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Costescu, C., Ferreira, P., Ferreira, A., David, C., Herrera, G., Heldal, I....Roșan, A. (2026). Functionality, safety and usability of a digital platform supporting executive functions in children with specific educational support needs. Journal of Enabling Technologies. 20 (1), 34-55

C. Costescu et al.,  "Functionality, safety and usability of a digital platform supporting executive functions in children with specific educational support needs", in Journal of Enabling Technologies, vol. 20, no. 1, pp. 34-55, 2026

@article{costescu2026_1776119332860,
	author = "Costescu, C. and Ferreira, P. and Ferreira, A. and David, C. and Herrera, G. and Heldal, I. and Dæhlen, A. and Kovari, A. and Brito, J. and Campos, J. and Vera, L. and Stilwell, D. and Lopes, S. and Stefanut, T. T. and Thill, S. and Bueno, M. L. P. and Haselager, P. and Coggins, T. and Fernández, M. and Roșan, A.",
	title = "Functionality, safety and usability of a digital platform supporting executive functions in children with specific educational support needs",
	journal = "Journal of Enabling Technologies",
	year = "2026",
	volume = "20",
	number = "1",
	doi = "10.1108/JET-01-2025-0003",
	pages = "34-55",
	url = "https://www.emerald.com/jet"
}

TY  - JOUR
TI  - Functionality, safety and usability of a digital platform supporting executive functions in children with specific educational support needs
T2  - Journal of Enabling Technologies
VL  - 20
IS  - 1
AU  - Costescu, C.
AU  - Ferreira, P.
AU  - Ferreira, A.
AU  - David, C.
AU  - Herrera, G.
AU  - Heldal, I.
AU  - Dæhlen, A.
AU  - Kovari, A.
AU  - Brito, J.
AU  - Campos, J.
AU  - Vera, L.
AU  - Stilwell, D.
AU  - Lopes, S.
AU  - Stefanut, T. T.
AU  - Thill, S.
AU  - Bueno, M. L. P.
AU  - Haselager, P.
AU  - Coggins, T.
AU  - Fernández, M.
AU  - Roșan, A.
PY  - 2026
SP  - 34-55
SN  - 2398-6263
DO  - 10.1108/JET-01-2025-0003
UR  - https://www.emerald.com/jet
AB  - Purpose
This study examines the usability, acceptability and technical implementation of an adaptive digital platform that supports executive functions and emotion regulation in children with specific educational support needs (SESN), aiming to facilitate their personal, social, and academic growth.
Design/methodology/approach
A process of co-design was followed for the definition of the functionality of the digital platform, including the participation of focus groups of teachers working with children with SESN and the participation of independent panels of neurodivergent adults. The digital platform for assessing and training executive functions has been developed, integrating gamification, artificial intelligence and sensory technologies (eye-tracking and wearables). A total of 27 children with SESN aged 8–14 years participated in the pilot study.
Findings
Results suggest that +85% of children mention appropriate game time and ease of navigation. Approximately half of the teachers (48%) report that the game settings are excellent to very good. These contributions provide guidelines for IT technicians and constitute standards of use for teachers and children with NDDs. This study has demonstrated the functionality, safety and usability of the developed digital platform. It also helped in the identification of opportunities for improvement in the design and implementation of that platform, pushing it forward for subsequent experimental validation.
Originality/value
Previous studies investigated the effectiveness of separate cognitive tasks for training executive functions with children with SESN. However, no study has been conducted to validate a digital platform as a unitary assessment battery for these functions and its feasibility to be used in a school setting. This digital platform is also the first one to integrate gamification, artificial intelligence and sensory technologies for assessing and training executive functions in children with SESN.
ER  -