Intensive Interaction in Context

Initially called ‘augmented mothering’, intensive interaction was pioneered by a clinical psychologi s t (Ephraim, 1982) working in an institutional setting. Interest spread to a nearby school at Harperbury Hospital (Nind & Hewe t t , 1 9 8 8 ) . Here the applicat i o n of programmes for teaching discrimination and selfhelp skills and reduction of problem behaviour were not making an impact, and staff were concerned to find alternative ways to meet fundamental learning needs. Intensive interaction became the term that stuck for the new approach (Nind & Hewett, 1994) with the most recent definition being ‘the specific interactive approach... to facilitating the development of social and communication abilities in people with SLD based on the model of caregiverinfant interaction’ (Nind & Hewett, 2001 pvi).