Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Semantic Integration In Adults With Nonverbal Learning Disabilities And Autism Spectrum Disorder: Influence Of Word Knowledge And Gestalt Perception, Margot E. Stothers

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Language in individuals with nonverbal learning disabilities (NLD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) has been described as semantically empty and impoverished, despite apparently average word knowledge. Here, inter-related studies explored semantic representations in adults with these disorders of social perception. Studies highlighted semantic integration, a form of gestalt perception in which new concepts are developed by connecting familiar terms in novel ways. Semantic integration was compared to vocabulary breadth, and to nonverbal gestalt perception, comparing clinical groups to each other and to adults without a diagnosis. Because weaknesses in gestalt perception have been seen in NLD and ASD, it was …

Signs Of Friendship, Kaylee J. Kapalko, Ashley N. Brickner

Honors Projects

This children's book is about mainstreaming a deaf student into a public school composed of predominantly hearing children, and the eventual friendship between that student and a hearing student. The majority of deaf students are educated in hearing schools and experience high rates of social isolation as a result of the inability to communicate with their peers. In order to create this book, there was collaboration between a communication disorders major and a creative writing major in order to create a realistic portrayal yet creative learning tool for children at a young age. We chose to aim our book at …

Signs Of Friendship, Ashley N. Brickner, Kaylee J. Kapalko

Honors Projects

This children's book is about mainstreaming a deaf student into a public school composed of predominantly hearing children, and the eventual friendship between that student and a hearing student. The majority of deaf students are educated in hearing schools and experience high rates of social isolation as a result of the inability to communicate with their peers. In order to create this book, there was collaboration between a communication disorders major and a creative writing major in order to create a realistic portrayal yet creative learning tool for children at a young age. We chose to aim our book at …

December 2, 2015, Communication Disorders & Sciences

Faculty Meeting Minutes & Agendas

Meeting minutes of the December 2, 2015 Faculty Committee meeting.

Incorporating A Robot In Intervention With Children With Asd: The Effect On Tantrum Behaviors, Tayler Bodon Whitmer

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the effect of intervention involving a humanoid robot on challenging or tantrum behaviors of four children with low-functioning autism spectrum disorders (ASD). The current work was part of a larger study involving the effect of the robot on functional communication skills on a variety of different interactions with different communication partners. All participants took part in a single-subject, multiple-baseline design with various session types including baseline, traditional play-based treatment, treatment including the robot, and follow-up sessions. For the purpose of this study, only the sessions including treatment with the robot where the robot interaction occurred at the …

Flow Experiences Among Individuals With Aphasia, Thomas W. Sather

Dissertations

Flow has been described as positive experiences of intense concentration, distorted time passage, and loss of self-consciousness. While flow has been reported for multiple populations in various settings, it has not been studied among individuals with aphasia. The purpose of this three paper dissertation is to examine flow experiences among individuals with mild aphasia, including environmental and personal factors associated with flow. Advocates of life participation approaches to aphasia stress the importance of interventions that support full engagement in life. Research on flow experiences and related environmental and personal factors may foster improved service delivery and outcomes for this population. …

An Examination Of The Effectiveness Of Systematic And Engaging Early Literacy (Seel) With Children With Asd, Maren Hyatt Davis

Theses and Dissertations

One population with challenges in learning to read is children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of using Systematic and Engaging Early Literacy (SEEL) intervention activities to improve phonological awareness and phonics skills with three children with ASD. Previous studies have looked at the effectiveness of using SEEL with other young children with diverse backgrounds; however, this is the first study to focus on using SEEL intervention with children with ASD. The study used a single-subject, multiple-baseline-across-behaviors design to compare performance on phonic patterns before and after intervention. Three young, male …

The Right Ear Advantage In Response To Levels Of Linguistic Complexity: A Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study, Elizabeth Hyatt

Theses and Dissertations

The right ear advantage (REA) phenomenon has been utilized in clinical and research settings to study auditory processing disorders and linguistic lateralization. Previous research has established that the REA is not reliable in its measures within or between individuals. This is likely due to the influence of other variables, such as neuromaturation and attention. One variable that has not been studied in depth in this context is linguistic complexity. It was hypothesized that stimulus conditions with levels of linguistic complexity would elicit corresponding levels of temporal lobe activity. Understanding and controlling the variables that affect the REA will increase the …

Changes In Acoustic And Kinematic Articulatory Working Space Across Three Intensity Levels, Panika Ellis Palmer

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to compare changes in acoustic and kinematic measures of articulation across soft, comfortable, and loud speech conditions. There were 19 participants, 9 male and 10 female, with age ranging from 20 to 34 with a median age of 25. Each participant had electromagnetic sensors glued to their tongue, jaw, and lips. It was anticipated that the acoustic measures would accurately reflect the kinematic measures of speech as articulation changed across the intensity levels. Vowel space area (VSA) and vowel articulation index (VAI) were computed from the three corner vowels, /α, i, u/. Articulatory-acoustic vowel …

Story Generation In Five School-Aged Children With Language Impairment, Suzanne Tutt Jones

Theses and Dissertations

This project examined the story generations of five children with language impairment (LI) between the ages of 5;11 and 10;1 across the treatment sessions of a narrative-based intervention program designed to improve social communication. These stories were analyzed to find whether the participants would approach the task by describing the stimulus pictures or if their stories would reflect an episodic structure containing cause and effect relationships. Additionally, the stories were analyzed for inclusion of emotion words to discern the participants' awareness of the characters' emotions. There was a high degree of variability in the participants' performance; however, the majority of …

“Whatdunit?” Developmental Changes In Children's Syntactically Based Sentence Interpretation Abilities And Sensitivity To Word Order, James W. Montgomery, Julia L. Evans, Ronald B. Gillam, Alexander V. Sergeev, Mianisha C. Finney

Communicative Disorders and Deaf Education Faculty Publications

Aim 1 of this study was to examine the developmental changes in typically developing English-speaking children’s syntactically-based sentence interpretation abilities and sensitivity to word order. Aim 2 was to determine the psychometric standing of the novel sentence interpretation task developed for this study, as we wish to use it later with children with Specific Language Impairment (SLI). Children listened to semantically implausible sentences in which noun animacy and the natural affordance between the nouns were removed, thus controlling for event probability. Using this novel “whatdunit?” agent selection task, 256 children 7-11 years listened to two structures with canonical word order …

Implementing Ipe In An Academic Health Science Center: Changing Attitudes, Beliefs, & Knowledge, Kerry Proctor-Williams, Elizabeth Alley

ETSU Faculty Works

Completion of 3-year pilot Interprofessional Education Program involving graduate students in an Academic Health Science Center yielded pre- and post-program evaluations of attitudes, beliefs, and knowledge of students and faculty. This session offers a description of a program without curricular level changes, presentation of research outcomes, and resulting planned modifications.

Person-Centered Outcomes In Culturally And Diverse Contexts: International Application Of The Icf, Karla Washington, Jane Mccormack, A. Lynn Williams, Brenda Louw, Nancy Thomas-Stonell, Tammy Hopper

ETSU Faculty Works

This session is developed by, and presenters invited by, Cultural and Linguistic Considerations Across the Discipline. This session was developed by the Convention Program Committee to increase SLPs’ awareness regarding research and clinical applications of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF) across pediatric and adult populations around the world. Discussants provide perspectives from Australia, Brazil, Canada, Jamaica, and the United States.

What’S The Evidence For Involving Parents In Intervention For Speech Sound Disorders?, Eleanor Sugden, Elise Baker, Natalie Munro, A. Lynn Williams

ETSU Faculty Works

This systematic overview examines the evidence base for parent involvement in intervention for phonology-based speech sound disorders. Of the 175 identified papers, 61 reported including parents and/or home-based tasks in intervention. However, insufficient detail reported within these papers limits replication and implementation. The clinical and research implications are discussed.

Improving Process And Enhancing Parent And Therapist Satisfaction Through A Coordinated Intake Approach, Sharla Piecowye, Devona Gibson, Janis Carscadden, Kayla Ueland, Gregory Wells, Scott Oddie

Patient Experience Journal

Recent research indicates that, in Canada, approximately one in five children entering school are not meeting age appropriate milestones in physical, social, language, or cognitive development. Even where support services are available families often face barriers in accessing these. With the goals of improving access to programs, reducing barriers and increasing consistency and efficiency, a new Coordinated Intake Approach (CIA) was developed for families accessing Children’s Rehabilitation Services. It was expected that the CIA would result in 1) parents finding the intake process more satisfactory and easier to complete, 2) therapists feeling more supported and satisfied and 3) a decrease …

Lonergan’S Gem Model As A Tool To Foster Critical Thinking Skills., Theresa E. Bartolotta, Patricia A. Remshifski

Praxis Presentations

No abstract provided.

Perceptions Of Medical Students Of The Role Of The Speech-Language Pathologist In Hiv/Aids Intervention, Kendal Klein, Emily Wagner, Kristi Moore, Tanvi Amin, Brenda Louw

ETSU Faculty Works

Survey research was utilized to explore Medical students’ perceptions of Speech-Language Pathologists’(SLP) and Medical Practitioner’s roles in meeting the healthcare needs of people living with HIV/AIDS(PLWHA). Results identified participants’ knowledge and perceptions. Recommendations suggest interprofessional education and training for both professions, at the pre-professional and professional levels.

Academic Preparation In Cleft Palate For Speech-Language Pathologists: Is The Icf-Cy (Who, 2007) Alive And Well?, Mary B. Graham, Jackie Palmer, Brenda Louw

ETSU Faculty Works

The purpose of this project is to determine inclusion of the ICF-CY in CLP training curricula for SLPs. Survey research was conducted with course instructors across the nation. Results describe the application of the ICF-CY in CLP courses at the graduate level. Recommendations for including the ICF-CY framework are made.

Identification Of Participation-Related Activities To Be Used As Part Of The Development Of A Self-Efficacy Questionnaire For Adolescents With Hearing Loss, Sahar S. Zimmo

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Investigating self-efficacy beliefs among adolescents with hearing loss is imperative as these perceptions affect a broad range of age-related functioning. Validated self-efficacy questionnaires for use with persons with hearing loss are currently limited to four adult measures. Development of an adolescent-relevant questionnaire aims to quantify self-efficacy for participation in daily activities and to individualize treatment interventions for adolescents with hearing loss.

Developing the self-efficacy questionnaire was based on a scoping literature review to develop a list of activities performed by typically developing adolescents. The questionnaire was piloted on a sample of youth with hearing loss.

The Adolescent Self-Efficacy Questionnaire for …

November 4, 2015, Communication Disorders & Sciences

Faculty Meeting Minutes & Agendas

Meeting minutes of the November 4, 2015 Faculty Committee meeting.

Tinnitus And Trauma, Marc A. Fagelson

ETSU Faculty Works

Trauma-provoked tinnitus challenges patients and clinicians. Effects of trauma may exacerbate tinnitus, and patients with both tinnitus and posttraumatic stress disorder rate distress levels as higher than patients who experience only one or the other. This presentation will highlight links between tinnitus and trauma histories relevant to clinical audiologists.

Neurophysiological Correlates Of The Critical Bandwidth In The Human Auditory System, Grace Ann Bentley

Theses and Dissertations

The critical bandwidth (CBW) is an auditory phenomenon that has been used to study various aspects of auditory processing, including auditory masking, complex tone processing, and loudness perception. Although the psychoacoustic aspects of the CBW have been well studied, the underlying neurophysiology of the CBW has not been as thoroughly examined. The current study examined the neurophysiology of the CBW in young adults, as well as loudness perception in response to the CBW. Auditory stimuli consisting of complex tones of varying bandwidths were presented to 12 individuals (6 male and 6 female, ages 18-26 years). Complex tones were presented around …

Analysis Of Speech-Language Pathology Graduate Students' Experience With Thickened Liquids, Mary Gorham-Rowan, Jade Coston

Internet Journal of Allied Health Sciences and Practice

Purpose: Thickened liquids are frequently recommended for patients with dysphagia to minimize aspiration. When discussing the use of thickened liquids with graduate students in Communication Sciences & Disorders (CSD), it is beneficial to discuss the potential effect(s) of this dietary recommendation. Graduate level preparation involving first-hand experience with thickened liquids may help future speech-language pathologists (SLPs) develop a more complete understanding of the effects of diet modification. The purpose of the current study was to examine the reactions of graduate students in CSD to a brief period of thickened liquid use as an experiential learning activity. Methods: Sixty-eight graduate students …

Training Hospital Readiness In Speech-Language Pathology Students Through Simulation, Anna Miles, Selena Donaldson, Philippa Friary

Internet Journal of Allied Health Sciences and Practice

Simulated learning environments allow students to develop technical and clinical decision-making skills in a safe and realistic setting. The aim of this study was to evaluate speech-language pathology students’ perception of hospital readiness following a one-day simulation-based training day on swallowing management. Nineteen students attended the training day. Training included part-task skill learning and immersive simulated scenarios. Students were asked to complete course evaluation forms and participated in focus groups immediately after the day. Seven students participated in a further focus group after a five-week hospital placement within a month of the training day. Four students participated in a focus …

October 7, 2015, Communication Disorders & Sciences

Faculty Meeting Minutes & Agendas

Meeting agenda of the October 7, 2015 Faculty Meeting.

Characteristics Of Speech (Part 1) And Language (Part 2) For Hearing Devices (Aids), Earl E. Johnson

ETSU Faculty Works

No abstract provided.

Research Focus: Communication Sciences And Disorders Fall 2015, Jean Neils-Strunjas Department Head

Communication Sciences & Disorders Publications

No abstract provided.

Reading Intervention Using Interactive Metronome Treatment, Denise Lewis

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The purpose of this research study was to examine the effects of Interactive Metronome (IM), a non-academic treatment, when integrated with reading intervention. The intention was to analyze the degree to which IM affected fluency when introduced alongside reading intervention. The research questions that guided this study focused on how internal timekeeping affects reading fluency. This study used a multiple baseline across participant’s single-subject design. Three participants were monitored to determine a baseline using Curriculum Based Measures and Correct Word Per Minute data, and then each received a total of 15 hours of Interactive Metronome treatment. Progress was documented with …

The Role Of Candidate-Gene Cntnap2 In Childhood Apraxia Of Speech And Specific Language Impairment, Tracy M. Centanni, J. N. Sanmann, J. R. Green, Jenya Iuzzini-Seigel, Christopher W. Bartlett, W. G. Sanger, Tiffany P. Hogan

Speech Pathology and Audiology Faculty Research and Publications

Childhood apraxia of speech (CAS) is a debilitating pediatric speech disorder characterized by varying symptom profiles, comorbid deficits, and limited response to intervention. Specific Language Impairment (SLI) is an inherited pediatric language disorder characterized by delayed and/or disordered oral language skills including impaired semantics, syntax, and discourse. To date, the genes associated with CAS and SLI are not fully characterized. In the current study, we evaluated behavioral and genetic profiles of seven children with CAS and eight children with SLI, while ensuring all children were free of comorbid impairments. Deletions within CNTNAP2 were found in two children with CAS but …

The Effects Of Laryngeal Activity On Articulatory Kinematics, Katherine Marie Barber

Theses and Dissertations

The current study examined the effects of three speech conditions (voiced, whispered, mouthed) on articulatory kinematics at the sentence and word level. Participants included 20 adults (10 males, 10 females) with no history of speech, language, or hearing disorders. Participants read aloud six target utterances in the three different speaking conditions while articulatory kinematics were measured using the NDI Wave electromagnetic articulograph. The following articulators were examined: mid tongue, front of tongue, jaw, lower lip, and upper lip. One of the target utterances was chosen for analysis (It's time to shop for two new suits) at the sentence …