Literacy as a Social Practice for Adults with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities in Roblox-Based Text Interaction: Dataset

Description

Adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) often have limited opportunities to engage in meaningful literacy practices beyond formal schooling, yet literacy development can continue into adulthood when situated within authentic, interest-driven contexts. This exploratory qualitative study examined how adults with IDD engaged in reading and writing practices within a purpose-shifted digital game environment and how caregivers and professionals perceived its affordances and challenges. Using a sociocultural theoretical framework, nine dyads of adults with IDD and caregivers and six speech-language pathology and assistive technology professionals participated in individual facilitated sessions within a customized virtual supermarket built in Roblox, a widely used commercial gaming platform. Data sources included video and audio recordings of gameplay sessions, in-game chat transcripts, think-aloud protocols, researcher field notes, and semi-structured exit interviews. Reflexive thematic analysis revealed three themes: (1) literacy as situated social action within an authentic digital ecology, characterized by goal-oriented text interaction and interest-driven exploration; (2) participation as co-constructed through distributed and contingent scaffolding that encompasses real-time support from caregivers, professionals, and in-game features; and (3) negotiating authenticity and accessibility in a purpose-shifted game environment, reflecting tensions between preserving authentic platform features and managing cognitive demands. Findings demonstrate that commercially available platforms can support literacy-related participation for adults with IDD across a range of functional literacy levels without requiring custom-built software. The study contributes to inclusive digital learning design by highlighting how purpose-shifted game environments can function as mediational spaces for adult literacy participation.

Institutions

• West Chester University

  Pennsylvania, West Chester

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