Putting words into their mouths? Interviewing people with learning disabilities and little/no speech.

People with learning disabilities who are unable to speak are often excluded from research. Techniques to support interviewing, such as Talking Mats, can help to improve the quality of research in which such people could not otherwise participate. Talking Mats, in common with many techniques which augment communication, relies on someone else selecting the vocabulary to be made available. This paper outlines the Talking Mats framework, and discusses various methods of vocabulary selection. In particular it reports on empirical work with two effective communication aid users, who were invited to advise on vocabulary. It is proposed that many of the difficulties of research involving people with limited communication, can be ameliorated by viewing the process of accessing their views not as a one off event, but as an ongoing process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]