Supporting and understanding autistic children’s non-verbal interactions through OSMoSIS, a motion-based sonic system

Music therapy for autistic children focuses on supporting motor and social interaction through creative movement and musical activities. Previous research suggests it can further support the development of underlying skills related to non-verbal communication, namely social motor synchrony and imitation. Motion-sensing technology in this context has the potential to both support children’s engagement in therapy and help researchers understand its impact. We describe and evaluate a system, OSMoSIS, which aims to provide support by generating sounds based on children’s movements. An evaluation through two empirical studies shows (1) higher levels of imitation and interactional synchrony when using the system compared with motor-only activities and (2) that children found the interaction enjoyable, showing more instances of positive affect when the system was activated with the sounds on. We discuss how the findings highlight new directions for further research on technology for music therapy and have the potential to support practitioners and families.