AUTHOR=Kumazaki Hirokazu , Warren Zachary , Corbett Blythe A. , Yoshikawa Yuichiro , Matsumoto Yoshio , Higashida Haruhiro , Yuhi Teruko , Ikeda Takashi , Ishiguro Hiroshi , Kikuchi Mitsuru 

TITLE=Android Robot-Mediated Mock Job Interview Sessions for Young Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Pilot Study

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Psychiatry

VOLUME=8

YEAR=2017

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychiatry/articles/10.3389/fpsyt.2017.00169

DOI=10.3389/fpsyt.2017.00169

ISSN=1664-0640

ABSTRACT=<p>The feasibility and preliminary efficacy of an android robot-mediated mock job interview training in terms of both bolstering self-confidence and reducing biological levels of stress in comparison to a psycho-educational approach human interview was assessed in a randomized study. Young adults (ages 18–25 years) with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) were randomized to participate either in a mock job interview training with our android robot system (<italic>n</italic> = 7) or a self-paced review of materials about job-interviewing skills (<italic>n</italic> = 8). Baseline and outcome measurements of self-reported performance/efficacy and salivary cortisol were obtained after a mock job interview with a human interviewer. After training sessions, individuals with ASD participating in the android robot-mediated sessions reported marginally improved self-confidence and demonstrated significantly lower levels of salivary cortisol as compared to the control condition. These results provide preliminary support for the feasibility and efficacy of android robot-mediated learning.</p>