Journal of Research in Rehabilitation Sciences

The Effect of Active Video Game (Xbox Kinect) on Static and Dynamic Balance in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

Document Type : Original Articles

Authors

1 PhD Student, Department of Motor Learning and Behavior, International Campus, School of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, Kharazmi University, Tehran, Iran

2 Assistant Professor, Department of Sport Management and Motor Learning and Behavior, School of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, Kharazmi University, Tehran, Iran

3 Professor, Department of Motor Behavior, School of Physical Education and Sport Sciences, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran

10.22122/jrrs.v15i1.3410

Abstract

Introduction: Autism spectrum disorders are of neuro-developmental conditions with the most prevalence among the children during recent years. Children with autism spectrum disorders usually have mobility problems in balance. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of active video game on static and dynamic balance in children with autism spectrum disorders.Materials and Methods: This was a semi-experimental research with pretest-posttest design and control group. 16 children with autism spectrum disorders, aged 6-10 years, were selected and after pretest of static and dynamic balance, randomly assigned to two equal groups of experimental and control. Experimental group received its respective intervention program [athletics, bowling, and boxing as video game (Xbox Kinect)] 2 sessions a week, lasting 45 minutes, over an 8-week period. Control group performed their daily activities. Modified stork test to measure static balance and walking heel to toe test were used to measure dynamic balance. Data were analyzed using one-way analysis of variance test with significance level of less than 0.05.Results: Significant differences were found between control and experimental groups in static (P = 0.001) and dynamic (P = 0.001) balance.Conclusion: Based on the results of this study, it can be stated that active video game may bring benefits on static and dynamic balance in children with autism spectrum disorders. Therefore, in order to develop balance in children with autism spectrum disorders, the use of active video game is suggested.

Keywords

  1. American Psychological Association. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. BMC Med. 2013; 17: 133–7.
  2. Homanian D, Khezri A. The effect of paaryaad training on the development of motor skills of 6-8-year-old children suffering from high function autistic spectrum. Journal of Development and Motor Learning 2016; 8(3): 531-45. [In Persian].
  3. Pan CY. Age, social engagement, and physical activity in children with autism spectrum disorders. Res Autism Spectr Disord 2009; 3(1): 22-31.
  4. Pan CY, Tsai CL, Chu CH. Fundamental movement skills in children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. J Autism Dev Disord 2009; 39(12): 1694-705.
  5. Lim YH, Partridge K, Girdler S, Morris SL. Standing postural control in individuals with autism spectrum disorder: systematic review and meta-analysis. J Autism Dev Disord 2017; 47(7): 2238-53.
  6. Cairney J, King-Dowling S. Developmental coordination disorder. In: Matson JL, editor. Comorbid conditions among children with autism spectrum disorders. Cham, Switzerland: Springer International Publishing; 2016. p. 303-22.
  7. Dowell LR, Mahone EM, Mostofsky SH. Associations of postural knowledge and basic motor skill with dyspraxia in autism: implication for abnormalities in distributed connectivity and motor learning. Neuropsychology 2009; 23(5): 563-70.
  8. Bhat AN, Landa RJ, Galloway JC. Current perspectives on motor functioning in infants, children, and adults with autism spectrum disorders. Phys Ther 2011; 91(7): 1116-29.
  9. Stanmore E, Stubbs B, Vancampfort D, de Bruin ED, Firth J. The effect of active video games on cognitive functioning in clinical and non-clinical populations: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2017; 78: 34-43.
  10. Staiano AE, Abraham AA, Calvert SL. Competitive versus cooperative exergame play for African American adolescents' executive function skills: Short-term effects in a long-term training intervention. Dev Psychol 2012; 48(2): 337-42.
  11. Sin H, Lee G. Additional virtual reality training using Xbox Kinect in stroke survivors with hemiplegia. Am J Phys Med Rehabil 2013; 92(10): 871-80.
  12. Boutsika E. Kinect in education: A proposal for children with autism. Procedia Comput Sci 2014; 27: 123-9.
  13. Di tore P, Raiola G. Exergames and motor skills learning: A brief summary. Intl Res J Appl Basic Sci 2012; 3(6): 1161-4.
  14. Caro K, Tentori M, Martinez-Garcia AI, Alvelais M. Using the FroggyBobby exergame to support eye-body coordination development of children with severe autism. Int J Hum Comput Stud 2017; 105: 12-27.
  15. Bartoli L, Garzotto F, Gelsomini M, Oliveto L, Valoriani M. Designing and evaluating touchless playful interaction for ASD children. ACM International Conference Proceeding Series 2014; ACM: 17-26.
  16. Hammond J, Jones V, Hill EL, Green D, Male I. An investigation of the impact of regular use of the Wii Fit to improve motor and psychosocial outcomes in children with movement difficulties: A pilot study. Child Care Health Dev 2014; 40(2): 165-75.
  17. Vernadakis N, Papastergiou M, Zetou E, Antoniou P. The impact of an exergame-based intervention on children's fundamental motor skills. Computers & Education 2015; 83: 90-102.
  18. Hilton CL, Cumpata K, Klohr C, Gaetke S, Artner A, Johnson H, et al. Effects of exergaming on executive function and motor skills in children with autism spectrum disorder: A pilot study. Am J Occup Ther 2014; 68(1): 57-65.
  19. Edwards J, Jeffrey S, May T, Rinehart NJ, Barnett LM. Does playing a sports active video game improve object control skills of children with autism spectrum disorder? J Sport Health Sci 2017; 6(1): 17-24.
  20. Cheldavi H, Shakerian S, Shetab Boshehri SN, Zarghami M. The effects of balance training intervention on postural control of children with autism spectrum disorder: Role of sensory information. Res Autism Spectr Disord 2014; 8(1): 8-14.
  21. Ahmadi S, Safari T, Hemmatian M, Khalili Z. The psychometric properties of Gilliam Autism Rating Scale (GARS). Research in Cognitive and Behavioral Sciences 2011; 1(1): 87-104. [In Persian].
  22. Gilliam J. Gilliam Autism Rating Scale GARS-2. 2nd ed. Austin, TX: PRO-ED; 2006.
  23. Pan CY. Motor proficiency and physical fitness in adolescent males with and without autism spectrum disorders. Autism 2014; 18(2): 156-65.
  24. Perez-Marcos D, Chevalley O, Schmidlin T, Garipelli G, Serino A, Vuadens P, et al. Increasing upper limb training intensity in chronic stroke using embodied virtual reality: A pilot study. J Neuroeng Rehabil 2017; 14(1): 119.
  25. Jelsma D, Geuze RH, Mombarg R, Smits-Engelsman BC. The impact of Wii Fit intervention on dynamic balance control in children with probable Developmental Coordination Disorder and balance problems. Hum Mov Sci 2014; 33: 404-18.
  26. Lotfi M, Mohammadzadeh H, Sohrabi M. Effects of virtual reality and reality training with and without auditory information limitation on motor learning table tennis forehand. Motor Behavior (Research on Sport Science) 2017; 9(28): 89-108. [In Persian].
  27. Moeini A, Nazemzadegan GH, Rostami R. The effect of 8 weeks of proprioceptive training on motor coordination in children with autism spectrum disorders. Journal of Motor Learning and Movement 2019; 10(4): 505-17. [In Persian].
  28. Ruffaldi E, Filippeschi A. Structuring a virtual environment for sport training: A case study on rowing technique. Robot Auton Syst 2013; 61(4): 390-7.
  29. Putnam C, Chong L. Software and technologies designed for people with autism: What do users want? Proceedings of the 10th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility, ASSETS 2008; 2008 Oct 13-15; Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. ACM; p. 3-10.
  30. Finkelstein S, Nickel A, Barnes T, Suma Rosenberg E. Astrojumper: Motivating children with autism to exercise using a VR game. 2010. In: CHI’10 Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems. ACM; 2010: 4189–94.
  31. Cattik M, Odluyurt S. The Effectiveness of the Smart Board-Based Small-Group Graduated Guidance Instruction on Digital Gaming and Observational Learning Skills of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Turkish Online J Educ Technol 2017; 16(4): 84-102.
Journal of Research in Rehabilitation Sciences
Volume 15, Issue 1 - Serial Number 1
March 2019
Pages 13-19
  • Receive Date: 28 November 2019
  • Revise Date: 01 June 2022
  • Accept Date: 22 May 2022