Can Video Games Help Autistic Children Learn?

COLUMBIA, S.C. (WOLO) — USC researchers say they have found a connection between video games and learning levels of autistic children. Fifth year Assistant Professor at USC, Roger Newman-Norlund, Ph.D., programmed the games with the help of a graduate student. The games haven’t been tested as a treatment method, but experiments have taken place. “We have done experiments to see whether people with Autism perform this task differently than people without Autism and they do in fact do and we can measure that,” says Newman-Norlund He says they also use an MRI to collect data. But, research is just the beginning. “We’re going to use it to create robots that are capable of working with other people. We’re going to use it to compare performance in children with Autism and without. We’re going to use it to see if we can treat children with Autism and improve their social skills by having them play these video games. And we’re going to collect a lot of brain imaging data to see what areas of the brain are involved in teamwork and maybe if they differ between healthy and Autistic populations,” says Newman-Norlund The project is in need of public funding to keep going. If you would like to help, visit the following website and Facebook page for more information: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/312457347/my-money-my-science-human-autism-robot-teamwork-ha https://www.facebook.com/mymoneymyscience