Understanding Facilitator Interventions in the Swedish Service “Taltjänst”

The Swedish Communication Facilitation Service “Taltjänst” provides support to people with communication disorders, commonly caused by neurological disabilities, and their conversation partners. This study aims to investigate interaction within ”Taltjänst”, focusing on facilitator interventions by exploring; 1) When do facilitators intervene? 2) When do the primary conversation participants manage the conversation without facilitator support? Multimodal interaction/ Conversation analytical methods were used to analyse two phone calls involving a facilitator and clients with communication disorders. One client had congenital dysarthria, while the other had acquired aphasia, allowing for comparison of the interactional challenges faced by the facilitator when addressing different disorders. The analyses revealed that; 1) facilitators are commonly invited to intervene by their client’s eye gaze, and 2) there is a routine of intervening after every non-interrupted turn of the client with dysarthria, while the intervention pattern for the client with aphasia is more varied. These findings provide insights into the work of communication facilitators, and anyone supporting phone calls involving participants with a communication disorders. Furthermore, an increased understanding of interactional practices can contribute to the development of this essential, yet underexplored service.