Several members of the emerging augmentative and alternative communication profession held a meeting at Purdue University in August 1987. Issues addressed included: public policy; documentation of the field; and such service provision issues as candidacy for service, communicative competency, focus of intervention, and intervention strategies.…

Literature is reviewed on augmentative and alternative communication research and intervention for individuals with severe intellectual disabilities. The review focuses on prerequisites for intervention, symbol systems and sets, computer technology, and teaching strategies. Future research directions are outlined, and clinical and educational…

Research is reviewed on the interaction patterns of individuals using augmentative and alternative communication systems. Major findings and limitations of interaction studies are highlighted, focusing on methodological approaches, subjects, partners, contexts and sampling procedures, and measures and data analyses. Directions for future research…

"Cued Typing" is a computerized communication message preparation program, written for Apple II Plus, using frequency-based prediction algorithms and menu selection to reduce word cost while maintaining vocabulary flexibility. "Cued Typing" was more efficient than letter-by-letter typing, but word cost was still quite high, and…

This paper presents an ecological framework for observing and evaluating the influence of society's attitudes toward disablement on the development of sociocommunicative skills in individuals using augmentative and alternative communication systems. Reviewed are the role of remediators, intervention issues, and directions for future research.…

Many severely disabled individuals who rely on augmentative and alternative communication systems experience difficulties using newly acquired communication skills in settings different from those introduced in the instructional context and with different conversational partners. Methods of promoting functional communication skills are addressed,…

Acquired severe communication disorders may result from physical impairment, language impairment, cognitive impairment, or combination of impairments. This paper reviews the demographics and characteristics of communication-disordered adults based on etiology, introduces models of assessment and intervention, highlights intervention strategies and…

This case study presents an assessment-intervention model for augmentative and alternative communication with a head-injured adolescent. The model addresses the client's needs and skills and also provides support and training for caregivers. The case study documents the adolescent's transition through a range of communication systems over a…

A computerized symbol processor system using an Apple IIe computer and a Power Pad graphics tablet was tested with 22 nonspeaking, multiply disabled students. The students were taught to express themselves independently in writing, and they did significantly better than control students on measures of language comprehension and symbol recognition.…

An augmentative and alternative communication device was designed for a nonspeaking, blind, severely mentally retarded 11-year-old. The device consisted of a computer-supported expanded keyboard that produced synthetic speech output when tactile symbols were activated. Described are the assessment procedures, instructional procedures, and…