Personal Technology and the Autistic Child: What One Family Has Learned

How much time should children spend on screen? Which kinds of games, videos or online activities are harmful to young minds, and which are neutral or even beneficial? These are difficult questions for a parent. Particularly so for a parent of an autistic child.

There is no question that some apps, online activities and videogames can hold real benefits for young minds, whether for education, fun or a combination of the two. When a parent finds the right such app or game for a particular child, it can be difficult tearing him or her away from it.

For autistic children, however, the online world holds more than the usual dangers. Some researchers, for example, have found that autistic children are particularly prone to videogame addiction. Some even argue that excessive game playing can “tip” a child from quirky to downright autistic. The highly structured, predictable and immersive experience of gaming, they say, can reinforce the rigidity of autistic-type brains.

Link to article: http://www.wsj.com/articles/personal-technology-and-the-autistic-child-what-one-family-has-learned-1466993100