Resources to Support Conversation for People with Aphasia
Martina Mellana, Federica Randone, Rossella Muò
Aphasia reduces participation in conversations. Resources to support conversation for people with aphasia (PWA) and other communication disorders are currently available for English speaking countries. However, a preliminary web search showed that few resources had been created for the Italian population. The study aims to highlight topics of interest for PWA and aphasia-friendly design characteristics in order to produce accessible resources to support conversation for PWA. Two different bibliographic searches were conducted on topics and graphic features. Results guided the design of two booklets. Two resources were produced: one focused on stroke and aphasia, the second on hobbies and interests. Both share the same design characteristics, although differences for specific elements which were more related to the content were introduced. Our aim was to guarantee resource distribution for both speech and language pathologists in rehabilitation contexts and for PWA’s significant others. Future development of the project will include resource experimentation and the creation of new materials on other meaningful topics.
Keywords
Aphasia, Social participation, Social inclusion, Supported conversation, Aphasia-friendly resources.
