Would You Be Mine: Appropriating

Minecraft as an Assistive Technology for

Youth with Autism

Kathryn E. Ringland, Christine T. Wolf, LouAnne E. Boyd,

Mark S. Baldwin, & Gillian R. Hayes

Department of Informatics

University of California, Irvine

{kringlan, wolfct, boydl, baldwinm, hayesg}@uci.edu

ACCESS PDF of SLIDES:

bit.ly/minecraftATassets

Introduction

2

Adoption of assistive technology

3

Research Question

How does an online community for children with autism

adopt and adapt mainstream information and

communication systems (such as Minecraft) as assistive

technology?

4

Autcraft

5

6

Ethnography

7

Ethnography

8

Ethnography

9

Autcraft

“[the] first Minecraft server dedicated to providing a

safe, fun and learning environment for children on

the autism spectrum and their families” (Autcraft

website)

10

Demographics

11

Ages 6+

Preteens, teens

diagnosed with autism

Allies - friends, advocates

Parents

Analysis

12

Child-Initiated Design

Child

Appropriates & Augments

Their Environment

13

Adult Administrators

Iterate on Designs &

Pushes to Whole Community

Child-Initiated Design

14

Sensory Rooms

15

Sensory Rooms

I came across a hole in the ground like a small, dark

chamber just big enough for an avatar to stand inside. A

member informed me that it was built to give them a

“sensory break.” When they went inside and plugged the

top of the hole, their screen would go all black. (field

notes)

16

Discussion

17

Self Regulation – Sensory Rooms

18

Self Regulation – Sensory Rooms

19

Self Regulation – Sensory Rooms

20

Sensory Rooms

This really helped me today there was a trigger for some

bad memories and it calmed me down wish i could visit

this in real life. (forum)

21

Sensory Rooms

I think sensory rooms are a fantastic idea. And I added a

book in calm room 1 its about what to do and about calm

rooms. (forum)

22

Text Chat

------

23

Text Chat

------

24

Text Chat

<Khoomei> hey tove

---------

<Khoomei> how are you?

---------

25

Text Chat

A quick message to the other admins and helpers on the

server and now we’re all aware of this and going to

support him with his needs even if it means explaining

to the other players that in his case, it’s OK to do what

he’s doing. This is just one of the many ways that Autcraft

is different from all the other servers. (Facebook post)

26

Text Chat

Text chat modification

27

Text Chat

This was the BEST idea ever! Chat is so much easier to

see now. I don’t have poor vision … but it STILL so much

easier to see (forum)

28

Conclusion

Flexible, open system allows for adaptation

Expectation to create and appropriate

Child-initiated design

29

Thank You

30

@liltove

kateringland.com

kateringland@gmail.com

A special thanks to my coauthors and

members of LUCI and STAR for

helping put this presentation together.

And to the Autcraft community for their

continual openness to my presence.

All stock photos in this

presentation were made

available through Death to the

Stock Photo, Unsplash, and

Negative Space to be used

attribution free.