One Does Not Simply 'Mm-hmm': Exploring Backchanneling in the AAC Micro-Culture

TL;DR

This paper investigates how AAC users develop unique backchanneling practices, highlighting the cultural and technological adaptations necessary for effective communication among users with speech impairments.

Contribution

It offers new insights into backchanneling in AAC contexts, emphasizing micro-cultural practices and proposing design recommendations for improved multimodal backchanneling.

Findings

AAC users develop unique backchanneling channels

Backchanneling behaviors differ between AAC-AAC and AAC-non-AAC pairs

Design recommendations for multimodal backchanneling in AAC systems

Abstract

Backchanneling (e.g., "uh-huh", "hmm", a simple nod) encompasses a big part of everyday communication; it is how we negotiate the turn to speak, it signals our engagement, and shapes the flow of our conversations. For people with speech and motor impairments, backchanneling is limited to a reduced set of modalities, and their Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) technology requires visual attention, making it harder to observe non-verbal cues of conversation partners. We explore how users of AAC technology approach backchanneling and create their own unique channels and communication culture. We conducted a workshop with 4 AAC users to understand the unique characteristics of backchanneling in AAC. We explored how backchanneling changes when pairs of AAC users communicate vs when an AAC user communicates with a non-AAC user. We contextualize these findings through four in-depth interviews with speech-language pathologists (SLPs). We conclude with a discussion about backchanneling as a micro-cultural practice, rethinking embodiment and mediation in AAC technology, and providing design recommendations for timely multi-modal backchanneling while respecting different communication cultures.