The Journal of Interactional Research in Communication Disorders provides a unique forum for qualitative research relating to the ways differences and disorders impact lived experiences, communication, and interaction. Differences encompass studies of people who have communication differences or interact in neurodivergent ways as a fundamental part of identity. The disorders include in principle any, e.g., speech and language, communicative, visual, physical, cognitive, and mental disorders.

The journal publishes wide-ranging, well-formulated clinical and non-clinical studies employing a range of qualitative methods. The emphasis is on the areas of communication and socialization, but this is seen as encompassing both verbal and non-verbal semiotic systems as well as issues of social roles, interactional dynamics, and the lived impact of communication differences and disorders. The journal accepts original research articles and review articles related to the above areas. Cross-disciplinary work that relates to how differences and disorders impact communication in real-world contexts, along with the clinical or theoretical implications of this work, is encouraged.