Attitudes of parents of children with communication disorders toward augmentative and alternative communication

Abstract

Roditeljski stavovi imaju ključnu ulogu u uspešnoj primeni augmentativne i alterna tivne komunikacije (Augmentative and Alternative Communication – AAC) kod dece sa poremećajima komunikacije. Cilj istraživanja je bio da se utvrde stavovi roditelja prema AAC, njihova informisanost, spremnost za primenu, prepreke u korišćenju AAC, kao i emocionalni i društveni faktori koji utiču na percepciju i upotrebu AAC. U istraživanju je učestvovalo 50 roditelja dece sa poremećajima komunikacije. Korišćena je posebno konstruisana skala stavova. Analiza rezultata je pokazala da roditelji imaju umereno pozitivan stav prema AAC (M = 3.83, SD = 0.76). Utvrđeno je da ispitanici imaju umeren nivo informisanosti i svesti o AAC metodama, kao i da postoji potreba za dodatnom edukacijom. Takođe, pokazano je da je nedostatak vremena za obuku bio najizraženija barijera za primenu AAC. Roditelji devojčica su imali pozitivnije stavove prema AAC u poređenju sa roditeljima dečaka, dok su roditelji dece sa autizmom percipirali više barijera u odnosu na roditelje dece sa drugim dijagnozama. Rezultati istraživanja ukazuju na potrebu za dodatnom edukacijom roditelja i boljom sistemskom podrškom kako bi se olakšala implementacija AAC. Dalja istraživanja bi trebalo da ispitaju uticaj drugih faktora na stavove roditelja prema AAS, kao i spremnost za korišćenje iste.Parents’ attitudes play a key role in the successful application of Augmentative and Alterna tive Communication (AAC) in children with communication disorders. The aim of the research was to examine parents’ attitudes about AAC, as well as their level of awareness, readiness for implemen tation, barriers to using AAC, as well as emotional and social factors that influence the perception and use of AAC. 50 parents of children with communication disorders participated in the research. A specially constructed attitude scale was used. Analysis of the results showed that parents have a moderately posi tive attitude towards AAC (M = 3.83, SD = 0.76). It was determined that the respondents have a moderate level of information and awareness about AAC methods, as well as that there is a need for additional education. It was also shown that lack of time for training was the most pronounced barriers to the im plementation of AAC. Parents of girls had more positive attitudes towards AAC compared to parents of boys, while parents of children with autism perceived more barriers compared to parents of children with other diagnoses. Research results point to the need for additional parent education and better systemic support to facilitate the implementation of AAC. Further research should examine the influence of other factors on parents’ attitudes and willingness to use AAC