The communication difficulties often experienced by people with dementia mean that a wide range of staff in different settings, as well as family and friends, may wish to find ways to communicate more effectively with people with dementia. 'Talking Mats' is a low-technology communication framework that was developed at the University of Stirling to help people with communication difficulties to express their views. It uses a simple system of picture symbols and a textured mat that allow people to indicate their feelings about various options within a topic by placing the relevant image below a visual scale. The project compared how well people at different stages of dementia could express their views about four aspects of their well-being (activities, people, environment and self) in three types of conversation.