bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A Within-Subject Comparison of Adult Patients Using the Nucleus F0F1F2 and F0F1F2B3B4B5 Speech Processing Strategies
Authors: Parkinson Aaron J. , Tyler Richard S. , Woodworth George G. , Lowder Mary W. , Gantz Bruce J.
Published: July 2014

This study compares the Nucleus F0F1F2 and F0F1F2B3B4B5 (also known as “Multipeak” or “Mpeak”) processing schemes in 17 patients wearing the Mini Speech Processor. All patients had at least 18 months implant experience using the F0F1F2 processing strategy. For this study, they were switched to the F0F1F2B3B4B5 processing strategy for 3 months. They then returned to using the F0F1F2 strategy for 3 months, then used the F0F1F2B3B4B5 strategy again for 3 months, and lastly used the F0F1F2 strategy for 3 months. Performance was evaluated with both schemes after each interval, using speech recognition tests and subjective ratings. Overall, differences between the results for the two processing schemes were not large. Average performance was somewhat better for the F0F1F2B3B4B5 strategy for word and sentence identification, but not for any of the other speech measures. Superior performance was observed in 8 patients with the F0F1F2B3B4B5 strategy. However, 6 of the 8 individuals were significantly better on only one of the six speech measures in the test battery. The other 2 patients performed better on two of the speech measures. Superior performance was also observed in 3 patients with the F0F1F2 strategy for consonant recognition. For the remaining patients, there was little difference in their performance with the two strategies. Information transmission analyses indicated that the F0F1F2B3B4B5 strategy transmitted consonant duration and frication cues more efficiently than F0F1F2. Experience with one strategy appeared to benefit performance with the other strategy.
Electrically Evoked Whole Nerve Action Potentials in Ineraid Cochlear Implant Users: Responses to Different Stimulating Electrode Configurations and Comparison to Psychophysical Responses
Authors: Brown Carolyn J. , Abbas Paul J. , Borland James , Bertschy Michael R.
Published: July 2014

Electrically evoked whole nerve action potentials (EAP) have been recorded from 20 Ineraid cochlear implant users in response to bipolar and/or monopolar electrical stimulation of the cochlea. EAP growth functions and refractory recovery functions were obtained for a variety of different stimulating conditions. Where possible, parallel psychophysical experiments were conducted that measured the just detectable increment in stimulus current level (JND), forward-masking functions, and detection thresholds for a range of different stimuli. Variations in EAP threshold, slope of the EAP growth function, and the rate of recovery of the EAP from the refractory state were observed both across subjects for a given place and by mode of stimulation (bipolar versus monopolar), as well as across electrodes within a subject. A poor correlation between slope of the EAP growth functions and current JNDs was obtained. However, good correlations were observed between EAP threshold and psychophysical detection threshold and between the EAP refractory recovery functions and the psychophysical forward-masking functions. Our interpretation of these findings is that these particular physiological measures are related to the excitability of the auditory nerve to electrical stimulation and further that these measures are related to performance of cochlear implant patients on listening tasks. Consequently, such information may prove to be useful in adjusting the stimulation parameters of the cochlear implant speech processor in order to maximize an individual’s performance with the device.
Speaking Clearly for the Hard of Hearing IV: Further Studies of the Role of Speaking Rate
Authors: Uchanski Rosalie M. , Choi Sunkyung S. , Braida Louis D. , Reed Charlotte M. , Durlach Nathaniel I.
Published: July 2014

The contribution of reduced speaking rate to the intelligibility of “clear” speech (Picheny, Durlach, & Braida, 1985) was evaluated by adjusting the durations of speech segments (a) via nonuniform signal time-scaling, (b) by deleting and inserting pauses, and (c) by eliciting materials from a professional speaker at a wide range of speaking rates. Key words in clearly spoken nonsense sentences were substantially more intelligible than those spoken conversationally (15 points) when presented in quiet for listeners with sensorineural impairments and when presented in a noise background to listeners with normal hearing. Repeated presentation of conversational materials also improved scores (6 points). However, degradations introduced by segment-by-segment time-scaling rendered this time-scaling technique problematic as a means of converting speaking styles. Scores for key words excised from these materials and presented in isolation generally exhibited the same trends as in sentence contexts. Manipulation of pause structure reduced scores both when additional pauses were introduced into conversational sentences and when pauses were deleted from clear sentences. Key-word scores for materials produced by a professional talker were inversely correlated with speaking rate, but conversational rate scores did not approach those of clear speech for other talkers. In all experiments, listeners with normal hearing exposed to flat-spectrum background noise performed similarly to listeners with hearing loss.
From Planning to Articulation in Speech Production: What Differentiates a Person Who Stutters From a Person Who Does Not Stutter?
Authors: van Lieshout Pascal H. H. M. , Hulstijn Wouter , Peters Herman F. M.
Published: July 2014

The main purpose of the present study was to differentiate between people who stutter and control speakers regarding their ability to assemble motor plans and to prepare (and execute) muscle commands. Adult males who stutter, matched for age, gender, and educational level with a group of control speakers, were tested on naming words and symbols. In addition, their ability to encode and retrieve memory representations of combinations of a symbol and a word, was tested in a recognition task, using manual reaction times and sensitivity scores, as defined in signal detection theory, as performance measures. Group differences in muscle command preparation were assessed from electromyographic recordings of upper lip and lower lip. Results indicated no interaction between group and word size effects in choice reaction times or a group effect in the ability to recognize previously learned symbol-word combinations. However, they were significantly different in the timing of peak amplitudes in the integrated electromyographic signals of upper lip and lower lip (IEMG peak latency). Findings question the claim that people who stutter have problems in creating abstract motor plans for speech. In addition, it is argued that the group differences in IEMG peak latency that were found in the present study might be better understood in terms of motor control strategies than in terms of motor control deficits.
Voice Onset Time in Speech Produced During Simultaneous Communication
Authors: Schiavetti Nicholas , Whitehead Robert L. , Metz Dale Evan , Whitehead Brenda , Mignerey Megan
Published: July 2014

This study investigated speaking rate and voice onset time (VOT) in speech produced during simultaneous communication (SC) by speakers with normal hearing. Stimulus words initiated with voiced and voiceless plosives were embedded in a sentence that was spoken and produced with SC. VOT measures were calculated from acoustic recordings and results indicated significant differences between speech-only and SC conditions, with speech produced during SC demonstrating both slower speaking rate and increased VOT of voiceless consonants. VOTs produced during both SC and speech-only conditions followed English voicing rules and varied appropriately with place of articulation. The somewhat enlarged voicing contrast during SC was consistent with previous findings regarding the influence of rate changes on the temporal fine structure of speech (Miller, 1987) and was similar to the voicing contrast results reported for clear speech by Picheny, Durlach, and Braida (1986).
Speech Timing in Apraxia of Speech Versus Conduction Aphasia
Authors: Seddoh Samuel A. K. , Robin Donald A. , Sim Hyun-Sub , Hageman Carlin , Moon Jerald B. , Folkins John W.
Published: July 2014

This study examined temporal parameters of speech in subjects with apraxia of speech, conduction aphasia, and normal speech. They were asked to repeat target words in a carrier phrase 10 times. Acoustic analyses involved measurement of stop gap duration, voice onset time, vowel nucleus duration, and consonant-vowel (CV) duration. Speakers with apraxia of speech had longer and more variable stop gap, vowel, and CV durations than did subjects with aphasia or normal speech. Speakers with conduction aphasia had longer vowel durations and CV durations than subjects with normal speech. Also, subjects with apraxia of speech showed greater token-to-token variability than the other subject groups. The variability shown by subjects with apraxia of speech was significantly correlated with perceptual judgments of their speech. The significance of these results is discussed in the context of motoric and phonological explanations for apraxia of speech and conduction aphasia.
Learnability Constraints on Deaf Learners' Acquisition of English
Wh
-Questions
Authors: Berent Gerald P.
Published: July 2014

This article explores deaf college students’ knowledge of English
wh
-question formation in the context of government-binding theory and an associated learnability theory. The parameters of universal grammar (UG) that are relevant to
wh
-question formation are identified, and predictions are made regarding the learning of the English values of these parameters in accordance with the subset principle, which, it has been proposed, guides the acquisition of UG parameter values that define languages ordered as proper subsets. The results of two learnability tasks revealed that, despite years of exposure to English language input, many deaf learners have not internalized the positive evidence required to set the marked values of the
wh
-question parameters. This finding provides strong empirical support for the subset principle. Theoretical and educational implications are discussed.
SLI Subgroups: Interaction Between Discourse Constraints and Morphosyntactic Deficits
Authors: Evans Julia L.
Published: July 2014

A performance-based model was employed to investigate the impact of discourse demands on the pattern of morphosyntactic deficits exhibited by children with Specific Language Impairments (SLI). The pattern of grammatical errors varied with respect to discourse demands for children with good receptive language abilities but remained stable and independent of changes in discourse demands for children with both expressive and receptive deficits. These findings suggest distinct deficit profiles for subgroups of children with SLI differing in receptive language abilities that are not evident when syntactic skills are investigated outside the context of ongoing spontaneous discourse.
Chromosomal Translocation in a Child With SLI and Apraxia
Authors: Weistuch Lucille , Schiff-Myers Naomi B.
Published: July 2014

A case study is presented of a 5-year-old boy who was classified as preschool handicapped and was assessed as having a specific expressive language impairment with verbal apraxia. Chromosomal studies revealed a de novo (new) balanced translocation between first and second chromosomes. Results of the neurological, speech/language, cognitive, and play evaluations revealed a child with a severe expressive speech-language deficit but good nonverbal cognitive and communicative skills. The hypothesis of a relationship between a chromosomal translocation and speech/language disorders is explored.
Effects of Imitative and Conversational Recasting Treatment on the Acquisition of Grammar in Children With Specific Language Impairment and Younger Language-Normal Children
Authors: Nelson Keith E. , Camarata Stephen M. , Welsh Janet , Butkovsky Laura , Camarata Mary
Published: July 2014

The purpose of the study was to compare the relative effectiveness of imitative treatment and conversational recast treatment in children with language impairment and in a group of children with normal language skills. Language treatment outcomes were compared between a group of older (4.7 to 6.7) specifically-language-impaired (SLI) children and a group of younger (2.2 to 4.2) language-normal (LN) children matched on language levels and on intervention targets. The results indicated: (a) Target acquisition was more rapid under conversational recast treatment for both groups. (b) This outcome held for targets absent initially (in pretreatment sampling and probing) as well as for initially partially mastered targets. (c) SLI children sometimes can learn grammatical structures as efficiently as language-normal children if similar language input is tailored to their specific developmental language levels. Implications of these findings for language treatment strategies with SLI children are discussed. Theoretical models compatible with the data also are considered.
Does Speech Emerge From Earlier Appearing Oral Motor Behaviors?
Authors: Moore Christopher A. , Ruark Jacki L.
Published: July 2014

This investigation was designed to quantify the coordinative organization of mandibular muscles in toddlers during speech and nonspeech behaviors. Seven 15-month-olds were observed during spontaneous production of chewing, sucking, babbling, and speech. Comparison of mandibular coordination across these behaviors revealed that, even for children in the earliest stages of true word production, coordination was quite different from that observed for other behaviors. Production of true words was predominantly characterized by relatively stronger coupling among all mandibular muscles compared with earlier-emerging chewing and sucking. Variegated babbling exhibited stronger coupling than reduplicated babbling, as well as chewing and sucking. The finding of coupled activation among mandibular antagonists during speech paralleled earlier comparisons of adult speech and nonspeech behaviors (Moore, Smith, & Ringel, 1988) and did not support the suggestion that speech coordination emerges from earlier appearing oral motor behaviors.
Effects of Priming on the Naming Accuracy of Preschoolers With Word-Finding Deficits
Authors: McGregor Karla K. , Windsor Jennifer
Published: July 2014

Eight preschoolers with word-finding (WF) deficits and 16 controls with normal word-finding abilities (8 preschoolers and 8 adults) named 40 pictured objects under primed and unprimed conditions. Each picture could be correctly labeled with a simple noun or a compound (e.g.,
cane
or
walking stick
). The primed condition involved semantic primes for both the simple and compound targets as well as a partial lexical prime for the compound targets. All participant groups decreased naming errors when given the primes. Two results indicated that the participants made use of the lexical primes. The first was a shift in form of correct responses from simple nouns in the unprimed condition to compound nouns in the primed condition. The second was an increase in errors that incorporated the lexical prime in the primed condition. There were limits to the benefit that the WF group derived from the primes. First, the primes did not enable the WF group to compensate fully for their naming problems. The gap between the error rates of the WF group and the control groups was not reduced in the primed condition. Second, the quality of errors made by the WF group did not improve in response to primes. Compared to the controls, the WF group made proportionately more errors that indicated no access to the target neighborhood (particularly "I don't know" responses) in the unprimed condition. With primes, the controls further reduced their use of these errors, but the WF group did not. When members of the control groups did make errors, they were more likely than the WF children to produce a word substitution that bore a close semantic, visual, or phonological relation to the target in both unprimed and primed conditions. These limitations on the benefit of priming for participants in the WF group suggest deficiencies in size, elaboration, or organization of their lexicons.
Treatment Efficacy
Authors: Yorkston Kathryn M.
Published: July 2014

The dysarthrias form a group of diverse, chronic motor speech disorders. The disorders of Parkinson's disease, stroke, traumatic brain injury, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and cerebral palsy are reviewed because they represent important clinical diagnoses in which dysarthria is a frequent and debilitating symptom. The roles played by speech-language pathologists include participation in differential diagnosis, provision of speech treatment, staging of treatment, and timely education so that clients and families can make informed decisions about communication alternatives. Both scientific and clinical evidence is presented that suggests that individuals with dysarthria benefit from the services of speech-language pathologists. Group-treatment studies, single-subject studies, and case reports illustrate the effectiveness of various types ofspeech treatment. Research into the effectiveness of augmentative and alternative communication systems for individuals with cerebral palsy is also presented.
Consonant Confusions in Amplitude-Expanded Speech
Authors: Freyman Richard L. , Nerbonne G. Patrick
Published: July 2014

The perceptual consequences of expanding the amplitude variations in speech were studied under conditions in which spectral information was obscured by signal correlated noise that had an envelope correlated with the speech envelope, but had a flat amplitude spectrum. The noise samples, created individually from 22 vowel-consonant-vowel nonsense words, were used as maskers of those words, with signal-to-noise ratios ranging from –15 to 0 dB. Amplitude expansion was by a factor of 3.0 in terms of decibels. In the first experiment, presentation level for speech peaks was 80 dB SPL. Consonant recognition performance for expanded speech by 50 listeners with normal hearing was as much as 30 percentage points poorer than for unexpanded speech and the types of errors were dramatically different, especially in the midrange of S-N ratios. In a second experiment presentation level was varied to determine whether reductions in consonant levels produced by expansion were responsible for the differences between conditions. Recognition performance for unexpanded speech at 40 dB SPL was nearly equivalent to that for expanded speech at 80 dB SPL. The error patterns obtained in these two conditions were different, suggesting that the differences between conditions in Experiment 1 were due largely to expanded amplitude envelopes rather than differences in audibility.
Narrative Development in Late Talkers
Authors: Paul Rhea , Hernandez Rita , Taylor Lisa , Johnson Karen
Published: July 2014

Children with slow expressive language development (SELD) as toddlers and a control group of children with normal language development (NL) were followed to early school age. Children with SELD were, at that point, subdivided into two groups: those who had moved within the normal range of expressive language (the History of Expressive Language Delay [HELD] subgroup); and those who continued to score below the normal range in expressive language at school age (the Expressive Language Delay [ELD] subgroup). During their kindergarten, first, and second grade years, they were administered a narrative generation task. Narratives were analyzed for MLU, lexical diversity, amount of information included, proportion of complete cohesive ties, and overall stage of narrative maturity. In kindergarten, children with normal language history scored significantly higher than those with HELD and ELD on lexical diversity and narrative stage; and higher than those with ELD in proportion of complete cohesive ties. In first grade, children with normal language history again scored significantly higher than those with HELD and ELD on narrative maturity, with no other significant differences. In second grade, there were no significant differences among the groups.
Temporal Resolution in Infancy and Subsequent Language Development
Authors: Trehub Sandra E. , Henderson Joanna L.
Published: July 2014

The MacArthur Communicative Development Inventory, a parent-report measure of vocabulary and syntax, was administered to 103 children (
M
=23 months) who had participated in a study of temporal resolution when they were 6 months (
n
=55) or 12 months (
n
=48) of age. Children who performed above the median on the temporal resolution task in infancy were subsequently reported to have larger productive vocabularies, greater numbers of irregular word forms, and longer and more complex sentences than those who had performed below the median. Whether these findings reflect specific links between temporal resolution and language or whether they reflect general developmental factors remains to be determined.
Signaling of Noncomprehension by Children and Adolescents With Mental Retardation
Authors: Abbeduto Leonard , Short-Meyerson Katherine , Benson Glenis , Dolish Joanna
Published: July 2014

Previous research has demonstrated considerable within-individual and within- group variability in the signaling of noncomprehension by persons with mental retardation. The first purpose of this study was to determine whether within- individual variability in such signaling was related to differences in the nature of the inadequate message and the identity of the speaker. The second purpose was to evaluate the relationship between within-group variability in noncomprehension signaling and measures of cognition, receptive and expressive language ability, speech intelligibility, and social cognition. Participants were school-age individuals with mild mental retardation and typically developing children matched to them on nonverbal MA. Noncomprehension signaling was examined in a direction-following task in which inadequate message type and speaker were manipulated. It was found that message type, but not speaker, influenced noncomprehension signaling, with no difference between the two groups. We also found that performance on a test of receptive language ability was the best predictor of noncomprehension signaling for persons with mental retardation.
Extended High-Frequency Thresholds in Older Adults
Authors: Matthews Lois J. , Lee Fu-Shing , Mills John H. , Dubno Judy R.
Published: July 2014

Most measures of auditory sensitivity at extended high frequencies (frequencies greater than 8 kHz) have been obtained from listeners with normal hearing less than 40 years of age. The purpose of this study was (a) to measure thresholds at frequencies above 8 kHz in older listeners who, as a group, have elevated thresholds at lower frequencies, and (b) to assess test-retest reliability, age and gender effects, and the influence of thresholds below 8 kHz. Extended high-frequency (EHF) thresholds were measured for 162 older listeners (60–79 years) using a commercially available high-frequency audiometer, with a frequency range of 8 to 18 kHz and an intensity range of 0 to 110 dB SPL. Thresholds were measured once at the beginning of a 1- to 2-hour test session and then remeasured at the end of the test session. EHF thresholds of older listeners with normal hearing at conventional audiometric frequencies were substantially higher than the thresholds reported for younger listeners with normal hearing by Dreschler and van der Hulst (1987). EHF thresholds of older listeners with hearing loss at conventional audiometric frequencies were further elevated as compared to older listeners with normal hearing. Differences in EHF thresholds between females and males were either not present or were reduced when gender differences in conventional audiometric thresholds were taken into account. No significant differences were seen in thresholds at 8 kHz and higher between the 60- to 69- and 70- to 79-year-old age groups. Results also indicated that thresholds above 8 kHz can be measured in older listeners within a clinically acceptable ±10 dB test-retest range.
Proverb Explanation Through the Lifespan
Authors: Nippold Marilyn A. , Uhden Linda D. , Schwarz Ilsa E.
Published: July 2014

A proverb explanation task consisting of 24 low-familiarity expressions was administered to 353 individuals ranging in age from 13 through 79 years. Half the proverbs were composed of concrete nouns ("A caged
bird
longs for the
clouds
") and half were composed of abstract nouns ("
Humility
often gains more than
pride
"). The task was designed to examine how patterns of language growth in adults compare to those observed in adolescents. It also served as a tool for examining the "metasemantic hypothesis," the view that complex semantic units, such as proverbs, are learned through active analysis of the words they contain. Performance on the task improved markedly during adolescence and into early adulthood. It reached a plateau during the 20s, remained stable during the 30s, 40s, and 50s, and began a slight decline during the 60s that reached statistical significance during the 70s. Concrete proverbs were easier to explain than abstract proverbs for adolescents and for adults in their 20s, but the two proverb types did not differ for adults in their 30s and older. Thus, the metasemantic hypothesis was supported for adolescents and young adults. For the adults, performance on the proverb explanation task was related to the number of years of formal education they had completed.
Lexicalization in Adults Who Stutter
Authors: Prins David , Main Victoria , Wampler Susan
Published: July 2014

Three recent theories have implicated lexical processing failures as a possible source of fluency disruption in persons who stutter. Two experiments that bear upon these theories are reported. Both evaluate the effects on speech response latency of picture naming tasks designed to place selective demands on lexicalization: Experiment I, effects of one-word versus two-word responses; Experiment II, effects of a word's frequency of occurrence versus its number of syllables. Twelve adults who stutter and 12 with normally fluent speech participated in each experiment. In Experiment I, increases in naming latency for two-word (noun + verb) versus one-word (noun or verb) responses showed that demands for parallel processing did not differentiate the experimental groups. However, the between-group difference, showing longer latencies among those who stutter, was six times greater for the verb, than for the noun, task. Moreover, the group difference for verbs fully accounted for the size of the difference in the two-word task. Experiment II showed that the relative increase in naming latency associated with the word frequency effect versus the syllable latency effect was significantly greater in the stuttering than the nonstuttering group. Outcomes of the two experiments suggest that during lexicalization, as early as the L1 stage and first phase of L2, slow processing could serve to disrupt fluency in some persons who stutter. Under certain conditions, as specified in the three theories cited, such disruptions could set the occasion for stutter events.
Maximum Interlabial Pressures in Normal Speakers
Authors: Hinton Virginia A. , Arokiasamy Winston M. C.
Published: July 2014

It has been hypothesized that typical speech movements do not involve large muscular forces and that normal speakers use less than 20% of the maximum orofacial muscle contractile forces that are available (e.g., Amerman, 1993; Barlow & Abbs, 1984; Barlow & Netsell, 1986; DePaul & Brooks, 1993). However, no direct evidence for this hypothesis has been provided. This study investigated the percentage of maximum interlabial contact pressures (force per unit area) typically used during speech production. The primary conclusion of this study is that normal speakers typically use less than 20% of the available interlabial contact pressure, whether or not the jaw contributes to bilabial closure. Production of the phone [p] at conversational rate and intensity generated an average of 10.56% of maximum available interlabial pressure (MILP) when jaw movement was not restricted and 14.62% when jaw movement was eliminated.
An Examination of the Morpheme BE in Children With Specific Language Impairment
Authors: Cleave Patricia L. , Rice Mabel L.
Published: July 2014

This study examined the production of the morpheme BE, focusing on the influence of contractibility, the relationship between copula and auxiliary forms, and the occurrence of non-omission errors. Language samples collected from children with SLI and from normal language learners at equivalent MLU levels were analyzed. Three levels of contractibility were examined: contractible, syntactically uncontractible, and phonetically uncontractible. Contractible contexts were produced significantly more accurately than uncontractible contexts by both groups. There was no difference between the two forms of uncontractibility. Furthermore, there were no significant interactions between language status and contractibility, suggesting that contractibility influenced both groups equally. Copula forms were produced more consistently than auxiliary. There was no interaction between BE type and language status. The groups did not differ in proportion or type of non-omission error. The results are discussed in relation to accounts of morphological deficits in SLI.
The Efficacy of Computer-Provided Reading Treatment for Chronic Aphasic Adults
Authors: Katz Richard C. , Wertz Robert T.
Published: July 2014

We examined the effects of computer-provided reading activities on language performance in chronic aphasic patients. Fifty-five aphasic adults were assigned randomly to one of three conditions: computer reading treatment, computer stimulation, or no treatment. Subjects in the computer groups used computers 3 hours each week for 26 weeks. Computer reading treatment software consisted of visual matching and reading comprehension tasks. Computer stimulation software consisted of nonverbal games and cognitive rehabilitation tasks. Language measures were administered to all subjects at entry and after 3 and 6 months. Significant improvement over the 26 weeks occurred on five language measures for the computer reading treatment group, on one language measure for the computer stimulation group, and on none of the language measures for the notreatment group. The computer reading treatment group displayed significantly more improvement on the Porch Index of Communicative Ability “Overall” and “Verbal” modality percentiles and on the Western Aphasia Battery Aphasia “Quotient” and “Repetition” subtest than the other two groups. The results suggest that (a) computerized reading treatment can be administered with minimal assistance from a clinician, (b) improvement on the computerized reading treatment tasks generalized to non-computer language performance, (c) improvement resulted from the language content of the software and not stimulation provided by a computer, and (d) the computerized reading treatment we provided to chronic aphasic patients was efficacious.
Late Talkers at 2
Authors: Rescorla Leslie , Roberts Julie , Dahlsgaard Katherine
Published: July 2014

Age 3 follow-up data are presented for a sample of 34 toddlers diagnosed between the ages of 24 and 31 months with expressive type specific language impairment (SLI-E). At age 3, the late talkers scored significantly lower on all language measures than 21 comparison peers matched at intake on age, SES, and nonverbal ability. When seen at follow-up, the former late talkers scored in the average range on the Expressive One-Word Picture Vocabulary Test (EOWPVT) and on the Reynell Expressive Language Scale, but more than 1.5 SDs below age expectations in MLU and on Scarborough's (1990a) IPSyn. The proportion of late talkers performing in the average range at follow-up varied markedly as a function of measure used (EOWPVT: 79%, Reynell: 58%, MLU: 35%, and IPSyn: 24%), indicating that the late talkers made more rapid progress in lexical development and in the use of language to define, explain, and describe than they did in the areas of syntactic and morphological development. The only significant predictor of age 3 outcome was intake expressive language level, with toddlers who had been more severely delayed in expressive language at intake relative to age level having the worst outcomes at age 3.
The Speech Disorders Classification System (SDCS)
Authors: Shriberg Lawrence D. , Austin Diane , Lewis Barbara A. , McSweeny Jane L. , Wilson David L.
Published: July 2014

A companion paper includes rationale for the use of 10 metrics of articulation competence in conversational speech (Shriberg, Austin, Lewis, McSweeny, & Wilson, 1997). The present paper reports lifespan reference data for these measures using records from a total of 836 3– to 40+-year-old speakers with normal and disordered speech. The reference data are subdivided by diagnostic classification based on extensions to an instrument titled the Speech Disorders Classification System (SDCS; Shriberg, 1993). Appendices provide procedural information on the SDCS and statistical rationale for the reference data.
The Extent to Which Psychometric Tests Differentiate Subgroups of Children With SLI
Authors: Conti-Ramsden Gina , Crutchley Alison , Botting Nicola
Published: July 2014

This paper reports on the results of a large project involving 7-year-old children attending language units in England. A group of 242 children with specific language impairment (SLI) were assessed on a battery of psychometric tests. In addition, teacher interviews were carried out to ascertain teachers’ opinions of the children’s difficulties. Cluster analysis revealed six robust subgroups of children with language difficulties. The findings are discussed in the context of other approaches to the classification of language impairment in children with special reference to the work of Rapin and Allen (1987).
Effect of Time and Frequency Manipulation on Syllable Perception in Developmental Dyslexics
Authors: McAnally Ken I. , Hansen Peter C. , Cornelissen Piers L. , Stein John F.
Published: July 2014

Many people with developmental dyslexia have difficulty perceiving stop consonant contrasts as effectively as other people and it has been suggested that this may be due to perceptual limitations of a temporal nature. Accordingly, we predicted that perception of such stimuli by listeners with dyslexia might be improved by stretching them in time—equivalent to speaking slowly. Conversely, their perception of the same stimuli ought to be made even worse by compressing them in time—equivalent to speaking quickly. We tested 15 children with dyslexia on their ability to identify correctly consonant-vowel-consonant (CVC) stimuli that had been stretched or compressed in the time domain. We also tested their perception of the same CVC stimuli after the formant transitions had been stretched or compressed in the frequency domain. Contrary to our predictions, we failed to find any systematic improvement in their performance with either manipulation. We conclude that simple manipulations in the time and frequency domains are unlikely to benefit the ability of people with dyslexia to discriminate between CVCs containing stop consonants.
Japanese Speakers of American English
Authors: Steffani Susan A. , Nippold Marilyn A.
Published: July 2014

Competence with literate connectives (e.g.,conversely, similarly, moreover) is important for academic success, particularly in university settings. This study examined the ability of Japanese speakers of American English (mean age = 23 years) who were attending an American university to use and understand connectives in written language. Compared to a control group of age-matched native English-speakers attending the same university, the Japanese students had difficulty with the words. Suggestions are offered on how speech-language pathologists might facilitate competence with connectives in adults who are nonnative speakers of English.
Look Who's Talking
Authors: Spitz Romy V. , Tallal Paula , Flax Judy , Benasich April A.
Published: July 2014

Language impairments have been hypothesized to have a genetic component. Previous studies of the familial aggregation of language impairments have relied on a retrospective approach based on parental/self-reported history of language development. This study examined familial aggregation prospectively, by investigating language acquisition and cognitive development in the younger siblings and offspring of individuals with well-defined language impairments. It was predicted that children with a positive family history for language impairments would be more likely to show delays in language acquisition than would age- and gender-matched controls. Similar delays were not expected in nonlinguistic domains, such as conceptual, gestural, or general cognitive development. Ten children with a positive family history and 10 age- and gender-matched controls were tested. Analyses of linguistic and cognitive assessments at 16 to 26 months confirmed the predictions. Children with a family history of language impairments had lower receptive and expressive language scores than controls, with 50% of them scoring at least 1.5
SD
below the mean for their age. At the same time, performance on a number of tasks that did not rely on language abilities did not differ as a function of family history. These results indicate that children with a positive family history for language impairments are at risk for language delay; the results also support a familial component to language impairments.
"Twin Language"
Authors: Bishop D. V. M. , Bishop S. J.
Published: July 2014

Retrospective parental report of earlier "twin language" was obtained for two groups of twins. Sample G consisted of 94 twin pairs between the ages of 7 and 13 years recruited through the school system as a general population sample. Sample L consisted of 82 twin pairs between the ages of 7 and 13 years who had been recruited for a genetic study; of these twin pairs at least one of the twins had a speech-language impairment persisting to school age. Parental report of twin language was higher (around 50%) for children with speech-language impairment than for those with normal language (11%). Consistent with this, children with twin language obtained significantly lower mean language scores than other children, although their mean nonverbal IQ was equivalent. The exceptions were a handful of children whose parents described use of a "private language" that coexisted alongside normal use of English. These findings are consistent with the view that what is described as twin language is usually use of immature or deviant language by two children at the same developmental level.
A Meta-Analysis of Clinical Outcomes in the Treatment of Aphasia
Authors: Robey Randall R.
Published: July 2014

An extensive search of aphasia-treatment literature yielded 55 reports of clinical outcomes satisfying the essential criteria for inclusion in a meta-analysis. The results confirmed those of an earlier meta-analysis in demonstrating the utility of aphasia treatments, generally considered, for bringing about desirable clinical outcomes. Beyond the general case, the new findings address clinical utility in finer detail than was previously possible. Effects of treatment for aphasia are synthesized and assessed for each of four important dimensions: amount of treatment, type of treatment, severity of aphasia, and type of aphasia.
Auditory and Visual Similarity of Pitch Contours
Authors: Hermes Dik J.
Published: July 2014

It has been shown that visual display systems of intonation can be employed beneficially in teaching intonation to persons with deafness and in teaching the intonation of a foreign language. In this paper, the question is addressed whether important audible differences between two pitch contours correspond with visually conspicuous differences between displayed pitch contours. If visual feedback of intonation is to be effective in teaching situations, such correspondence must exist. In two experiments, phoneticians rated the dissimilarity of two pitch contours. In the first experiment they rated the two pitch contours auditorily (i.e., by listening to two resynthesized utterances). In the second, they rated the same two pitch contours visually (i.e., by looking at the two contours displayed on a computer screen). The results indicate why visual feedback may be very effective in intonation training if pitch contours are displayed in such a way that only auditorily relevant features are represented.
Describing the Consequences of Disorders
Authors: Yaruss J. Scott
Published: July 2014

The International Classification of Impairments, Disabilities, and Handicaps (ICIDH) proposed by the World Health Organization (WHO, 1980) can be a useful method for describing the experiences of individuals exhibiting speech and language disorders such as stuttering. Unfortunately, the definitions for the terms
impairment, disability
, and
handicap
that were previously presented in the stuttering literature have not accurately represented the true purpose of the ICIDH as a tool for describing the consequences of disorders. This paper reviews the history of these terms in the stuttering literature and proposes alternate definitions that are more consistent with the use of the ICIDH elsewhere in the field of communication disorders, as well as within the health-related professions in general. Based on the ICIDH framework, a model is proposed for discussing the outcomes of various types of stuttering treatments in the context of an individual's experience of the stuttering disorder, and the implications for treatment outcomes research using this framework are discussed.
Reprogramming Phonologically Similar Utterances
Authors: Rogers Margaret A. , Storkel Holly L.
Published: July 2014

The effects of phonologic similarity on speech production latencies were investigated to explore the role of articulatory phonetic features and reprogramming operations during pre-motor stages of production. A form-based priming technique was used in five experiments to elicit rapid productions of single words. Subjects responded to visually presented pairs of minimally contrastive monosyllabic words, which varied with respect to the phonetic featural similarity of their onsets. Factors that were systematically manipulated across experiments included stimulus set size, duration of the interstimulus interval, and the use of feedback to subjects concerning their response latencies. Speech onset latencies obtained in a control condition in which no phonetic features were shared were compared to four other conditions in which the word initial phonemes of prime-target pairs did share features. Results revealed that shared manner was the most influential factor associated with the observed inhibitory phonologic similarity effect. In addition, smaller stimulus set size (6 words) yielded significantly slower overall response latencies than experiments employing larger stimulus sets (18 words). These findings suggested that inhibitory phonologic similarity effects did not stem from biomechanical constraints imposed by the articulatory system. Rather the methods employed in this investigation were supported as a means to investigate both the underlying units of representation and the processes involved in pre-motor planning apart from articulatory effects. The results of this investigation also supported the hypothesis that, during phonologic encoding, word form retrieval entails the selection and assembly of sublexical units into word form frames. No evidence of whole word retrieval during pre-motor encoding was obtained. The potential utility of this experimental paradigm in the investigation of pre-motor planning in disorders that putatively affect the processes involved in transforming word meaning into word form is also discussed.
Aided Speech Recognition Abilities of Adults With a Severe or Severe-to-Profound Hearing Loss
Authors: Flynn Mark C. , Dowell Richard C. , Clark Graeme M.
Published: July 2014

Adults with severe or severe-to-profound hearing losses constitute between 11% and 13.5% of the hearing-impaired population. A detailed investigation of the speech recognition of adults with severe (
n
=20) or severe-to-profound (
n
=14) hearing loss was conducted at The University of Melbourne. Each participant took part in a series of speech recognition tasks while wearing his or her currently fitted hearing aid(s). The assessments included closed-set tests of consonant recognition and vowel recognition, combined with open-set tests of monosyllabic word recognition and sentence recognition. Sentences were presented in quiet and in noise at +10 dB SNR to replicate an environment more typical of everyday listening conditions. Although the results demonstrated wide variability in performance, some general trends were observed. As expected vowels were generally well perceived compared with consonants. Monosyllabic word recognition scores for both the adults with a severe hearing impairment (
M
=67.2%) and the adults with a severe-to-profound hearing impairment (
M
=38.6%) could be predicted from the segmental tests, with an allowance for lexical effects. Scores for sentences presented in quiet showed additional linguistic effects and a significant decrease in performance with the addition of background noise (from 82.9% to 74.1% for adults with a severe hearing loss and from 55.8% to 34.2% for adults with a severe-to-profound hearing loss). Comparisons were made between the participants and a group of adults using a multiple-channel cochlear implant. This comparison indicated that some adults with a severe or severe-toprofound hearing loss may benefit from the use of a cochlear implant. The results of this study support the contention that cochlear implant candidacy should not rely solely on audiometric thresholds.
Average C-Unit Lengths in the Discourse of African American Children From Low-Income, Urban Homes
Authors: Craig Holly K. , Washington Julie A. , Thompson-Porter Connie
Published: July 2014

This investigation reports average length of communication units (C-nits) in words and in morphemes for 95 4- to 6 1/2-year-old African American boys and girls from lower-income homes in metropolitan Detroit. Mean C-units increased across the age span of this sample, and kindergartners produced significantly longer C-units than preschoolers. The syntactic complexity of the children's language samples correlated positively with increases in C-unit length, and regression analyses revealed that syntactic complexity was the best predictor of mean C-unit length. Children with longer average C-unit lengths produced greater frequencies of all types of syntactic complexity. Their language samples were distinguished from children with shorter mean C-unit lengths by clauses linked with coordinate and subordinate conjunctions. The findings indicate that average C-unit length will be useful as a quantitative index of linguistic growth in research designs focusing on young school-age African American children living in poverty.