Digital Media and Autism Spectrum Disorders: Review of Evidence, Theoretical Concerns, and Opportunities for Intervention.

As the digital media landscape becomes more complex, individualized, and interactive, pediatric providers often find themselves asked to be the source of guidance for children with developmental and behavioral conditions such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD). In this brief report, we review the current literature that exists regarding the use of traditional media (e.g., TV, video games) in children with ASD. We then outline a conceptual framework to describe the interaction between ASD-specific developmental and behavioral vulnerabilities and the aspects of new media (e.g., mobile devices, interactive apps, streaming video services) that could lead to problematic media use. This conceptual framework is then applied to clinical implications for how to prevent and manage problematic media usage in ASD and how to use modern media as tools to support optimal development.