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28. september 2023
Emotional competence refers to a set of cognitive, behavioral, and regulatory skills centered around emotions. These skills empower children to navigate the complexities of a changing environment. Effective communication plays a pivotal role in understanding, expressing, and effectively managing emotions in a healthy manner.
This webinar serves as an introduction to a tool called the Early Development of Emotional Competence (EDEC), which employs a semi-structured interview format. Through the EDEC, detailed case histories are gathered, shedding light on how families and professionals engage in conversations about emotions, particularly when dealing with children facing communicative challenges.
The EDEC involves a comprehensive interview conducted by professionals involving the child's family and may include other service experts. Its primary objective is to enhance understanding regarding the interplay between language and emotional competence. Moreover, this process assists professionals in crafting precise interventions for children and families dependent on AAC. In addition, the EDEC has undergone pilot testing across various cultural backgrounds.
This webinar session will emphasize the significance of emotional skills among AAC users. Additionally, it will offer insights into the practical application of the EDEC, showcasing its potential to guide interventions geared towards fostering open dialogues about emotions.
Author details:
Krista Wilkinson, PhD
Affiliation: The Pennsylvania State University
Contact Details: kmw22@psu.edu
Krista Wilkinson is a distinguished professor at the Pennsylvania State University. Dr. Wilkinson’s current research applies the tools of cognitive science and neuroscience to understand visual and cognitive processing of individuals with severe disabilities, to optimize visual augmentative and alternative communication interventions used to support their communication functioning.
Gabriela A. Rangel-Rodríguez, PhD
Affiliation: Autonomous University of Barcelona
Contact Details: gabriela.rangelr@gmail.com
Gabriela A. Rangel has more than 15 years of experience in clinical practice with individuals with complex communication needs (CCN) and their context (family, school, peers), providing support in the socio-emotional, mental, and behavioral areas. Her current research focuses on the socio-emotional development of individuals with CCN who benefit from AAC. She participated in the creation of the Early Development of Emotional Competence (EDEC) tool and translated it into the Spanish version.
Karla Armendariz
Affiliation: The Pennsylvania State University
Contact details: kpa5178@psu.edu
Karla Armendariz is certified speech-language pathologist and a doctoral candidate at the Pennsylvania State University. Karla's research interests include improving augmentative and alternative communication interventions for culturally linguistically diverse populations.