Using the transporters DVD as a learning tool for children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD)

Abstract

Data from two groups of children who were randomly allocated to those groups showed that the ability of children with ASD to identify and label basic and complex facial expressions following a 3-week home based DVD intervention significantly improved when viewing The Transporters DVD. Improvements in emotion recognition appear related to the content of the DVD as participants in a control group who observed an alternate DVD showed no such improvement. Although social behaviour improved significantly as a result of watching The Transporters, a significant improvement in social behaviour was however, also observed in the Thomas the Tank Engine condition suggesting the unique content of The Transporters DVD was not pivotal to the improvement of social behaviour in general.