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I cannot emphasize how much I hate research that uses technology to force autistic people to mask.
I'm honestly surprised this article wasn't from The Onion.
A thread about this: 1/15 https://news.northeastern.edu/2021/01/21/students-with-autism-get-a-new-tool-for-independence-a-smartwatch/
I'm honestly surprised this article wasn't from The Onion.
A thread about this: 1/15 https://news.northeastern.edu/2021/01/21/students-with-autism-get-a-new-tool-for-independence-a-smartwatch/
Schlosser, a research in the article says - "Often these kids have special technology that makes them stand out. But if they can use something that other kids have, like an Apple Watch, it’s less stigmatizing.”
Sure that seems fine, why not. 2/15
Sure that seems fine, why not. 2/15
"For students who need extra guidance, a text message can be sent to the watch to give them special directions. When directions come in from the teacher, the watch vibrates, alerting the student to the task at hand while remaining discreet."
Again seems fine if it's helpful 3/15
Again seems fine if it's helpful 3/15
"...during lunchtime, teachers can prompt students with autism to make conversation with their classmates—a cue that might not occur naturally to them."
Do autistic people really need a reminder to talk to people? Do they want to?
Or do teachers simply want them to mask? 4/15
Do autistic people really need a reminder to talk to people? Do they want to?
Or do teachers simply want them to mask? 4/15
This is the worst part. It doesn't even work!
"To test whether the smartwatch commands would work, a teacher sent a text message to her autistic student saying, “Ask your classmate how she’s doing today.”"
The student repeated the entire phrase to the classmate! 5/15
"To test whether the smartwatch commands would work, a teacher sent a text message to her autistic student saying, “Ask your classmate how she’s doing today.”"
The student repeated the entire phrase to the classmate! 5/15
The teacher had to tell the student "No, what I meant was, ask your classmate how she's doing today, not to say the whole phrase."
Again this is masking! Why should autistic people be required to say "how are you doing today?" Whose goals are these? They don't say. 6/15
Again this is masking! Why should autistic people be required to say "how are you doing today?" Whose goals are these? They don't say. 6/15
Schlosser gives another example of how the watch could be used in the future - "during a job interview, if an [autistic person] has trouble maintaining eye contact..a reminder could inconspicuously be sent to the watch to keep that person on track."
Imagine this scenario. 7/15
Imagine this scenario. 7/15
Imagine an autistic person in formal attire, in a new environment, meeting new people, with a watch buzzing on your wrist saying "maintain eye contact."
Don't you think interviewers would take points off for the candidate looking at their watch while talking to them?! 8/15
Don't you think interviewers would take points off for the candidate looking at their watch while talking to them?! 8/15
Requiring autistic people to make eye contact in an interview in the first place is ridiculous! It helps no one. It makes it harder to think.
But even then, their actual solution to this, isn't even a solution! It doesn't help the autistic person "maintain eye contact"! 9/15
But even then, their actual solution to this, isn't even a solution! It doesn't help the autistic person "maintain eye contact"! 9/15
Why not spend their funding implementing training for employers on how to interview autistic candidates?
Why not spend funding on providing sensory supports and proper sensory rooms in schools?
Or help train teachers that masking is unhealthy! 10/15
Why not spend funding on providing sensory supports and proper sensory rooms in schools?
Or help train teachers that masking is unhealthy! 10/15
Why not include a decible meter that shows an NT how loud a room is so they can accommodate someone with hyperacusis?
There are SO many things technology can help with, and it almost always used in autism research for reinforcing neurotypical norms and autistic masking. 11/15
There are SO many things technology can help with, and it almost always used in autism research for reinforcing neurotypical norms and autistic masking. 11/15
The only possible silver lining to this research is that they want to, in the future, build a watch with sensors that may help indicate when an autistic person is having a meltdown (they use the term "violent outburst"). Even then that tool can be used against autistics. 12/15
In conclusion, researchers are using this technology to:
1. Remind autistic people to talk to others at school
2. Remind autistic people to ask how someone is
3. Remind autistic people to maintain eye contact.
Do you see the issue here? 13/15
1. Remind autistic people to talk to others at school
2. Remind autistic people to ask how someone is
3. Remind autistic people to maintain eye contact.
Do you see the issue here? 13/15
This is all about what autistic people could be "doing better," and not about how neurotypical people can support them as autistic people. This research is not for autistic people. It's for everyone else around them. 14/15
I want a neurotypical smart watch that tells you when you're making too much eye contact, asking too many questions at once, talking too loudly, making too much small talk, being too indirect.
"But that would be ridiculous!" you might think.
Yes & that's exactly my point. 15/15
"But that would be ridiculous!" you might think.
Yes & that's exactly my point. 15/15
And I'll go ahead and start a thread of things that WOULD potentially be useful to autistic people:
A watch that:
Reminds you if you haven't eaten in 4 hours.
Reminds you to drink water.
Helps organize your schedule for you.
Provide you with a way to show you your tasks 1/
A watch that:
Reminds you if you haven't eaten in 4 hours.
Reminds you to drink water.
Helps organize your schedule for you.
Provide you with a way to show you your tasks 1/
Tells you if an environment is too loud for you and reminds you to wear ear protection.
Tells you if an environment is too bright for you and reminds you to wear sunglasses.
Provides an easy, organized way to look at your finances. 2/
Tells you if an environment is too bright for you and reminds you to wear sunglasses.
Provides an easy, organized way to look at your finances. 2/
Explains to neurotypical people that you can't talk when you're having a shutdown, and what to do.
If an NT asks you a question, the watch uses text-to-speech and reads it out to them. The text is customizable to the autistic person. 3/
If an NT asks you a question, the watch uses text-to-speech and reads it out to them. The text is customizable to the autistic person. 3/
If a fire alarm goes off, the watch recognizes the sound and sends a text to a person you know so they can check on you and make sure you are okay/able to get out of the building if you're frozen in place without ear protection. 4/
A watch that provides a TTY service for emergencies so that you can talk to people who are on the phone without actually talking.
I could keep going, but you see my point.
There are SO many more important things than "Ask your classmate how she's doing."
Life-saving things. 5/
I could keep going, but you see my point.
There are SO many more important things than "Ask your classmate how she's doing."
Life-saving things. 5/
Also, here's a reminder that neurotypical people need to think really hard about whether prompting an autistic person to do something is actually "teaching us social skills."
Autistic people have autistic social skills, NTs just don't respond well to us. https://autisticscienceperson.com/2020/12/20/autistic-anxiety/
Autistic people have autistic social skills, NTs just don't respond well to us. https://autisticscienceperson.com/2020/12/20/autistic-anxiety/
And here's a more in-depth summary on the actual research about this, that was linked in the article, which is apparently focused on only the professionals' opinions and not the autistic person's opinion of the smartwatch: https://twitter.com/AutSciPerson/status/1353498477393829888?s=20
