Soundscape and haptic cues in an interactive painting: A study with autistic children

This paper reports the results of a pilot study with autistic children based on our recent work examining the potential of combining haptic and sonic exploration with a real painting as a tool for neurorehabilitation. The study consisted of seven children with autism exploring a painting enhanced with haptic and sound feedback. Audio-visual and kinematic data were collected to evaluate the participants´ behaviour and experience. The participants engaged with the interactive experience and interacted with each other in a positive. The results from this study suggest that the interactive painting is a feasible tool for autistic children to use on their own and when they interact with other children.