Information and communication technology (ICT) has increased in importance and facilitates participation in several life areas throughout society. However, young adults with mild to moderate intellectual disability make less use ICT than the general population. Disability services staff play a central role in supporting and enabling service users in daily life, and their perceptions of ICT are important to their role in service provision. The aim of the study is to describe staff perceptions of the role of ICT and how it affects daily life in young adults with mild to moderate intellectual disability living in residential homes. Focus group interviews and individual interviews were conducted with staff working in residential homes in which young adults with mild to moderate intellectual disability live. All materials were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using latent content analysis. Staff perceived ICT and, more specifically, the Internet as being supportive of both daily life and social relationships of these young adults, but they also viewed ICT as posing social risks. Perceptions of and support for ICT were related to staff perceptions about what is appropriate and manageable in relation to an individual resident's functioning level. Staff members also considered the views of parents about appropriate content when providing support. Staff in residential homes for young adults with mild to moderate intellectual disability use their implicit moral judgment about the use of ICT by residents. Their enablement of and support for ICT are not primarily based on the service user's wishes or interests. This finding implies a risk that the organization of a conflict‐free service provision is a higher priority than service users' participation in social life.

Young adults with mild-to-moderate ID use ICT in their daily life. The social care context needs to be further investigated due to its influence on the young adults' access to ICT and need of support.

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Globally, there is limited research on how deaf and hard of hearing adults experience higher education and work. The purpose of the present study is to examine hard of hearing (HH) adults’ experiences of social interactions and social relationships in higher education, the workplace and leisure time. Data were obtained from semistructured interviews with 16 individuals (aged 24–31 years) from diverse cultural backgrounds (10 males and 6 females) with severe-to-profound hearing loss. Participants were selected based on previous expressed interest in participating in further studies after having been involved in an earlier study. The interviews were subjected to a qualitative thematic data analysis. According to the results, people with a hearing loss experience communication barrier in higher education, at work and in leisure time. These communication barriers lead to difficulties achieving social inclusion, and in some circumstances to social exclusion. Assistive technology (AT) and information and communication technologies (ICT) were important facilitators of moving from social exclusion towards social inclusion.

This article reports on the results of a pilot study exploring if and how the meal situations of persons with intellectual disabilities (PWIDs) in need of help and support during meal situations was affected by an eating aid. This article also analyzes how PWIDs and their assistants perceived their experiences of using an eating aid during meal situations. Data for the study were collected in interviews with PWIDs and their assistants. The results are presented in five themes: Independence in the meal situation, Motivation to use the eating aid, Functions of the eating aid, Social aspects of using the eating aid and Design corresponding to intellectual disability. The eating aid's function, user-friendliness and the assistant's attitudes appear to be crucial for using the eating aid. Another important aspect is the introductory and training phase which must be fundamentally adapted to suit PWIDs learning and understanding abilities. When these aspects are controlled, the eating aid can be a tool for increased independence during meal situations for PWIDs who are unable to move their arms or hands.