Date
7-2019
Department
School of Education
Degree
Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership (EdD)
Chair
Michelle Barthlow
Keywords
Speech-language Pathologist, Augmentative and Alternative Communication, Transdisciplinary Teamwork, AAC Assessment, Mobile Technology, Complex Communication Needs
Disciplines
Communication Sciences and Disorders | Rehabilitation and Therapy
Recommended Citation
Mansfield, Laura Jeanne, "The Quality of Transdisciplinary Team Assessment Practices for Mobile Technology as Augmentative and Alternative Communication" (2019). Doctoral Dissertations and Projects. 2141.
https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/2141
Abstract
While research acknowledges the impact the rapid growth in mobile technology is having on the field of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), little has been done to investigate the impact this development has had on assessment practices for matching an individual with the appropriate technology. The purpose of this descriptive and causal-comparative research study was to gather demographic and descriptive data on mobile technology as AAC and to investigate the quality of transdisciplinary teamwork assessment practices as evaluated by speech-language pathologists (SLPs) for the provision of mobile technologies as AAC devices across SLP practice settings. A random sample of 60 SLPs in each of the three practice settings of education, health care, and private practice completed a survey containing demographic questions and the Team Decision Making Questionnaire (TDMQ). Proposed data analysis consisted of descriptive statistics and an ANOVA. Due to a violation of homogeneity, a Welch’s ANOVA was conducted with post hoc testing. A statistically significant difference between SLP ratings of the quality of transdisciplinary assessment practices for mobile technology as AAC was discovered between education and health care settings as well as between education and private practice settings. This difference was significant across all subscales of the TDMQ as well. There was no statistically significant difference found in quality ratings between health care and private practice settings. Descriptive analysis revealed additional areas of differences across practice settings in the provision of mobile technology as AAC. Limitations of this study were identified and further research recommendations were made.
