Building Family Capacity: supporting multiple family members to implement aided Language modeling.
Sarah N Douglas, Hedda Meadan, Elizabeth E Biggs and 2 others
PMID 35437675WHAT IT FOUND
In one family, training the mother to coach five relatives in aided language modeling increased their use of the child's speech-generating device.
The child's independent device use rose modestly, though she still preferred signing. This shows a possible method, not proven efficacy.
Key findings
01The intervention demonstrated a functional relation between training and coaching and family members' implementation of aided language modeling.
02Amber increased her proportion of independent speech-generating device use, but continued to use sign language as her primary mode of communication.
03Family participants reported the intervention was socially valid and helped them communicate better with Amber.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study involved only one family, so results cannot be generalized to other families or children. The child's communication outcomes were secondary to the family members' implementation of the strategy. Generalization of the ALM strategy to other activities or settings was not evaluated. Maintenance data were limited, with no data collected for one family member and only five sessions for others. The researchers providing the training were not blind to the study purpose, which may have influenced implementation or interpretation. The family was White and had specific resources, so the model may not be feasible or acceptable for families from diverse cultural, linguistic, or socio-economic backgrounds.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that this intervention reliably improves a child's functional communication. The child's independent device use increased modestly, but she continued to use sign language as her primary mode, and the child's outcomes were secondary to the family's implementation of the strategy.