Augmentative and Alternative Communication Assessment

Augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) assessment is the structured process for determining how a person with complex communication needs can best communicate when natural speech is insufficient. Rather than testing for a diagnosis, it follows a participation-oriented, feature-matching logic: the clinician profiles the individual's communication abilities and access capacities, identifies the activities and roles the person wants to take part in, and then matches those needs to the features of AAC systems — the symbol set, access method, vocabulary organization, and output. The approach is grounded in the participation model, which frames the goal as enabling participation in valued life activities rather than remediating an impairment, a stance that aligns closely with the World Health Organization's International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health and its distinction between body functions, activities, and participation in context. By assessing the person, their environment, and their goals together and then matching to system features, AAC assessment aims to find a communication solution that fits the whole person and is then evaluated and adjusted over time.