Deaf-blindness is a type of dual disability wherein visual and auditory capabilities are significantly impaired. Special communication methods have been developed for the deaf-blind community. Yet, these methods require that both people involved have prior knowledge and training to successfully communicate, limiting deaf-blind people's social…

Aided conversations differ from spoken ones in their transitions between turns and symbols because seeking and choosing symbols takes more time than speaking words naturally. This study adopted the concepts and principles of conversation analysis (CA) to analyze the transitions between symbols during the construction of aided turns. The data was…

This study evaluated acquisition, preference, and generalization of two forms of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) during functional communication training (FCT) with two students with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Acquisition of FCT responses, using a picture-based communication system and speech-generating device (SGD; Apple…

Individuals who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) occupy complex sociocultural and sociolinguistic territories. They are immersed in spoken language communities but to participate as speakers in conversational interactions, they may rely on atypical communication modes, including systems for generating speech that set them apart…

Purpose: Social interaction poses many challenges for adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and complex communication needs. The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of video visual scene displays (video VSDs) on communication during interactions between adolescents with ASD and peer partners. Method: This study used an…

Purpose: Families and professionals often consider augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) a "last resort" for persons with communication challenges; however, speaking autistic adults have reported that they would have benefited from access to AAC as children. This tutorial discusses the history of this "last resort"…

Purpose: This study seeks to determine how speech-language impairments relate to the frequency and diversity of communication modes and functions produced by children with cerebral palsy (CP) during interactions with their mothers. Method: We studied 40 children with CP (M[subscript age] = 62 months) comprising three groups--those who were unable…

The purpose of this single case A-B-A-B study was to determine if the dependent variables of eye gaze, vocalization, and reaching would increase among students and peers with severe and multiple disabilities and complex communication needs when the independent variable of positioning for communication and socialization (peers facing each other and…

This study aimed to contribute to the secondary-tier evidence of the three-tier video modeling intervention model (3TVM), using a group-based generic video, and to explore a new form of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) intervention using a Chinese-language interface for teaching children with developmental disabilities. A multiple…

Background: To enhance communicative ability and thereby the possibility of increased participation of persons with aphasia, the use of communication strategies has been proposed. However, little is known about how persons with aphasia experience having conversations and how they perceive their own and their conversation partner's use of…

The purpose of this study was to investigate the differences between spontaneous and elicited expressive communication in Australian and Taiwanese children with autism who were nonverbal or had limited speech. Thirty-four children with autism (17 Australian and 17 Taiwanese children) participated in this study. Each participant was observed for 2…

The "Picture Exchange Communication System" (PECS) has emerged as the augmentative communication intervention of choice for individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), with a supporting body of single-participant studies. This report describes a meta-analysis of 16 single-participant studies on PECS with percentage of nonoverlapping data…

Students that use augmentative communication often have a hard time breaking into conversations, initiating conversations and then being able to sustain a conversation. Students that use augmentative communication (ACC) need training in not only the use of the machine but in social communication rules, and in strategies on how to bypass…