The effects of an integrated sports and arts intervention on response joint attention (RJA) eye-movement characteristics in children with mild autism.

This study looked at whether combining basketball and drawing activities could help autistic children aged 6-12 improve their ability to follow where others are looking (joint attention). Twenty-four children were split into two groups - one did basketball and drawing lessons 4 times a week for 12 weeks, while the other continued their usual activities. Using eye-tracking technology, researchers found that children in the sports and arts group showed significantly better improvements in their attention skills compared to the control group.

This randomized controlled trial examined whether combining sports and arts interventions improves response joint attention (RJA) in children with mild autism. Twenty-four children aged 6-12 years were randomly assigned to either an experimental group receiving basketball and drawing lessons (4 sessions/week, 60 minutes each) or a control group with routine activities only, over 12 weeks. Eye-tracking technology measured RJA performance through metrics including time to first fixation, fixation count, and correct-to-incorrect response ratios. The experimental group showed significantly greater improvements across all RJA measures compared to controls, with effect sizes ranging from 0.25-0.78 (p<0.05).

Results suggest that integrated sports and arts interventions may effectively enhance attention-related behaviors in autistic children.

Results suggest multi-modal interventions combining physical and creative activities may effectively target joint attention deficits in autism. The specific combination of sports and arts may engage different neural pathways to enhance attention skills. Clinicians should consider structured, frequent sessions when implementing similar approaches.

Small sample size (n=24) limits generalizability. Study conducted in single location in China may limit cultural applicability. No long-term follow-up reported to assess intervention sustainability. Control group did not receive alternative structured intervention, making it unclear whether benefits are specific to sports/arts combination.

This study examines whether integrating sports and arts interventions enhances response joint attention (RJA) in children with mild autism and provides insights for diversifying intervention strategies for autism. 2024.6-2024.12,Twenty-four children with autism, aged 6-12 years, were recruited from an autism association in Anhui Province, China. Participants were randomized using a computer-generated sequence (allocation concealed from assessors) assigned to an experimental group (n = 12) or a control group (n = 12). Over 12 weeks, the experimental group participated in basketball and drawing lessons four times a week for 60 min per session, while the control group engaged only in routine activities and structured teaching provided by their school and the association. RJA performance was assessed pre- and post-intervention using eye-tracking technology, analyzing key metrics: time to first fixation (TFF), fixation count (FC), total fixation duration (TFD), total visit duration (TVD), visit count (VC), and the ratio of correct to incorrect for first responses.

Post-intervention, the experimental group showed significantly greater improvements in RJA performance than the control group. Key metrics for the experimental group included TFF (0.52 ± 0.79), FC (36.35 ± 6.34), TFD (11.05 ± 1.33), TVD (17.05 ± 2.33), VC (24.25 ± 2.49), and correct-to-incorrect ratio (1.1 ± 0.1), all of which outperformed the control group: TFF (0.59 ± 0.11), FC (30.83 ± 2.14), TFD (9.47 ± 1.38), TVD (15.42 ± 1.51), VC (20.33 ± 1.87), and correct-to-incorrect ratio (0.97 ± 0.08),partialηranged from 0.25 to 0.78, with P < 0.05. Integrating sports and arts interventions significantly improves RJA in children with autism, highlighting the potential of these methods in enhancing attention-related behaviors.