Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Manipulation Of Auditory Feedback In Individuals With Normal Hearing And Hearing Loss, Le Truc Linh Vaccarello

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Auditory feedback, the hearing of one’s own voice, plays an important role in the detection of speech errors and the regulation of speech production. The limited auditory cues available with a hearing loss can reduce the ability of individuals with hearing loss to use their auditory feedback. Hearing aids are a common assistive device that amplifies inaudible sounds. Hearing aids can also change auditory feedback through digital signal processing, such as frequency lowering. Frequency lowering moves high frequency information of an incoming auditory stimulus into a lower frequency region where audibility may be better. This can change how speech sounds …

Language Outcomes In Children Who Are Deaf And Hard Of Hearing: The Role Of Language Ability Before Hearing Aid Intervention, Olivia Daub, Marlene P. Bagatto, Andrew M. Johnson, Janis Oram Cardy

Communication Sciences and Disorders Publications

© 2017 American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. Purpose: Early auditory experiences are fundamental in infant language acquisition. Research consistently demonstrates the benefits of early intervention (i.e., hearing aids) to language outcomes in children who are deaf and hard of hearing. The nature of these benefits and their relation with prefitting development are, however, not well understood. Method: This study examined Ontario Infant Hearing Program birth cohorts to explore predictors of performance on the Preschool Language Scale–Fourth Edition at the time of (N = 47) and after (N = 19) initial hearing aid intervention. Results: Regression analyses revealed that, before the hearing aid …

A Population-Based Study Of Communicative Participation In Preschool Children With Speech-Language Impairments, Barbara Jane Cunningham, Steven E. Hanna, Bruce Oddson, Nancy Thomas-Stonell, Peter Rosenbaum

PRECISe Preschool Speech and Language Publications

Aim. To develop statistical models of preschoolers’ communicative participation development and explore variations by level of function.

Methods. This was a secondary analysis of data from a longitudinal study of preschoolers with speech and language delays (N = 46,872, M age = 41.76, SD age = 11.92; 67% male) accessing publicly-funded services in Ontario Canada. Two measures were used: Focus on the Outcomes of Communication Under Six (FOCUS), measuring changes in communicative participation skills, and the Communication Function Classification System (CFCS), classifying communication function into one of five levels. We used mixed effects modeling to fit growth curves for …

Using Visual Feedback To Enhance Intonation Control Within Electrolaryngeal Speech, Noor Al-Zanoon

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This study evaluated the effectiveness of visual feedback in facilitating pitch control using a pressure sensitive electrolarynx (EL). This proof-of-concept pilot study was a single-subject design that included two healthy adults (1 female aged 23;6 years old, and 1 male aged 67;0 years old). Both participants were provided with visual feedback over two consecutive weeks. Changes in pitch and force control accuracy over 4 hours were analyzed. The results demonstrated that both participants showed an improvement in force control accuracy from the first to the last training session. The results of this proof-of-concept study are a preliminary step towards the …

It’S All About Context: Investigating The Effects Of Consonant And Vowel Environment On Vowel-Evoked Envelope Following Responses, Emma Bridgwater

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The envelope following response (EFR) has proven useful for studying brainstem speech processing. Previous work, however, demonstrates that its amplitude varies across stimuli. This thesis investigates whether this variation is attributable to the consonant or vowel context of the stimulus, or some interaction of the two. Experiment 1 evoked EFRs in 30 participants using seven English vowels embedded in four CVC environments. A strong effect of vowel and a minor effect of consonant on EFR amplitude were found. In Experiment 2, 64 listeners heard four different tokens of one of four possible English vowels (16 participants/vowel), embedded in the same …

Validity Of The Communication Function Classification System For Use With Preschool Children With Communication Disorders, Mary Jo Cooley Hidecker, Barbara Jane Cunningham, Nancy Thomas-Stonell, Bruce Oddson, Peter Rosenbaum

PRECISe Preschool Speech and Language Publications

Aim: To evaluate construct validity of the Communication Function Classification System (CFCS) for use with preschoolers with a range of speech and language disorders. Method: Seventy-seven preschoolers with speech and language disorders (M = 2.7 years, SD = 1.02 years) (50 males) participated in this cohort study. Preschoolers had speech and language, language-only, or speech-only disorders. Together with parent input, SLPs completed the CFCS at Time 1. Parents and SLPs then independently completed a validated change-detecting functional communication outcome measure, the Focus on Communication Outcomes Under Six (FOCUS©) three times – at assessment (Time 1), at the start of treatment …

Current Methods Of Evaluating Speech-Language Outcomes For Preschoolers With Communication Disorders: A Scoping Review Using The Icf-Cy, Barbara Jane Cunningham, Karla N. Washington, Amanda Binns, Katelyn Rolfe, Bernadette Robertson, Peter Rosenbaum

PRECISe Preschool Speech and Language Publications

Purpose: The purpose of this scoping review was to identify current measures used to evaluate speech-language outcomes for preschoolers with communication disorders within the framework of the International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health – Children and Youth (ICF-CY) (World Health Organization, 2007). Method: The review included five phases outlined by Arksey and O’Malley (2005) and further developed by Levac et al. 2010: (a) articulating the research question, (b) identifying relevant studies, (c) study selection, (d) charting the data, and (e) collating, summarizing and reporting the results. The WHO ICF-CY was used to frame the measures included. Results: A total …

Working Memory And Language Learning: A Review, Lisa Archibald, Lisa Archibald

Communication Sciences and Disorders Publications

Children with speech, language, and communication needs (SLCN) form a highly heterogeneous group including those with an unexplained delay in language development known as specific language impairment (SLI). There is growing recognition that multiple mechanisms underlie the range of profiles observed in these children. Broadly speaking, both the domain-general executive attentional system known as working memory and domain-specific linguistic processing have been implicated in children with SLI. It has been challenging to tease apart these influences, however, due to the symbiotic relationship between working memory and language learning. For example, working memory limits might constrain the linguistic detail encoded whereas …