Systematic review of interventions involving aided AAC modeling for children with complex communication needs

Building the communicative competence of individuals who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) requires intervention and support. This systematic review examined experimental studies involving aided AAC modeling to promote the expressive communication of children and youth (i.e., birth to age 21) with complex communication needs. A search yielded 48 studies involving 267 participants. Interventions were categorized according to three different approaches to aided AAC modeling-augmented input, models as prompts, and models within instructional demonstrations. Although the procedures varied, interventions were generally effective at improving diverse measures of expressive communication. This review provides insight for both researchers and practitioners by describing interventions involving three distinct approaches to aided AAC modeling, highlighting areas needing future research, and offering implications for practice.