How could robots improve social skills in children with Autism?

Abstract

Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) might lack communication and social capabilities, which are essential for collaboration with other individuals and for the quality of life. The autistic children typically have problems in perceiving and displaying social clues and sentiments, a condition that obscures, even more, their deficiency of interaction abilities. Recent research has shown that robots can be helpful in stimulating social skills in autistic children, encouraging imitation, touch, eye gaze, and communication with persons. This paper aims to understand the theoretical basis of how robots can be helpful in improving the social skills of children with Autism. The paper will also examine empirical literature along with the particular focus on social robots which have been designed especially to improve social skills of children with autism.