Book Review: The Multisensory Handbook: A Guide for Children and Adults with Sensory Learning Disabilities

The Multisensory Handbook: A Guide for Children and Adults with Sensory Learning Disabilities. Paul Pagliano. Abingdon, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom: Routledge, 2012, 176 pp., $47.95. The Multisensory Handbook: A Guide for Children and Adults with Sensory Learning Disabilities, by Paul Pagliano, of James Cook University, Australia, is a well-conceived book that examines sensory functioning in people with multiple disabilities from a strong theoretical point of view. The book will broaden the reader's knowledge of sensory systems and processes, and it provides a theoretical basis for the current understanding of sensory impairments, learning, and processing. Many practitioners in the various fields and professions that work with people with sensory impairments and multiple disabilities are trained in a clinical manner that lacks a broader philosophical and theoretical base for their practice. The real strength of this book is that it provides just such a theoretical base, from multiple points of view: medical and psychological, social and constructivist. This approach should allow readers to develop ideas and concepts that can provide insight into sensory functioning and improvement. The book is written by a practitioner whose significant experience in and dedication to the field of sensory impairments and its population is evident in his use of anecdotes and personal experiences. This passion, when combined with his engaging style of writing, makes the book, most notably the theoretical section (Part 1), accessible, readable, and understandable. ORGANIZATION Each chapter is organized in the same manner, starting with reviews of previous ideas and then providing repeated explanations of theories that are tied into the main ideas of the chapter. This order supports the reader in building a coherent understanding of the theories presented in the book and how they relate to sensory functioning. The book has 12 chapters, and it is divided into two parts. Part 1 includes a theoretical discussion, and Part 2 presents practical applications. The theoretical discussion is the strength of the book; it is broad and comprehensive and will help a range of practitioners to think more deeply about sensory functioning and increase the perspectives from which they are able to view this critical area of practice. Although the application section has interesting points and information that could be useful to practitioners, the content does not clearly relate to Part 1, and the general open-ended approach does not consider the state-of-the-art of assessment of sensory functioning. As a result, most practitioners in the field of visual impairment and blindness would have difficulty integrating it into their practice. THEORY The theoretical section addresses the sensory systems and theories of learning from both medical and psychological perspectives. It presents the argument that multisensory stimulation is better for learning, as it increases perception through an approach that is logical in its progression, natural in being situated in meaningful activities and routines, and optimistic in believing that all individuals can make progress. Multisensory stimulation may not always benefit all populations, however--children with cortical visual impairment, for example, can at times require isolation when working on vision exercises. How sensory systems operate, how they relate, how they develop, and the effects of sensory impairments are all clearly explained from a medical perspective that closely consider concepts such as neuroplasticity. How the senses perceive information, what the different types of perception are, and how this information is then processed is described in a readable fashion followed by a well-articulated justification of why this information matters. From the psychological perspective, the author makes a cogent argument in support of the importance of affective, social, and interactional development and its importance in sensory processing and how this relates to learning. …