Different work approaches are used around the world to treat people with sensory integration disorder. The master's thesis deals with two methods of sensory integration in connection with the motivation to achieve the set objectives, namely sensory integration according to dr. Ayres and snoezelen. With the help of a questionnaire, I researched the opinions of 23 professional workers from all over Slovenia who had attended a seminar on sensory integration within the last four years. I was interested in how the change in motivation to achieve the set objectives is reflected in the users themselves and how the use of the sensory integration approach and the snoezelen approach affects the motivation of sensory stimulation providers. In parallel, I conducted five semi-structured focus interviews with people working in the field of sensory integration with different target groups: people with accidental brain injury, children and adolescents with intellectual disabilities and autism spectrum disorders, the elderly with dementia and children with emotional and behavioural disorders. The purpose of the empirical research was to examine what the interviewees think about how and to what extent treatment based on the sensory integration approach and on the snoezelen approach has an impact on increasing the motivation of users and providers to achieve the set objectives.
The results of the empirical research show that most professional workers have positive experience with sensory integration methods, especially in achieving relaxation and calmness. Professionals workers in the research most often work with people with emotional and behavioural disorders, people with attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder, people with autism spectrum disorders, people with reduced mobility and with people with intellectual disabilities. Professionals workers emphasize the individual approach and self-initiative, both in the education on sensory integration and in the creation of tools for the implementation of sensory activities, as they report expensive equipment as a disadvantage of work in the field of sensory integration. Most also notice that they do not have enough time to use sensory integration methods, so they work with users less often, but then more intensively. The treatment lasts from ten minutes for intensive therapy to two hours if it is a matter of relaxation or even falling asleep. Objectives in the field of sensory integration are most often set by professional workers alone or together with the user. According to professional workers, the use of new tools and effects helps to increase the motivation of users to work on the set objectives. The work motivation of the participants in the research is positively influenced by teamwork and interdisciplinarity in the treatment of individuals with the help of sensory integration.
To professionals working in the field of sensory integration, the results will present strategies that they can use to increase the motivation of users to achieve the set objectives and may be a key contributor to their more successful functioning.
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