Applying technology to visually support language and communication in individuals with autism spectrum disorders.

Early et al. (2012) wrote a position paper. They laid out a simple plan for picking AAC apps on everyday tablets and phones. The goal was to help kids and adults with autism talk through pictures and symbols.

They did not run an experiment. Instead they sorted the choices into a clear menu so families and clinicians can shop faster.

The paper gives a checklist, not new data. It tells you to match the screen size, symbol set, and voice output to the learner’s skills.

It also says to test the app in real places like the grocery store, not just at the clinic table.

Bathelt et al. (2019) updated the same checklist seven years later. They kept the core ideas but added new gaps to study, like how to teach joint attention through apps.

de Jonge et al. (2025) and Howard et al. (2023) ran small experiments that prove the checklist works. Parents coached over Zoom taught teens with Rett syndrome to link pages on an iPad and to ask for items. These studies turn the 2012 advice into step-by-step lessons.

Giesbers et al. (2020) ran a larger test with preschoolers. They tucked a speech-generating device into a short parent program. Kids gained joint attention right away and kept better social skills four months later. This RCT shows the 2012 framework can sit inside a full ABA package.

Ghaziuddin et al. (1996) used a big voice-output device long before tablets existed. Their single-case success with adults foreshadows the same idea: teach the button press first, then move to real-life requests.

You can use this paper like a shopping list. Next time you pick an AAC app, run through the checklist: screen size, symbol type, voice, and real-world test. Then borrow the teaching steps from de Jonge et al. (2025) and Howard et al. (2023) to train parents fast.