A Device is Just a Device

Anyone who reads what I write here (all 6 of you ;-P) probably knows that I'm a huge fan of assistive technology. However, it's important not to mislead about what an assistive technology really is.

I almost passed up Weighted Belt for Autism? -- Research Summary because, well, it's not, in fact, anything resembling a "research summary" (or even a well written or interesting article). But then it is pretty illustrative of this theme. Why would anyone think the application of a piece of assistive technology--a weighted belt--would be a "cure" for anything? Any more than a car is a "cure" for not being able to run really fast?

Sometimes unrealistic expectations get put on a device. Once a man observed me use my speech device--something I have high levels of skill in. "I want one just like that," the man told others, and VR purchased him one. Then I was asked to help show him how to use it.

Now, I touch-type 80 - 90 words a minute, have been using typing-as-conversation for decades, my communication processes function natively in writing far better than they do in speech, and I've had benefit of working with an SLP who specializes in assistive technology. Unfortunately, the man is an exceptionally slow hunt-and-peck typer with a preference for speech over writing. And I am no SLP. This lead to some disappointment.

Or, here's a second story: My state has a lovely program to enable all individuals to have telephone access. I have a speaker phone through this program, and my speech device right next to it. However, I don't use the telephone any more than I did before I had this system. Because, well, I don't have any better phone skills than I did before I had this system. I still have no clue when it's my turn to speak, can't understand most of what an unfamiliar voice is saying, and any number of other things that make using the telephone functional.

The two-parter key point here is that, one, assistive technology can make a HUGE difference in the types of activities that are available to a person. I can do things with AT that I could never dream of doing without. But, two, this is not because of the device itself. A device is just a device. What makes a device truly functional is the individual who uses it.

Whether it's technology for sensory needs like a weighted belt (or my beloved extra heavy, knee-high boots), or a speech device, or a telephone, or anything all else, the usefulness of the item is going to depend on the skill, needs, and personality of the person using it as much as it is on the device. And successful use of a device is akin to successful use of a car or a computer--it's not a cure for anything, it's technology that enables us to do things we could not do otherwise.