Related Experiment Video
Updated: Sep 7, 2025

Involving Individuals with Developmental Language Disorder and Their Parents/Carers in Research Priority Setting
Published on: June 6, 2020
Meaningful moments of interaction with people with profound intellectual disabilities: Reflections from direct
Wieneke Penninga1,2, Sara L P Nijs1, Hedwig J A van Bakel1
1Tranzo, Tilburg School of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Tilburg University, Tilburg, The Netherlands.
Background:
High-quality, affective relationships are built on meaningful moments of interaction, which are challenging for support staff to establish with people with profound intellectual disabilities. Therefore, we explored what makes a moment of interaction meaningful to support staff and what circumstances facilitate meaningful moments of interaction taking place.
Method:
Five direct support staff took part in unstructured, in-depth interviews. The interviews were analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA). Member checks were also conducted.
Results:
Support staff experienced moments of interaction as meaningful because they felt a connection with a person with profound intellectual disabilities and/or they had the feeling of being meaningful for this person. Staff-related and contextual circumstances facilitating meaningful moments of interaction to take place were described.
Conclusions:
Meaningful moments of interaction are highly valued by support staff, who believe these moments are valued by persons with profound intellectual disabilities as well. Implications for daily practice are described.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Intellectual Disability
Learning Disabilities
Dyslexia
Dyslexia is a...
Techniques of therapeutic communication I: Active Listening, Sharing Observations, Validation, and Using Touch
Therapeutic communication is not the same as social interaction. Social interaction has no goal or purpose and consists of casual information sharing, whereas therapeutic communication has a plan or purpose for the conversation. Therapeutic...
Community Based Intervention
Foundations of Community Mental Health Programs
Central to the success of community-based interventions is the...
Autism Spectrum Disorder
These core symptoms manifest differently among individuals, ranging from mild to severe. The disorder's complexity extends beyond its clinical presentation, encompassing a diverse range of biological, cognitive, and sociocultural influences.
Interdisciplinary Care: The Health Care Team-I
Physicians
The physician's primary responsibility is to diagnose illness and direct the medical or surgical treatment of the condition. The authority to admit patients to a healthcare agency or institution and practice care within that setting is granted to physicians by the healthcare agency or institution...

