Speech and Hearing Science Commons^™

Our Voices: Getting To Know Autism, Katherine Rasberry

Honors Theses

This study was done in effort to understand the thoughts and feelings of autistic adults relative to life transitions and resources available. We surveyed key stakeholders; specifically autistic students, but also family/caregivers of adults. Six surveys were created, each based upon different themes: camouflaging, life transitions, managing mental health, overstimulation, social communication, and family and caregiver perceptions. Our surveys were marketed on Western Michigan University’s campus and through social media and are still ongoing. Trends in the data, however, suggest that overall autistics have concerns about how their disabilities impact life in or shortly after college. Many respondents expressed they …

Implications Of Facial Coverings On Communication, Katherine Giustino

Honors Theses

Nonverbal communication constitutes over half of communication in verbal communicators’ production. With so much lost to covering essential parts of expressing nonverbal communication, for example the mouth, this study aims to find how that impacts the general population’s ability to communicate effectively.

A study found that masks act as an acoustic filter for speech and can attenuate high frequencies (Marler & Ditton, 2020). At the most basic level, a facial covering creates a physical barrier to communication.

This study was designed in a survey format to gather data. A total of 95 participants completed the survey in its entirety. The …

Self-Disclosure Of Stuttering To Various Social Referent Groups And Its Relationships With Psychological Distress, Katrina Rourke

Honors Theses

Purpose: Research has shown that there are benefits associated with verbal disclosure of stuttering. However, most of the existing literature on stuttering disclosure has focused on how it affects listener perceptions of people who stutter, and little is known about speaker-focused outcomes of verbal stuttering disclosure. The purpose of the current study was to investigate who people who stutter verbally disclose to (e.g. friends, co-workers, neighbors) and if relationships between extent of disclosure and distress vary depending on the confidant’s social referent group. The seven social referent groups of focus were family, friends, romantic partners, people in the workplace, healthcare …

“Evaluating Knowledge And Perspectives Of Behavior Analytic Language Strategies In The Clinical Practice Of Speech-Language Pathology”, Mackenzie Sturman

Honors Theses

Research shows that principles of applied behavior analysis (ABA) may be beneficial to language acquisition. Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) have the responsibility of assessment, diagnosis, and treatment for individuals with various speech and language impairments, and work directly with language instruction. However, there is limited knowledge of the degree to which SLPs use concepts of behavior analytic language interventions in clinical practice for individuals of varying language and communication disorders. This study investigated the extent to which practicing SLPs use language strategies from ABA in their clinical practice. A qualitative approach was utilized by conducting individual semi-structured interviews with four practicing …

Effects Of Stuttering Frequency, Speaking Rate And Treatment On Speech Naturalness In Adults Who Stutter, Emily Hausman

Honors Theses

Purpose: Individuals who stutter can often exhibit speech patterns that sound unnatural compared to individuals who do not stutter. Unnaturalness can be due to several underlying factors including the presence of stuttering itself and the unintended consequences of treatment approaches that alter speech motor patterns. Understanding factors that impact speech naturalness within the stuttering population can help improve the clinical management of the disorder. The current study investigates the relationship between pause duration, speech rate and stuttering frequency, and listener ratings of speech naturalness in a group of adults who stutter (AWS) before and after participation in a stuttering treatment …

Speech-Language Pathologist Preferences For Treatment Types For Childhood Apraxia Of Speech, Meeghan Hoose

Honors Theses

Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS), also known as developmental apraxia is, “a motor speech disorder that makes it hard for children to speak” (American Speech-Language-Hearing Association). While the child knows what he/she wants to say, the signals going from the brain to the mouth are not delivered correctly, resulting in the mouth not moving appropriately to produce the desired sounds. There are several methods used by speech-language pathologists to treat CAS including moto-programming, a linguistic approach, a combination of motor-programming and linguistic methods, sensory cuing and rhythmic approaches. Through surveying local practicing school speech-language pathologists, I will learn their preferred …

Exploring A Connection Between Learning And Student Perception Of Place, Katelyn Roberts

Honors Theses

The quality of the physical environment is understood to impact overall health, wellbeing, and capacity to learn and engage in daily life. This pilot study explores how students in the Speech Language and Hearing Sciences program at Western Michigan University view the effects of indoor and outdoor nature spaces at the College of Health and Human Services on the East Campus of Western Michigan University on their learning experience. Results of the study suggest that there are significant relationships between the participant’s perception of interesting qualities in the College of Health and Human Services and feeling a sense of connection …

Examining Social Pragmatic Communication: Evidence From Parent And Professional Questionnaires, Katelyn Adams

Honors Theses

Hyter (2007) defined pragmatics as “daily interactions among groups of people with varying worldviews, each influenced by a history of social practices” (p.131). People use aspects of pragmatics in their everyday life depending on the context of their current social situation. For example, one’s pragmatic language could differ in a day from talking with a boss at work to having a conversation with a friend on the phone. These variations in conversational processes result in the assessment of pragmatics being a difficult task.

In this honors thesis, I examined results from Dr. Yvette Hyter’s assessment battery, the Assessment of Pragmatic …

Language Profiles Of Children Who Have Experienced Complex Trauma And Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders, Christel G. Ciolino

Masters Theses

Children who experience maltreatment and children with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) have similar neurological differences and are at risk for language impairments. However, limited research has been conducted to analyze their specific skill sets. To address this limitation, retrospective data from the Children’s Trauma Assessment Center of Southwest Michigan were analyzed. The linguistic profiles of 79 children with histories of varying numbers of traumatic experiences and comorbid FASD statues are compared in the areas of semantics, syntax, pragmatics, and social communication. Individuals had high pass rates on the CELF-5 Screening Test and high overall scores on the Pragmatic Protocol-Revised …

Assessment For Mild Cognitive Impairment: Striving For Best Practice, Julie Leigh Dalmasso

Dissertations

This dissertation is a series of three studies aimed at determining the best assessment practices for mild cognitive impairment (MCI) that can employed by speech-language pathologists (SLPs). The first study was non-experimental and descriptive examining whether three commonly used assessment instruments yielded similar categorical results. The data were analyzed to determine whether the Eight-Item Interview to Differentiate Aging and Dementia (AD8), the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), and the Cognitive-Linguistic Quick Test (CLQT) identified the same participants from a neurotypical sample as having cognitive deficits. Very little agreement was found amongst the three tools.

Study two was modified to include two …

Improving Access To Communication For Adults With Aphasia Using "Aphasia-Friendly" Accommodations, Chandler Hodgkin

Honors Theses

Accessing written health information is vital to any health visit (Blackstone, Beukelman, & Yorkston, 2015). People who have difficulty comprehending written text have difficulty understanding health-related information because it is usually written at a complex levels (Kanj & Mitic, 2009). If health information contains complicated content and is not easily accessible, people may not receive the health care needed (Blackstone et al., 2015). Many populations are considered communication vulnerable relative to health care which means they may not have access to understanding health information documents (Hallowell, 2016). These populations include people who are blind or visually impaired; people who are …

The Impact Of Higher Education On Linguistic Culture In Senegal And The Midwest United States, Kelsey Gough

Honors Theses

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effects of globalization on linguistic culture in populations of people from both Senegal and the Midwest United States. This study will also specifically highlight any similarities and differences present between those who have a higher education and those that do not. These similarities and differences were revealed by asking the research question: How has the process of globalization impacted beliefs about language held by people from various educational levels in Senegal and the U.S. Midwest?

Data regarding globalization’s effect on the attitudes people have about language, linguistic culture, were retrieved from …

Bilingual Language Assessment, Carmen Wittkopp

Honors Theses

Purpose: To describe language assessments that benefit bilingual students in the correct diagnosis of a language disorder.

Method: A systematic review of the literature was completed to examine the assessment tools used for bilingual children. The most common peer-reviewed journals in the field of speech-language pathology were examined to find articles that researched and discussed bilingual assessment practices. The information collected in the articles focused on the procedures needed for the correct assessment of a bilingual speaker.

Results: The literature mainly focused on assessment techniques of Conceptual Scoring, Dynamic Assessment, Nonword Repetition Task, and the Bilingual English Spanish Oral Screener. …

Healthcare Resources For The Deaf Community: A Study Of Kalamazoo Area Hospitals, Rachel Kellogg

Honors Theses

Hospitals need to analyze all patient care delivery methods, and especially those designated for vulnerable populations. The Deaf community is a particularly unique and often overlooked vulnerable population because of the additional communication barriers that they possess. The goal for this research is to look at the current best practices for communication and treatment in hospitals from the perspective of the Deaf community. This research also looks at how or if these practices are being carried out in community hospitals. In order to obtain this information, interview questions were developed with the help of an ASL interpreter and two interviews …

Verification And Quantification Of Surface Electromyographic (Emg) Activity Of The Masseter Muscle, Kelsey Bowles

Honors Theses

Purpose: The goal of the present study is to develop and evaluate an automated technique for measuring biting and chewing related surface electromyographic (EMG) activity of the masseter muscle.

Methods: Data from 28 neurologically healthy participants between the ages of 18-40 were selected for this study. The procedure for collecting the bite/chew data consisted of the participant biting down and chewing three small breath mints while an EMG sensor recorded the masseter muscle activity. A five-step Matlab-based algorithm was created to accurately identify onsets and offsets of each bite and chew event.

Results: Compared to manual measurements using standard …

Acoustic Correlates Of Speech Naturalness In Post-Treatment Adults Who Stutter: Role Of Fundamental Frequency, Jacqueline Schmitt

Honors Theses

No abstract provided.

Acoustic Correlates Of Speech Naturalness In Post-Treatment Adults Who Stutter: Role Of Speaking Rate, Caylee Jessen

Honors Theses

Purpose: While many stuttering therapy programs can result in a decrease in stuttering behaviors among participants, some clients leave therapy with speech sounding unnatural due in part to the therapy techniques themselves. The aim of the current study is to examine associations between selected acoustic measures of speaking rate and listener ratings of speech naturalness in a group of adults who stutter following participation in an intensive fluency shaping treatment program.

Methods: Twenty-nine adults who stutter, drawn from an existing database of speech samples, served as participants. All participants had recently completed a four-week group-based intensive fluency shaping treatment program. …

Memory Support For Adults With Alzheimer’S Disease: Applications For Speech-Language Pathologists, Laura Dober

Honors Theses

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia and is known to cause progressive and severely debilitating impairments in cognition, especially in memory. Deficits in memory and cognition are clearly reflected in the communication of people diagnosed with this progressive, degenerative, incurable disease, placing speech-language pathologists as important members of a care team for adults with AD. Speech-language pathologists provide treatment to support memory, and therefore communication, in people with AD through direct and indirect methods. Some examples of memory supportive strategies include spaced-retrieval learning, the use of external memory aids and assistive technology, Montessori methods, and manipulations …

Bridging Theories Of Phonological Awareness For Deaf And Hard Of Hearing Children: Perspectives From Verbotonal Specialists In The United States, Jazmin Rambeau

Honors Theses

Approaching literacy instruction for children who are deaf and hard of hearing is one of the most significant challenges within global education because there are various evidence-based theories in the literature as to why children who are deaf and hard of hearing often manifest impaired reading abilities compared to children with normal hearing, and how they may acquire literacy skills differently. This study aims to identify agreements within the literature regarding the role of phonological awareness in literacy acquisition for children who are deaf and hard of hearing, and how tools such as the Verbotonal method of auditory therapy may …

A Call For Hearing Loss Prevention Programs In College Music Education Programs, Jason Taurins

Honors Theses

Music educators, ensemble conductors, and students who participate in musical ensembles are exposed to sound pressure levels which exceed the criteria for NIOSH. As such, this population should be enrolled in hearing loss prevention programs. Ensemble directors (many music educators fall into this category) have a direct role in influencing the sound pressure levels produced in rehearsals. Music educators have a role in influencing the knowledge, skills, attitudes, and behaviors of their students. Because of the health risks of noise exposure, and the role music educators (and ensemble directors in general) have in influencing their students, hearing loss prevention should …

The Relationship Between Speaking Rate And Nasalance In Typical Adult Speakers, Rachel Whitney

Masters Theses

Nasometry is a non-invasive tool frequently used to measure speech resonance in clinical populations. The instrument uses an acoustic recording system to derive a measure termed nasalance, which is an estimate of the relative amount of acoustic energy emitted from the nasal cavity. Nasometry protocols do not provide detailed instructions for speaking rate control during data collection. Studies attempting to establish a relationship between speaking rate and nasalance have yielded mixed results; therefore, it is important to identify the influence of speaking rate on nasalance in a variety of speaking tasks. If rate is found to influence nasalance values, protocols …

A Preliminary Study Of The Articulatory And Acoustic Features Of Forward And Backward Tone Placement In Singing, Krista Wyllys

Masters Theses

A variety of terms exist for describing tone quality in singing, and voice scientists, voice therapists, teachers of singing, and students of singing use different terms to describe the same sound. One aspect of tone quality is tone placement. Teachers of singing often rely on imagery and imitation to elicit correct tone placement from students of singing. More concrete data about what produces forward and backward tone placement could supplement singing teachers’ current practice of using imagery and imitation to elicit a desirable tone quality. This study examined forward and backward tone placement to determine the articulatory gestures and acoustic …

The Effect Of Early Cochlear Implantation On Oral Language: A Review Of The Literature, Nicole Supplee

Honors Theses

Current research suggests that implantation of cochlear implants before 2 years of age significantly impacts oral language development, specifically in increased rate of oral language development. In addition, children who have been implanted early (between 12 months and two years) have been shown to obtain age-appropriate language skills, whereas children who have been implanted later (after 2 years of age), or not implanted at all, do not. Because of the documented benefits of early implantation, researchers have recently pushed to lower the current minimum age of implantation to below 12 months of age. Although research suggests improvements in language development …

Story Writing By Students With Hearing Impairments, Lois A. Ketchum

Masters Theses

Students with hearing impairments (N = 21) wrote a personal narrative each academic year from 1990 to 1992. These narratives were rated on maturity of the story as a whole and maturity of the language used in the story by senior undergraduate students in the education department at Western Michigan University. The method used for rating was a holistic magnitude estimation technique.

Significant change over time was found for story scores, but not language scores. Grade level was found to have no significant effect on change from first to last ratings for either story scores or language scores. Degree of …

Language Abilities Of Male Adolescents In A Juvenile Detention Center, Krista J. Klein

Masters Theses

This study was designed to analyze the language abilities of male adolescents with delinquent behavior. It was based on the hypothesis that male adolescents with delinquent behavior would have lower language skills during expressive language tasks. Language skills of male adolescents in a juvenile detention center were examined by comparing 12 grammatical variables, four subtest scores, and one total score from the Screening Test for Adolescent Language (STAL; Prather, Ausdal-Breecher, Stafford & Wallace, 1980). Results indicated that the adolescents with delinquent behavior omitted significantly more words, but also produced significantly more secondary verbs in a narration task. Significantly lower results …

Analogical Reasoning Of Elderly Adults Using Three Modalities: Words, Pictures, And Figures, Judy L. Rau

Masters Theses

This study examined the analogical processing skills of elderly adults. Forty-seven subjects (ages 65-90) completed analogy tasks presented in three modalities: words, pictures, and geometric figures (90 total). The subjects for this study were elderly adults living independently in a federally subsidized apartment building. The subjects used in this study possessed characteristics similar to the "typical" American adult. Results indicated that performance does not vary significantly with age in the word and picture modalities. Significant (p < .05) negative relationships were found between performance on the geometric figure analogies and increased age and between overall performance and increased age. Significant (p < .05) positive relationships were found between education and performance on each of the three modalities as well as between education and overall performance.

Speech Pathology And Audiology At Western: A Brief History, Charles Van Riper, Frank B. Robinson

Histories of Western Michigan University

This historical telling of Western Michigan University's Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences was written by Dr. Charles Van Riper and Dr. Frank B. Robinson. The brief history describes how Dr. Van Riper built a clinic and developed fledgling profession of speech pathology. Hired in 1936 by Dr. Sangren, Van Riper used his skills as a clinician and as a gifted teacher to recruit students, design courses and acquaint the public with the services offered at a mobile speech clinic. By 1938, the first students majoring in “speech correction” were graduated and employed in public schools. By 1939, the …

Rhythmicity, Rate, And Perceived Effort Level Of Fluent And Disfluent Children And Their Parents, Lorraine Destefano Proctor

Masters Theses

Finger tapping and CVC syllable repetition measures of 7 four to eight year old fluent and disfluent children and their mothers were evaluated. Perceptual ratings of speech rate and effort level were also completed by the children, their mothers, and nine graduate students. These procedures were used to test hypotheses that mean interval durations for tapping and for speech, and perceptual ratings of speech rate and effort level are individual in nature.

Results indicated that the subjects1 measures of mean interval durations for tapping and for speech as estimates of rhythmicity, and perceptual ratings of speech rate and effort level …

A Hearing Assessment Using Operant Audiological Testing With A Severely Retarded Deaf-Blind Child, Patricia Timpson

Masters Theses

This study assessed the feasibility of teaching a 7-year-old severely retarded, hearing and vision impaired girl to respond consistently to a pure tone stimulus using operant audiometric techniques. The experimenter first shaped a head turn response using the opportunity to rock on a rocking horse as reinforcement. Following response shaping, the experimenter used a bone conduction transducer (BCT) as a tactile stimulus in training the subject to turn her head to the left in a similar fashion to a 500 Hz, 65 dB tone/vibration. After 15 days of transfer training, designed to bring the left head turn response under control …

Magnitude Estimation Of The Quality And Intelligibility Of Degraded Speech, Theresa Smith

Masters Theses

The purpose of the study was to identify within-group and between-group differences in perceived quality and perceived intelligibility of degraded speech for listeners with normal and impaired hearing. Following a visual magnitude estimation task, 10 subjects with normal hearing and 10 subjects with sensory-neural hearing impairment listened to connected speech samples degraded by seven levels of harmonic distortion and estimated the magnitude of their quality and intelligibility. Log average quality estimates and log average intelligibility estimates varied linearly with log degradation values for each group. The slopes of the log-log functions were interpreted as measures of perceptual sensitivity. Slopes for …