Magicarpet: A Parent-child Interactive Game Platform to Enhance Connectivity between Autistic Children and Their Parents

Abstract: Autistic children often face challenges in social interaction and communication, impacting their social connectivity, especially with their parents. Despite the effectiveness of game-based interactive therapy in improving motor skills, research on enhancing parent-child relationships is lacking. We address this gap with Magicarpet, an interactive play carpet that encourages parent-child interaction and has been validated through a user study with five families. The preliminary results indicate that Magicarpet enhances the motivation and participation of autistic children in play, demonstrating the potential of human-computer interaction (HCI) designs to foster connectivity.