MULTI-SENSORY EXPRESSION AS A WAY OF COMMUNICATION FOR PEOPLE WITH PROFOUND AND MULTIPLE LEARNING DISABILITIES

Zuzana Fábry Lucká
Dr.  Faculty of Education, Comenius University, Bratislava, SLOVAKIA, zuzana.lucka@gmail.com

Abstract

The article presents the results of a research study conducted with people with profound and multiple learning disabilities (PMLD) in relation to the specifics of their communication. The study was conducted in the years 2016-2017 in Slovakia. Respondents in a research sample had a combination of intellectual, physical and sensory impairment. The research was carried out by a mixed-methods approach consisting of a qualitative and a quantitative phase in an Snoezelen therapy environment, in specially designed rooms with a typical colour scheme – a white room, a dark room, and a playroom. The first phase of the research was focused on the analysis of the use of the multisensory environment for a group of people with PMLD receiving residential care in the social services facilities. The article describes the second phase of the research aimed at the qualitative exploration of the communication aspects of people with PMLD and the possibilities of their support. Extraction of effective communication factors was accomplished through qualitative methodology from observations of people with PMLD interacting with professionals in multi-sensory rooms. The presented results are focused on the area of communication competences in the prepared environment using alternative and augmentative forms of communication. Communication has proved to be one of the main problems affecting the integrity and autonomy of a person with PMLD. It is closely related to the overall quality of life and the creation of social relationships and links to the social network. The findings are important for accurate and effective use of Snoezelen therapy environment in practice.  The paper is a partial outcome of the project VEGA 1/0598/17 Evaluation of The Effective Factors of Multisensory Approaches in Therapeutic Education.

Keywords: expression, people with severe combined disabilities, Snoezelen therapy, communication