Remediation of the Children with Autism by Jestimule in Morocco
H. Harchaoui *
Unit of Neuroscience and Applied Nutrition, Laboratory of Nutrition, Health and Environment, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, IBN TOFAIL University, PoBox.133, Kenitra, Morocco
A. Ahami
Unit of Neuroscience and Applied Nutrition, Laboratory of Nutrition, Health and Environment, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, IBN TOFAIL University, PoBox.133, Kenitra, Morocco
F-Z. Azzaoui
Department of Biology, Faculty of Science Ben M’Sik, Hassan II University, Driss Harti Sreet, PoBox. 7955, 20700 Sidi Othmane, Casablanca, Morocco
Y. Aboussaleh
Unit of Neuroscience and Applied Nutrition, Laboratory of Nutrition, Health and Environment, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, IBN TOFAIL University, PoBox.133, Kenitra, Morocco
S. Boulbaroud
Department of Biology, Polydisciplinary Faculty, Sultan Moulay Sliman University, Beni Mellal, Morocco
M. El Hioui
Unit of Neuroscience and Applied Nutrition, Laboratory of Nutrition, Health and Environment, Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, IBN TOFAIL University, PoBox.133, Kenitra, Morocco
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
The difficulties of processing facial emotions in Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) were reported. The traditional educations have provided evidence that traditional educations improve social skills. Nonetheless, the processing of facial emotions was limited.
A serious game, called JeStiMulE, used as a computer-based game, has been developed in order to teach emotions to individuals with ASD. The long-term use of this novel game would be of interest in teaching social skills. Interestingly, the input stimuli combine both the entertainment and education. The aim of the present study was to assess the ability of children to play the game and whether they could improve and develop social skills via recognition facial emotions. A heterogeneous group of forty (n=40) children and adolescents with ASD received two one-hour JeStiMulEsessions per week over four weeks and forty (n=40) of normally developing children took part in this experiments. All participants were presented before and after training with emotion recognition tasks, two including pictures of game avatars (faces).Descriptive data showed an overall enhancing at the recognition of facial emotions after the training. The comparisons results have provided wide differences between controls.
.Jestimule exhibited encouraging results in terms of recognition of emotions and thus would help children to extend this acquisition to the real-life world. Ultimately, this striking tool should be integrated into educational therapies.
Keywords: Serious game, social skills training, emotion recognition, computer-based intervention