Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Examination Of Benefits Of Binaural Auditory Stimulation For Children With A Cochlear Implant And A Hearing Aid In The Contralateral Ear, Evonne Nicol Altesleben

Dissertations and Theses

Congenital or acquired hearing impairments put children at risk of delayed language development. Today the cochlear implant (Cl) is a viable amplification option for some children with profound hearing losses. Audiologists often recommend that children with hearing impairments be fitted with binaural hearing aids in the hope that maximum stimulation will occur and that auditory deprivation will be lessened. An area lacking investigation is whether binaural stimulation will be beneficial to the cochlear implant recipient.Controversy also exists regarding the use of a hearing aid in the non-implanted ear.

The focus of this study was to compare binaural auditory stimulation benefits …

A Comparison Of Listener And Speaker Perception Of Stuttering Events, Anne Jocelyn Schagen

Dissertations and Theses

Stuttering identification, measurement, research, and treatment have for many years had their basis in listener judgment of stuttering, but the covert aspects of stuttering are not behaviorally observable, and inter-rater reliability has repeatedly been shown to be low. Perkins (1990) has emphasized the importance of consulting the speaker for the most reliable perspective on stuttering identification. The question raised in this study is whether there is a significant correlation between stuttering identification based upon internal perception by a speaker who stutters, and identification based upon external perception of listeners, with points of inter-rater disagreement removed. Six adult males, aged 18 …

First Language And Gesture Acquisition In Children With Cerebral Palsy, Ann Christine Friel

Dissertations and Theses

Many children with Cerebral Palsy (CP) will receive speech and language intervention throughout their lives. However, there is a lack of descriptive data for language and gesture development of children with CP. When assessing the skills of children with CP, standardized tests and clinical observations have several inherent faults due to time constraints, normative data, and physical constraints. An alternative method used to gather data in the area of language and gesture development is parent questionnaire. The MacArthur Communicative Development Inventory: Words & Gestures was chosen for this study because it has been shown to be an efficient, valid, and …

Evaluation Of Accelerated Plethysmography As A Measure Of Health And Fitness, Angela Marie Humble

Dissertations and Theses

Plethysmography is a technique used for measuring alterations in the volume of organs or limbs. Japanese researchers have developed a relatively new application of plethysmography (accelerated plethysmography) that uses information from the pulse wave measured at the fingertip to make inferences about health and fitness status. The instrument used to collect data -- the Precaregraph (accelerated plethysmograph) -- provides an accelerated pulse waveform and APG index, a mathematical representation of the waveform. It was the purpose of this study to evaluate the validity of the Precaregraph by examining the relationship between the APG index and previously validated measures of health …

Comparison Of Cardiovascular Disease Risk In Japanese Natives And Japanese Americans, Mayumi Takeda

Dissertations and Theses

This research examined potential differences in cardiovascular disease risk (CVR) in two groups: Japanese Natives living in Saga, Japan and Japanese Americans living in or near Portland, Oregon. It explored data gathered in an effort to build a theoretical framework for future studies. Environmental, nutritional, and lifestyle differences were also examined to compare the health status of Japanese residents in the two countries. The history of Japan from World War II to present, and the history of Japanese Americans both first and second generation, are discussed in the literature review.

Accelerated plethysmography (APG) is a technique which presumably allows the …

The Effectiveness Of Planned Transitions Therapy In The Treatment Of Three Children With Developmental Verbal Dyspraxia, Emily M. Campbell

Dissertations and Theses

The intent of this investigation was to note whether use of Planned Transitions Therapy (PTT) would help to improve the intelligibility of 3 children with developmental verbal dyspraxia (DVD). PTT is an approach that emphasizes the sequencing of lingual movements from one place of articulation to the next for the production of speech. Rather than focusing on the production of sounds, exercises with PTT focus on transitions between sounds.

Three male subjects presenting characteristics of DVD received 30-minute treatment sessions with a traditional intervention approach for 6 weeks. Each subject also received periods of intervention with PTT. Subject A received …

A Comparison Of Speech Onset Latencies Between Persons Who Stutter And Persons Who Do Not Stutter Across Varied Phonological Priming Conditions, Brian Joseff Riffel

Dissertations and Theses

A recent theory of stuttering, the "Covert Repair Hypothesis of Disfluencies" (Kolk & Postma, in press; Postma & Kolk, 1992, 1993), accounts for the difference between persons who stutter (PWS) and persons who do not stutter (PWNS) by concluding that PWS are slower than PWNS in their phonological encoding abilities. This belief is supported through experimental studies by Bosshardt (1990) and Postma et al (1990), both of which found PWS to be slower than PWNS in silent reading tasks. In addition, Wijnen and Boers (1994) found that PWS demonstrate longer speech onset latencies than PWNS at baseline, but then approximate …

Effects Of Orofacial Clefts On Early Career Maturity, Jeanniekay Mccall

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to investigate career maturity in 14- and 17- year-old male and female adolescents with cleft lip and palate. Career maturity is defined as the repertoire of behaviors pertinent to identifying, choosing, planning, and executing career goals available to a specific individual as compared with those possessed by a peer group. Clefting is a congenital anomaly that occurs in approximately 1 in every 600 newborns and can result in facial scarring and speech deviations that may last throughout life, and may result in complications such as withdrawal, inhibition, lower self-esteem, and increasing self-doubt regarding interpersonal …

Receptive Language And Cognitive Skills In Preschool-Aged Children With Cerebral Palsy, Susan Elizabeth Panton

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between receptive language skills and nonverbal cognitive skills in preschool children with cerebral palsy and a mild to severe motor speech impairment. In addition, the relationship between the severity of motor impairment and receptive communication and nonverbal cognitive skills was also examined. Fifteen subjects, 10 males and 5 females, were included in this study. The subjects are part of a larger longitudinal study being completed within Portland State University's Speech and Hearing Sciences Program. All of the subjects participated in two in-home assessment sessions, which were approximately 2 hours long. …

Real Ear To Coupler Differences In Children And The Effects Of Hearing And Microphone Location, Cindy Richardson

Dissertations and Theses

The early identification of hearing loss and selection of appropriate amplification are the most important goals for children with hearing impairment. Selection of appropriate amplification for a pediatric population involves maximizing the hearing impaired child's residual hearing, for development of speech and language. In addition, it is important to consider the acoustic differences between the 2 cc coupler versus the real ear.

During the hearing aid selection process, it is customary to predict how a hearing aid will respond in the real ear, based upon a given 2 cc coupler response. Killion and Monser (1980) developed a formula for converting …

Pregnancy Outcomes: A Study Testing A Model For Predicting Health Outcomes In Pregnancy, Tamera Ann Hart-Johnson

Dissertations and Theses

There is a persistent relationship between socioeconomic status and physical health outcomes found in the literature; however the variables mediating this relationship are many, and ways that they interact with each other are complex. The goal of understanding this relationship is to decrease the disparity in health by socioeconomic status.

This study tested a biopsychosocial model proposed by David Williams (1990) to explain the relationship between socioeconomic status and physical health outcomes. The model included the following latent factors: demographics, socioeconomic status, biomedical risk, medical care, psychosocial variables, and health outcomes. The model was tested through a secondary data analysis. …

Gross Estimation: A Study Of The Clinical Validity For Measuring Intelligibility, Heather Gail Clarke

Dissertations and Theses

Intelligibility is the most fundamental factor for successful speech communication. Measurements of speech intelligibility carry important clinical consequences that relate to description of severity, need for intervention, intervention goals, service delivery options, and treatment efficacy. It is important, therefore, that speech-language pathologists use an approach that reflects an accurate and valid measure of intelligibility. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between the two seemingly most common procedures used by practicing speech-language pathologists for measuring speech intelligibility: the gross estimation of intelligibility procedure, and the orthographic transcription procedure. Twelve 100-word connected speech samples were analyzed by 4 …

El Español En El Condado De Multnomah, La Interpretación Médica Contextual, Y Las Funciones Del Intérprete Médico Profesional (The Spanish Language In Multnomah County, Contextual Medical Interpreting, And The Role Of The Professional Interpreter), Marco Polo Hernández Cuevas

Dissertations and Theses

El objeto de este trabajo es detectar el español hablado en el condado de Multnomah, Oregón, estudiar el significado de contextualidad en el ejercicio de la interpretación médica de español-inglés e inglés-español, y proponer una descripción de funciones para el intérprete basada en el perfil del cliente que solicita servicios en las clínicas públicas de la entidad.

El autor a través de un micro-enfoque coloca al lector en el centro del debate nacional actual acerca del significado de la interpretación contextual y las funciones del intérprete médico profesional; basándose en los censos estadounidenses de 1990 y en reportajes y estudios--tanto …

A Study Of The Level Of Knowledge Of Adult Foster Care Home Providers In Multnomah County In The State Of Oregon About Hearing Loss, Hearing Aids And Communication Strategies, Marsha Peters Johnson

Dissertations and Theses

The level of knowledge about hearing aid use, function, and maintenance of caregivers of the elderly persons who are hearing impaired and residing in adult foster care homes in Multnomah County in the state of Oregon was assessed via a 1 7 question survey. Twenty subjects participated in the study. Subjects' responses demonstrated poor knowledge about this subject and indicated that residents' needs are unmet. The results clearly demonstrate the subjects' limited knowledge of the operation of hearing aids, poor grasp of the basic troubleshooting methods for repair, and inaccurate perceptions of hearing aid adjustment. Access to professional audiologic care …

Comparison Of Intelligibility Estimation And Orthographic Transcription Methods By Preprofessional Speech-Language Pathologists, Kristi M. Mowe

Dissertations and Theses

When the fundamental means of communications is speech, the main component for successful communication is intelligibility. The speech of children with disordered phonologies is often unintelligible; therefore, accurate and reliable methods of measuring intelligibility are essential when determining eligibility, and in selecting and providing appropriate treatment.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between the percentage estimation method and the orthographic transcription method when measuring speech intelligibility by preprofessional listeners. For this study, the standard measurement of intelligibility was defined as the percentage of words understood in a continuous speech sample derived from orthographic transcription of the …

Ethnography Of Communication As On Organizational Communication Assessment Tool: A Test Of The Method, Francisca Inez Trujillo-Dalbey

Dissertations and Theses

Professional organizational consultants and researchers performing organizational communication assessments with non-profit boards of directors have few tools available to them and many of these tools under emphasize the centrality of communication and overlook the power-asdomination (Mumby, 1994) issues present in organizations. This study tested the ethnography of communication (Hymes, 1972) as an organizational communication assessment tool with a board of directors of a non-profit organization in Oregon and examined the results by employing Mumby's (1994) construct, thereby conducting a critical ethnography of communication.

This study offers important insights into boards of directors of nonprofit organizations and has important implications for …

The Generalization Of Stridency From Treated To Untreated Misarticulated Phonemes, Kathleen Ann Ozanich

Dissertations and Theses

This single-subject study was developed to investigate the potential of treating one misarticulated strident phoneme to induce generalization to other misarticulated strident phonemes. One male, age 4 years 4 months, was trained on /s/ in words. A training program, modified from the Hodson and Paden (1991) phonological cycling approach, was used. Two untreated phonemes from separate and distinct sound classes were monitored as control sounds for across-feature class change. A total of 24 treatment sessions of 50 minutes each were provided. The results from the pretest and posttest showed an increase of 51% correct stridency production for all untreated stridents …

Rethinking Appropriateness: A Look At Hegemonic Ideals As Related To Perceived Communication Competence In Women, Kristi L. Meade

Dissertations and Theses

The author argues that the hegemonically-constructed criteria of "appropriateness," as related to communication competence, is not palatable or functional for female communicators much of the time for it serves a social milieu which marginalizes women. Spitzberg and Duran (1993) state, "appropriateness seems spring loaded towards the status quo'' and may work against the interests of certain groups. In this paper, the author attempts to illuminate evidence of power imbalances covertly imbedded in the ideologically complex determination of appropriateness as a central criteria for communication competence in women. Competence theory is problematic and must be re-evaluated: it is contradictory and confusing, …

Effects Of Lifestyle Change And Satisfaction With Voice On Psychosocial Adjustment Of Laryngectomees, Susan M. Nicks

Dissertations and Theses

This research sought to examine the level of psychosocial adjustment in a sample of laryngectomees by describing demographic characteristics, alcohol consumption, and tobacco use pre-cancer diagnosis and currently, satisfaction with voice, and by examining the relationship between each subject's level of psychosocial adjustment and lifestyle change, i.e. cessation of tobacco and/or alcohol consumption, and satisfaction with voice.

Twenty-one subjects completed (a) Demographic Questionnaire, (b) Lifestyle Questionnaire, (c) Satisfaction with Voice Scale, and (d) Psychosocial Adjustment to Illness Scale-Self Report (PAIS-SR). Descriptive and inferential statistics were completed.

The average age of the subject group (16 males, 5 females) was 72.5 years, …

Voice Measures And Listener Acceptance Of Tracheoesophageal Speech, Heidii Ilona Roberts

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship of perturbation measures, jitter and shimmer, and ratings of acceptability by naive listeners. Six tracheoesophageal (TEP) speakers and 14 naive listeners participated in the study. Each speaker was recorded while reading The Rainbow passage. The six samples of voice were then presented to the listeners for rating. The naive listeners used an equal appearing seven pint scale to rate voice acceptability. No significant correlation was found between the perturbation measures and the ratings of acceptability. Due to the small subject size in this study, the findings are inconclusive. The results …

Perceptions Of Stuttering Intervention Services Received At Portland State, Franklin Wayne Bender

Dissertations and Theses

As consumers become more knowledgeable and more demanding of accountability, health care workers, including speech-language pathologists, are being required to justify the effectiveness of their work by documenting the results of their treatment programs. There are different ways to measure treatment outcomes. Outcomes may be measured qualitatively and/or quantitatively. Qualitative or subjective outcomes are difficult to define and measure and few studies of this type have been reported in the literature. Because few studies have been reported in the literature regarding client satisfaction, this area was investigated in this research project. The focus of this project was to ascertain whether …

The First Publicly Funded, Government Sponsored Natural Medicine Clinic : A Descriptive Case Study, Jennifer Lynne Schneider

Dissertations and Theses

The Natural Medicine Clinic (NMC) is the first publicly funded, government sponsored clinic of its kind in the United States to integrate natural medicine and conventional medicine at the public health level. The purpose of this thesis was to provide a holistic, contextually-based, in-depth, and meaningful description of the emergence and development of the NMC.

For the purposes of illuminating and understanding the formation of the NMC, a descriptive case study was chosen. The case study approach is considered an excellent strategy for describing in-depth a unique, real-life phenomenon such as the NMC, and when posing how or why research …

Conflict Is Optional, Difference Is Not : Toward A Difference-Based Approach To Interpersonal Communication, James Arthur Gieseking Jr

Dissertations and Theses

An examination of the discussion of conflict in general, interpersonal and small group communication texts indicates that the conceptualization of conflict theory in the U.S. is increasingly dependent upon three theoretical pillars: the qualities of ubiquity, utility and necessity. A critical, deconstructive analysis of these operational characteristics in relation to the actual human experience of conflict reveals that they are more appropriately associated with the essential condition of difference, rather than conflict, and the concepts of conflict and difference are generally conflated in U.S. communication texts. The synergistic interaction of a variety of specific cultural constructs can be seen as …

A Survey Of Swallowing Symptoms Associated With The Premenstrual Cycle, Jill Gigi Calcagno

Dissertations and Theses

Premenstrual Syndrome (PMS) has been associated with a vast number of physical, emotional, social, and behavioral symptomatology. Laryngeal disturbances invoked by hormonal imbalance may affect swallowing as a component of PMS. Previous studies regarding swallowing ability during the premenstrual cycle were nonexistent.

This study examined the relationship between PMS and swallowing disorders. One hundred thirty-seven females completed a written survey that elicited information regarding biographical data, presence and severity of cyclically recurring symptoms associated with PMS, and perceived presence and severity of dysphagia during premenstruum.

Spearman Rank (Rho) correlation coefficients were computed to determine the extent of the relationship between …