How can AI Empower the Prosocial Behaviors of Children with Special Needs in Inclusive Education?
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.54097/ap9yff14Keywords:
Artificial Intelligence (AI), Inclusive Education, Children with Special Needs, Prosocial BehaviorAbstract
Prosocial behavior development is crucial for social integration and mental health of children with special needs. Inclusive education is seen as the ideal placement for these children and can support such development, but in practice it makes it hard to get good results because the support is insufficient and teachers often lack training. AI technology offers a new pathway to develop prosocial behavior in these children and can help overcome barriers in the inclusive education practice. We examine current research on prosocial behavior in this population. Then we focus on AI technology with empowering potential, analyzing how assistive technologies, adaptive learning systems, chatbots, and virtual reality can promote expression and development of the prosocial behavior. These tools provide personalized learning pathways and barrier-free communication methods and they create safe social scenario simulations and give continuous emotional support. However, AI empowerment also brings multiple challenges. It is worth noting that this research can provide reference for promoting inclusive education development and helping develop social skills of children with special needs with AI.
Downloads
References
[1] United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. (1994). The Salamanca statement and framework for action on special needs education. UNESCO. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000098427.
[2] Amor, A. M., Hagiwara, M., Shogren, K. A., Thompson, J. R., Verdugo, M. Á., Burke, K. M., & Aguayo, V. (2019). International views and trends about inclusive education: A systematic review. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 23(12), 1277–1295. https://doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2018.1445304. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2018.1445304
[3] Deng, M., & Zhao, H. (2019). The current situation and development trend of inclusive education in China in the new era. Disability Research, (1), 12–18.
[4] Eisenberg, N., & Fabes, R. A. (1998). Prosocial development. In W. Damon (Series Ed.) & N. Eisenberg (Vol. Ed.), Handbook of child psychology: Vol. 3. Social, emotional, and personality development (5th ed., pp. 701–778). Wiley.
[5] Silke, C., Brady, B., Boylan, C., & Dolan, P. (2018). Factors influencing the development of empathy and pro social behaviour in adolescents: A systematic review. Children and Youth Services Review, 94, 421–436. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2018.07.027. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2018.07.027
[6] Wang, Z., Huang, J., Wang, L., & Liu, C. (2025). Social participation for students with special needs in inclusive schools: A scoping review. International Journal of Developmental Disabilities, 71(5), 643–662. https://doi.org/10.1080/20473869.2023.2277602. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/20473869.2023.2277602
[7] Efthymiou, F., & Hildebrand, C. (2024). Empathy by design: The influence of trembling AI voices on prosocial behavior. IEEE Transactions on Affective Computing, 15(3), 1253–1263. https://doi.org/10.1109/TAFFC.2023.3332742. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1109/TAFFC.2023.3332742
[8] Peter, J., Kühne, R., & Barco, A. (2021). Can social robots affect children’s prosocial behavior? Computers in Human Behavior, 120, 106712. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2021.106712. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2021.106712
[9] Kuper, H., Monteath van Dok, A., Wing, K., Danquah, L., Evans, J., Zuurmond, M., & Gallinetti, J. (2014). The impact of disability on children’s life: Cross sectional data including 8,900 children with disability and 898,834 children without disability from 30 countries. PLOS ONE, 9(9), e107300. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0107300. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0107300
[10] Schoop Kasteler, N., Hofmann, V., Cillessen, A. H. N., & Müller, C. M. (2025). Predicting popularity among students with intellectual disabilities: The role of prosocial and antisocial behaviours. Journal of Intellectual and Developmental Disability. https://doi.org/10.3109/13668250.2025.2564063. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3109/13668250.2025.2564063
[11] Wagemaker, E., Hofmann, V., & Müller, C. M. (2023). Prosocial behavior in students with intellectual disabilities: Individual level predictors and the role of the classroom peer context. PLOS ONE, 18(2), e0281598. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0281598. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0281598
[12] Technology Related Assistance for Individuals with Disabilities Act of 1988, Pub. L. No. 100 407, 102 Stat. 1044. (1988). United States Congress.
[13] Van Mieghem, A., Verschueren, K., Petry, K., & Struyf, E. (2020). An analysis of research on inclusive education: A systematic search and meta review. International Journal of Inclusive Education, 24(6), 675–689. https://doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2018.1482012. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13603116.2018.1482012
[14] Anwar, R. A., & Hart Barnett, J. E. (2024). AAC in AACtion: Collaborative strategies for special education teachers and speech language pathologists. Intervention in School and Clinic, 60(2), 96–107. https://doi.org/10.1177/10534512241245450. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/10534512241245450
[15] van Stuijvenberg, O. C., Bassil, K., Broekman, M. L. D., Bredenoord, A. L., Frijns, J. H. M., & Jongsma, K. R. (2025). Neural implants using AI for vision and hearing: User perspectives from a qualitative study. Disability and Rehabilitation: Assistive Technology. https://doi.org/10.1080/17483107.2025.2559188. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/17483107.2025.2559188
[16] Parthasarathy, V., Thangavelu, N., Ramesh, J., Suresh, B., Kandasamy, K., Nikhilesh, N., & Kannan, M. (2022). Development of a low resource wearable system for continuous gesture to speech conversion. Disability and Rehabilitation: Assistive Technology, 18(8), 1441–1452. https://doi.org/10.1080/17483107.2021.2022787. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/17483107.2021.2022787
[17] Gkintoni, E., Vassilopoulos, S. P., Nikolaou, G., & Vantarakis, A. (2025). Neurotechnological approaches to cognitive rehabilitation in mild cognitive impairment: A systematic review of neuromodulation, EEG, virtual reality, and emerging AI applications. Brain Sciences, 15(6), 582. https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci15060582. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/brainsci15060582
[18] Barbu, M., Iordache, D. D., Petre, I., Barbu, D. C., & Băjenaru, L. (2025). Framework design for reinforcing the potential of XR technologies in transforming inclusive education. Applied Sciences, 15(3), 1484. https://doi.org/10.3390/app15031484. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/app15031484
[19] Labadze, L., Grigolia, M., & Machaidze, L. (2023). Role of AI chatbots in education: Systematic literature review. International Journal of Educational Technology in Higher Education, 20(1), 56. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41239 023 00426 1. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/s41239-023-00426-1
[20] Kedek, I., De Jong, E. M., Schippers, M. C., De Bruijn Smolders, M., Alexiou, A., & Giesbers, B. (2020). Optimizing students’ mental health and academic performance: AI enhanced life crafting. Frontiers in Psychology, 11, 1063. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01063. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.01063
[21] Suh, A., & Prophet, J. (2018). The state of immersive technology research: A literature analysis. Computers in Human Behavior, 86, 77–90. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2018.04.019. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2018.04.019
[22] Karadag, E., Aydogmus, M., Simsek, I., Ciftci, S. K., Karkali, K., Goumas, E., Vitale, I. V., Kubiak, M., & Bellas, L. E. G. (2025). Exploring the potential of virtual reality for motor skills training in children with special educational needs: Perspectives from experts from five countries. Education and Information Technologies, 30(14), 20543–20572. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639 025 13524 6. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-025-13524-6
[23] Cai, Y., Chiew, R., Nay, Z. T., Indhumathi, C., & Huang, L. (2017). Design and development of VR learning environments for children with ASD. Interactive Learning Environments, 25(8), 1098–1109. https://doi.org/10.1080/10494820.2017.1282877. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/10494820.2017.1282877
[24] Alasadi, E. A., & Baiz, C. R. (2023). Generative AI in education and research: Opportunities, concerns, and solutions. Journal of Chemical Education, 100(8), 2965–2971. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jchemed.3c00323. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.jchemed.3c00323
[25] Song, N. Y. (2024). Higher education crisis: Academic misconduct with generative AI. Journal of Contingencies and Crisis Management, 32(1), e12532. https://doi.org/10.1111/1468 5973.12532. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-5973.12532
[26] Alimović, S. (2024). Benefits and challenges of using assistive technology in the education and rehabilitation of individuals with visual impairments. Disability and Rehabilitation: Assistive Technology, 19(8), 3063–3070. https://doi.org/10.1080/17483107.2024.2344802. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/17483107.2024.2344802
[27] Eom, D., Newman, T., Brossard, D., & Scheufele, D. A. (2024). Societal guardrails for AI? Perspectives on what we can know about the public opinion on artificial intelligence. Science and Public Policy, 51(5), 1004–1013. https://doi.org/10.1093/scipol/scae041. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/scipol/scae041
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Journal of Education and Educational Research

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.









