Designing for collaboration mediated by digital games among neurodiverse children in special education

In this paper we investigate how co-located digital games can be designed to support peer-collaboration among neurodiverse children in special education settings (i.e., children with Autism and/or ADHD in 4th and 6th grade). Specif- ically, we examine how interdependence as a game dynamic—operationalized through asymmetric gameplay—affects collaborative outcomes. To systemati- cally capture and evaluate collaboration, this study adopts the theoretical frame work proposed by Child and Shaw [1], to define, operationalize, and analyze key facets of collaborative behavior as reflected in children’s play tests. The paper makes two main contributions: (1) empirical evidence on how co-located collab- orative gameplay—and specifically varying levels of interdependence—facilitates and shapes different facets of collaboration among neurodiverse children in special education settings; and (2) a methodological contribution demonstrating how the Child and Shaw framework can be applied to define and operationalize collaboration in the context of co-located digital games.