“Communication is the essence of human life”: reflections on communicative competence

Abstract

AbstractCommunicative competence allows individuals to attain their communication goals and to realize the very essence of their humanity. Hence, the development of communicative competence has been identified as the central goal of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) intervention. This lecture explores the nature of communicative competence for individuals who use AAC. It considers issues in identifying appropriate goals for intervention and discusses strategies for building communicative competence with individuals who use AAC.Keywordsaugmentative and alternative communication (AAC) communication competence consumers facilitators illustrative cases interaction intervention