Aided AAC Systems Among Individuals with Hearing Loss and Disabilities

The purpose of this paper was to review intervention studies regarding the use of aided augmentative and alternative communication devices among individuals with hearing loss and one or more additional disabilities. Fourteen experimentally-designed research studies, comprising of 32 participants total were identified and summarized in terms of: (a) participant characteristics; (b) trainer/teacher characteristics; (c) setting characteristics; (d) the AAC device implemented; (e) AAC selection methods; (f) instructional methods employed; and (g) results. Most participants were teen-aged or young adults with multiple and severe disabilities. While the AAC devices represented varied, most were relatively simplistic. Furthermore, a lack of systematic methods for matching AAC devices to the user's needs was identified. Implications for clinical practice and future research are discussed.