AutMotion Studio

Game-based motor-skill therapy for autistic children, co-designed with clinicians and families

Overview

AutMotion Studio is a video-game-based intervention designed to encourage intrinsic motivation for autistic children participating in physical and occupational therapy. Rather than building a single fixed game, the project is developing a future game platform that lets clinicians match motor goals to play experiences across the wide variation in autistic children's preferences, sensory profiles, and skill levels. The platform frames the therapy session as a clinician-configurable game session so the work the child wants to do (play) is also the work the therapist needs them to do (target specific motor patterns).

Problem & Motivation

Motor skills are an important facilitator of quality of life. Roughly 87% of autistic individuals experience difficulties associated with motor skills, but only an estimated 13.32% of autistic children receive movement therapies such as physical or recreational therapy. Even when therapy is available, intrinsic motivation to repeat prescribed exercises is low. AutMotion Studio reframes the therapy session as a clinician-configurable game session the same problem the PHT Lab has long identified across rehabilitation contexts.

Approach & Methods

The project uses Research-through-Design across three phases: (1) formative interviews with 9 clinicians to surface what game-based interventions need to support; (2) co-design with 5 clinicians and 3 autistic children and their families to translate clinician needs into playable mechanics; (3) initial prototype testing, with the first public demo at the Hozhoni Gameorama in May 2026. The team's CHI 2026 paper frames findings around informing a future game platform focused on improving motor skills not a single fixed game reflecting the core design philosophy.

Team

Project Lead: Hunter Beach (Master's student, GRA) | PI: Jared Duval | Undergraduate Researchers: Carly Miller (Psychological Sciences) and Devin Jay San Nicolas (Computer Science) | Clinician collaborators contributed via interviews and co-design sessions.

Funding & Awards

Maxwell-Lutz Community Impact Award $5,000 PI Duval June 2025 | Hooper Undergraduate Research Award $7,332 Faculty Mentor: Duval April 2025 | Pheatt Family Research Award Hunter Beach April 2025 | Second place at NAU EGR-Fest 2025 (November 2025)

Publications

Beach, H., Miller, C., San Nicolas, D. J., Duval, J., et al. Understanding Clinician Experiences with Game-Based Interventions for Autistic Children to Inform a Future Game Platform Focused on Improving Motor Skills. CHI 2026. https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3772363.3799014

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