquired equivalence may be produced with verbal instructions alone and critically through a combination of instructions and actual stimulus pairings. The current data not only challenge a purely associative account but actively support an interaction between verbal and associative processes in producing the acquired equivalence effect in humans.

A derived transfer of functions and the implicit association test.

Participants were trained in a series of interrelated conditional discriminations that aimed to establish four 4-member equivalence classes (i.e., A1-B1-C1-D1, A2-B2-C2-D2, A3-B3-C3-D3, A4-B4-C4-D4). During this training, the four A stimuli (i.e., A1, A2, A3, and A4) were compounded with pictures containing positive or negative evaluative functions (A1/A2 negative & A3/A4 positive). The transfer of evaluative functions to directly and indirectly related members of the equivalence classes (i.e., B, C, and D stimuli) was measured using an Implicit Association Test (IAT). During consistent test blocks, participants were required to press the same response key for target words that were related to those A stimuli that possessed similar evaluative functions (A1/A2-left key & A3/A4-right key). During inconsistent test blocks, target words that were related to those A stimuli with different evaluative functions were assigned to the same response key (A1/A4-left key & A2/A3-right key). Results showed that all 8 participants, who passed a matching-to-sample equivalence test following the IAT, responded more rapidly on consistent relative to inconsistent test blocks. This typical IAT effect was not observed for those participants who did not pass the equivalence test. The results suggest that the IAT effect may arise from formally untested derived relations, and supports the argument that such relations could provide a valid behavioral model of semantic categories in natural language.

A derived transfer of simple discrimination and self-reported arousal functions in spider fearful and non-spider-fearful participants.

Two experiments investigated the derived transfer of functions through equivalence relations established using a stimulus pairing observation procedure. In Experiment 1, participants were trained on a simple discrimination (A1+/A2-) and then a stimulus pairing observation procedure was used to establish 4 stimulus pairings (A1-B1, A2-B2, B1-C1, B2-C2). Subsequently, a transfer of the simple discrimination functions through equivalence relations was observed (e.g., C1+/C2-). These procedures were modified in Experiment 2, which demonstrated that spider-fearful and non-spider-fearful participants show differing levels of a transfer of self-reported arousal functions for stimuli used in equivalence relations with video-based material depicting scenes with spiders. The results demonstrate that the stimulus pairing observation procedure provides a viable alternative to matching-to-sample, and also offer tentative support for a derived-relations model of the acquisition of anxiety responses in at least one sub-clinical population.