Conversation patterns of three adults using aided speech: variations across partners

This study evaluated the communicative interaction skills of seven young men (ages 19-23 years) who had used AAC systems for at least 15 years. Turn-taking patterns, use of communicative functions, and linguistic complexity were analyzed. Current performance was compared to the participants' skills when they were preschoolers and participated in another study of interaction skills (Light, 1985; Light, Collier, & Parnes, 1985a,b,c). Results indicated that the turn distribution between partners was more equitable than it had been when the participants were preschoolers; five of the participants approached reciprocity in turn taking during at least two of the interactions observed. During interactions with their caregivers, the participants fulfilled most of their obligatory turns and more than half of their non-obligatory turns. The communicative functions used most frequently by the participants were confirmations/denials and provisions of information. Three of the participants demonstrated the ability to use complete and complex syntax and committed few errors in grammar, while the other four participants demonstrated many syntactic errors. The results are discussed with implications for clinical practice and directions for future research.

Section: Discourse Statusmentioning

confidence: 95%

Section: Discourse Statusmentioning

confidence: 99%

Long-term outcomes for individuals who use augmentative and alternative communication: Part II – communicative interaction

Lund

Light

2007

“…Some aided AAC systems in particular are based on theoretical assumptions that concern the relationship between social activities, communication goals, and content (e.g., Higginbotham, Wilkins, Lesher, & Moulton, 1999;Todman, Rankin, & File, 1999;Todman & Alm, 2003). In the AAC literature, there appears to be an increasing interest in the relationship between interaction, conversational content, and development (e.g., Grove & Tucker, 2003;Mu¨ller & Soto, 2002;Smith, 2003;Soto & Seligman-Wine, 2003;Tavares & Peixoto, 2003;Waller & O'Mara, 2003).…”

Section: The Influence Of Social Activities On Communicationmentioning

confidence: 98%

Conversational Topics Between a Child with Complex Communication Needs and her Caregiver at Mealtime

Björck‐Åkesson

Ferm

Ahlsén

2005

Naturalistic mealtime interactions between a child with complex communication needs and her caregiver (focus dyad) and a child without disabilities and her caregiver (comparison dyad) were investigated. An activity-based communication analysis was used to outline the contextual background factors of the dyads' activities, and the dyads' conversational topics were analyzed. For the child and her caregiver (the focus dyad), the natural mode of communication at mealtime was unaided. Communication mostly concerned immediate mealtime issues. Other, shorter, topics were introduced but were also anchored to immediate issues. In contrast, the child and caregiver who comprised the comparison dyad conversed about a variety of personal topics that extended beyond the present. Topic patterns are exemplified using discourse excerpts and are discussed in relation to aided communication and development.

“…Light et al (1985a) described speaking partners as dominating interactions with children using aided communication, monopolizing the conversational space, directing the topic, exerting maximal summoning power in their turns, asking questions, and demanding specific responses or specific modes of response, behaviors that have been described many times since (e.g., Basil, 1992;Clarke & Kirton, 2003;Light, 1988). These patterns may not be unique to interactions of children with significant speech and physical impairments (Dahlgren-Sandberg & Liliedahl, 2008) (Müller & Soto, 2002). Nonetheless, as noted earlier, they may impose respondent roles on children, offering them different input experiences to their speaking peers and restricting the range or salience of communicative functions onto which they can map language learning.…”

Section: Communication Partner Behaviorsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Language Development of Individuals Who Require Aided Communication: Reflections on State of the Science and Future Research Directions

Smith

2015

Language acquisition theories differ in the importance they assign to production as a learning mechanism. This review summarizes some of the theoretical issues linked to this debate and considers their implications for children with severe speech and physical impairments. The unique aspects of the language-learning contexts of these children are explored. Drawing largely on papers published within the journal Augmentative and Alternative Communication, this review summarizes features of language development that have been described over the past 3 decades and considers how these findings might illuminate our understanding of language development across both spoken and aided modalities. Implications for assessment, intervention and for further research are suggested.