College Students with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Use Assistive Technology in Living,Learning,and Working Tasks: A 20-Year Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Abstract

Within the US there are over 300 postsecondary education (PSE) programs for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). College students enrolled in PSE programs for students with IDD often require support in using assistive technology (AT) to complete living, learning, and working tasks. To date, there is no systematic review or meta-analysis that examines interventions within these programs that integrate AT to teach these skills. We systematically reviewed 43 intervention studies that targeted 235 students’ use of AT to complete living, learning, and working tasks. The average age of students was 21.5 yrs (R = 18.7 to 27.5). Most studies used mobile devices and applications to target living (44.2%), learning (37.2%), and working (18.6%) skills. Forty-two of 43 studies used visual cues and systematic prompting and/or systematic instruction. On average, interventions were 10 sessions. Eighty-seven percent of studies reported treatment fidelity, 94% reported interobserver agreement, and 67% reported social validity. Most studies used correct number of responses or task analysis steps completed as the dependent variable. The metaanalytic results indicated interventions were overall effective at improving student outcomes. An analysis of moderators revealed a significant difference for study quality but no significant difference for disability type, study duration, and area targeted.