The CHAT-E boasts many built-in capabilities, making the tool practical for researchers as well as engaging and fun for kids.
Child assent confirmation is built into the app to reduce paperwork and ensure that the child assents to the interview.
The two dog characters, Fluffy and Fuzzy, appear 3D and move in synchrony with the audio to keep children engaged. The dogs also give enthusiastic survey instructions and remind the child to “choose which one of us is more like you” throughout the survey.
Instructions and scripts for the assessor are built into the app to reduce paperwork and assessor training time.
Open ended questions at the end of the survey allow for more nuanced insight into the child’s perceptions. Assessors are instructed to record child responses exactly.
The spinning stars transition screen interrupts the survey occasionally to maintain the child’s attention.
The blue Help logo only appears when the assessor clicks the white space, otherwise the button fades into the background to not distract from the dogs.
The help screen reminds the assessor of the child’s ID number and school, and allows the assessor to go back to previous questions or skip to the end of the survey.
