BCIwiki (bciwiki.com) — Thirty-eight typically developing children aged 8 to 12 used a P300-based brain-computer interface augmentative and alternative communication (P300-BCI-AAC) design application to create their preferred picture-based interface, finding that animation, color, and personalization were the most valued design elements. The study, conducted by researchers at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and the University of Houston, was published in the American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology on August 24, 2026.
P300-BCI-AAC systems hold promise for supporting communication in children with severe speech and physical impairments, but little was known about children's display design preferences. In the study, children selected features such as color, animation, and overlays, followed by semi-structured interviews to capture the reasons for their choices. Analysis revealed two themes guiding design decisions: supporting visual distinction to make items more recognizable, and personal factors influencing design choices. Most children selected preferred colors, animation effects (especially zooming animations), and sound cues; animation was frequently chosen to aid visual accessibility, ease of target location, and support personalization, while background color changes commonly incorporated preferred colors, and video GIFs and picture overlays commonly added personal relevance. Some participants emphasized symbol visibility or reduced intensity.
The researchers noted that these findings underscore the preliminary importance of motion, color, personalization, and visual clarity in pediatric BCI-AAC interfaces, providing a foundation for developing customizable, engaging systems, and highlighting the need for research involving children who use AAC in daily life and individuals with motor difficulties.
The study was authored by Pitt KM, Thiessen A, Fowler G, and Butler E, affiliated with the Department of Special Education and Communication Disorders at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders at the University of Houston, and the Department of Biological Systems Engineering at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. The DOI is 10.1044/2026_ajslp-26-00032.