This scoping review addresses peer-reviewed research on musical interaction with children and young people with severe/profound intellectual and multiple disabilities (S/PIMD). Twenty-five articles published between the years 2000 and 2020 met the inclusion criteria. A narrative synthesis was used to summarise and evaluate different features,…

'Profound and multiple learning disabilities' ('PMLD') is a term used in the UK to refer to children with extensive impairments to cognitive development. The majority of children with PMLD are taught in special schools where specialist interventions are deployed to help PMLD children progress through the preverbal stages of development. Despite…

The aim of this study was to develop a coding scheme that enables researchers and practitioners to conduct a detailed analysis of the communicative behavior of young children with significant cognitive and motor developmental delays. Currently, there is a paucity of methods to do conduct such an analysis. For the study, video observations of three…

Background: Peers living in the same group form important interaction partners for people with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities (PIMD). Given the severity of their disabilities, direct support persons (DSPs) play a significant role in facilitating interactions between these peers. This study explores the spontaneous interactions…

Background: New technologies could broaden activities for people with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities (PIMD). This study compared watching television with a newly-developed interactive ball. Method: The ball responded with sounds, lights, and wiggling to the player's voice and movements. Five control sessions (watching television)…

This paper discusses possibilities of designing ethical research practice in relation to people with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities (PIMD). We will argue that in the case of this group of people, research ethics is about ethically justifiable research aims, design, methods, and practices that are based on the recognition of their…

Interaction between two people may be construed as a continuous process of perception and action within the dyad. A theoretical framework is proposed in this article that explains the concepts and processes which comprise the interaction process. The article explores the transactional nature of interaction, through analysis of narrative data from…

Background: Intensive Interaction is an approach used for communicating with people with profound and multiple intellectual disabilities [PMID] or autism. It has gained increased recognition as a helpful technique, but the evidence has not been systematically reviewed. Method: Computerized and hand searches of the literature were conducted using…

Background: People with severe and profound intellectual disability typically demonstrate a limited ability to communicate effectively. Most of their communications are non-verbal, often idiosyncratic and ambiguous. This article aims to identify the process that regulates communications of this group of people with others and to describe the…

Background: The aim of this descriptive single case study was to describe a unique interaction with a person with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities (PIMD) in a holistic way--focusing on the client, the staff member, and the interacting dyad--and to include the experiential knowledge of the interaction partner. Method: A videotaped…