A 30-Year Journey From Skepticism to Acceptance: Reconsidering the Authenticity of Assisted Communication of Nonspeakers

• By: Barry M. Prizant, PhD, CCC-SLP College of Health Sciences, University of Rhode Island
• July 9th, 2026
• assisted communication, autism research, communication supports, facilitated communication, motor planning challenges, neurodiversity, nonspeaking autism, spelling to communicate, Summer 2026 Issue
• 7    0

My introduction to assisted communication (AC) for nonspeaking and minimally speaking individuals was in reference to facilitated communication (FC). During July of 1991 at the Autism Society of America's annual conference, I was asked to participate on a panel that was hastily organized to have an...

The Evolution of Training for Facilitated Communication

• By: Pascal Cheng, MEd Communication Consultant
• July 9th, 2026
• augmentative communication, autism research, communication support, facilitated communication, facilitated communication training, nonspeaking individuals, Summer 2026 Issue
• 8    0

I first learned about facilitated communication (FC) in 1991 when a colleague shared with me Professor Douglas Biklen's 1990 article in the Harvard Educational Review, “Communication Unbound: Autism and Praxis.” This article was a qualitative research study on the method based on his...

Opening the Door: Psychotherapy With Nonspeaking or Unreliably Speaking Autistic Young Adults

• By: Judith Croen, LCSW Psychotherapist
• July 9th, 2026
• communication methods, facilitated communication, mental health, nonspeaking autistics, psychotherapy, spelling to communicate, Summer 2026 Issue, therapeutic interventions
• 6    0

This article is about providing psychotherapy services to nonspeaking or unreliably speaking autistic young adults. Going forward the terms "communicators," "typers," or "spellers" are used interchangeably to describe this group. My hope is to encourage parents, professionals, and the wider...