The effectiveness of the Talking Mats framework in helping people with dementia to express their views on well-being

Abstract

Deteriorating communication is one of the most distressing aspects of dementia and it becomes increasingly difficult to ensure that the person’s views are heard. This study involved 31 people at different stages of dementia who were each interviewed about their well-being using Talking Mats, a low-tech communication framework, and usual communication methods. The communication effectiveness of each method was compared. This study found that the Talking Mats framework was associated with better communication at all stages of dementia compared to usual communication methods. Better communication effectiveness was evident in the participants’ understanding, engagement, keeping on-track and ability to make their views understood. There was also less repetitive behaviour and less distractibility when using the Talking Mats framework. The findings suggest that the Talking Mats framework can play an important role in improving communication by providing an accessible, low cost tool which family and staff can use with people with dementia to help them express their views.