Communication Sciences and Disorders Commons^™

The Effect Of Background Noise On Children's Selective Listening Behavior, Cathryn A. Chartier

Dissertations and Theses

This study investigated the effect of distracting linguistic background noise on children's ability to perform three-part commands. A total of twelve first grade subjects, six "normal" and six reading delayed, were individually administered a series of twenty, three-part commands. Each child performed once in quiet and once in a noise environment, and the performances in those two conditions were compared.

A Comparative Study Of The Expressive Preposition Usage Of Educable Mentally Retarded Children And Normals, Marie Deon Shope

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to investigate which of 26 prepositions are acquired expressively by educable mentally retarded children. This study was designed to determine if there was a significant difference between the number of prepositions expressed by an EMR sample and those expressed by normals of similar mental age, and if the same prepositions were used by the two groups at given mental ages. The correlation between chronological age and the number of prepositions expressed by the EMR population was also investigated.

Development And Use Of A Phonological Recoding Strategy For A Short-Term Memory Task By Normal And Mentally Retarded Subjects, Mary Jo Bartels

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the presence or absence of a phonological recoding strategy in the mentally retarded population by using a memory matching exercise with visual stimuli. Pictures of common objects were divided into eight pictures with names that sound alike (homophonous) and eight with names that do not sound alike (non-homophonous). The null hypothesis tested was:

No statistically significant difference will be found between mentally retarded and normal subjects in the development and use of a phonological recoding strategy for a short-term memory task, when the subjects are matched for receptive vocabulary age.

Relationship Of Auditory Short-Term Memory And Articulation Ability Of Eight-Year-Olds, Winona Eugenia Hoffinger

Dissertations and Theses

This study investigated the relationship of auditory short-term memory and articulation ability of eight-year-old children to determine if a relationship existed between auditory short-term memory ability and articulation ability. The specific question posed was: Is there a statistically significant difference in the auditory short-term memory ability of eight-year-olds with three or more phoneme errors and eight-year-olds with no phoneme errors?

A Study Of The Perceptual Parameters Of Voice In Aging Females, Barbara Ann Mathers

Dissertations and Theses

An interest in understanding the aging processes, as they relate to voice, has prompted research investigating physiological, acoustical, and perceptual attributes of the aging vocal mechanism. Recently, it has been demonstrated that perceptual parameters, in older male voices, differentiate speakers according to age estimations, as determined by a group of listeners.

The purpose of this study was to determine the perceptual characteristics of the female voice which are associated with perceived age, as contrasted to chronological age.

An Investigation Of The Consistency Of Judgments Regarding Successive Approximations Of /R/, Scott Robert Lane

Dissertations and Theses

This investigation sought to determine the accuracy and consistency of judgements made by three groups of judges, relative to successive approximations of /r/. The three groups were made up of speech pathologists, student trainees, and untrained individuals, respectively. It was the task of these judges to rank order three /r/ productions into the following categories: correct; partially correct; and incorrect. This task is basically the same as reinforcing approximations of /r/ within the therapy situation, and appears not to require extensive training. Many authors have found little difference between trained and untrained listeners in identifying correct versus incorrect articulation. An …

Analysis Of The Two Word Stage Of Language Development: An Ideographic Study, Lou Ann Mccoy

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this longitudinal, ideographic clinical research project was to analyze a corpus of expressive language emitted by a child at the two word stage of language development via grammatico-semantic relationships (Brown, 1973) and via Developmental Sentence Analysis (Lee, 1974).

A Comparison Of The Clinician-Client Interactions In Urban Language And Stuttering Clinics, Teresa M. Carnese

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this clinical research project was to use an interaction analysis system to compare the behaviors of clinicians and their clients with two types of communicative disorders and to determine how the clinicians utilized their clinical time. More specifically, this study employed the Conover Analysis System (Conover, 1974) and compared the client-clinician behaviors in the Portland State University Urban Language Clinic and Stuttering Clinic. The data which were gathered provided a baseline of the client-clinician behaviors in the two clinical settings.

The Berrigans At Catonsville: A Case Study In Symbolic Behavior As Rhetoric, Susan Baker

Dissertations and Theses

In May of 1968, Father Daniel Berrigan, a Jesuit priest, and his brother, Father Philip Berrigan, a Josephite priest, and seven others, entered the draft board offices in Catonsville, Maryland where they removed 378 draft files and burned them with homemade napalm.

This paper examines that event as a case study in symbolic behavior as rhetoric. In doing so, the author first seeks a definition of rhetoric, and a definition of symbolic behavior. Background material, both on the Berrigans, and on symbolic behavior as rhetoric is provided.

The major portion of the paper deals with the analysis of the event …

The Maximum Duration Of Phonation Of /A/ In Children, Kerry Lewis

Dissertations and Theses

Measurement of maximum duration of phonation has been suggested by several voice experts as a clinical tool for assessing vocal function. Most of the investigations of maximum phonation time have been conducted using adult populations. exceptions to this can be found in the studies by Launer (1971) and Coombs (1976). An apparent need, therefore, existed to investigate maximum phonation time in children.

The present study was designed to investigate the affects of age, sex, height, weight and vital capacity on the maximum duration of phonation of sustained /a/ in children eight and ten years of age when controlling for pitch …

Listening Rate Preferences Of Language Disordered Children As A Function Of Grammatical Complexity, Wendy Lee Orloff

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this investigation was to determine if performance on a language comprehension task, varying in number of syntactical units (i.e., grammatical complexity) was affected by altered rates of speech. A total of twenty-four language disordered children, aged 7 years, 8 months, through 9 years, 8 months, who were enrolled in language/learning disorders classrooms in the Portland Public Schools served as subjects. The Assessment of Children's Language Comprehension (Foster et al., 1972) test was administered to each subject via audio-tape at one expanded (100 wpm), one normal (150 wpm), and two compressed rates (200, 250 wpm) of speech.

The …

The Influence Of Age And Stimuli On The Explanations Of "Same" And "Different" By Young Children, Pamela Callas Senders

Dissertations and Theses

This study investigated the influence of chronological age and stimuli on the explanations of "same" and "different" by young children. Seventy children, between by young children. the ages of three-years, six-months and nine-years, six-months, selected on the basis of chronological age, normal speech and language development, and normal verbal maturity, were involved as subjects. A test consisting of a series of verbal tasks was administered to each child. The experimenter recorded and later analyzed and classified all responses for each child, following specific guidelines for judging appropriateness of response and assigning each appropriate response to one of three classifications.

The Use Of Telegraphic Reading Material By Aphasic Patients, Sylvia Diane Tovey

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to determine if aphasic patients have significantly more correct answers for telegraphically written material when compared to normally written material.

Twenty subjects from the greater Portland metropolitan area were selected to be included in this study. The ages or the subjects ranged from forty-two through sixty-five years with a mean of fifty-four years.

The test material consisted of two paragraphs controlled for fourth grade grammar and vocabulary and two paragraphs controlled for sixth grade grammar and vocabulary. A normally written and a telegraphically written paragraph were used for each of the four paragraphs for …

Speech Improvement As An Aid To Language Development, Marilyn Gould Knauf

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this investigation was to examine and estimate the effectiveness of a group speech and language improvement program on the speech and language skills of children at the kindergarten level.

A Concept Acquisition Project Comparing Receptive And Expressive Programs, Carol Paulson Carpenter

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this project was to measure and compare the language concept growth of two clients who utilized different response modes; client A utilized the expressive mode and client B utilized the receptive mode. A systematic management program was administered to each client for eighteen sessions. The specific questions posed were:

1. Did both clients demonstrate the ability to verbalize concepts on the post-test of the individualized programs?

2. Did client A learn more concepts in eighteen sessions than client B as measured by the post-tests of the individualized programs and the Boehm Test of Basic Concepts?

3. …

Predicting Synergy Of Movement For Speech From Feeding Assessment Or Diadochokinesis In Cerebral Palsied Children, Meredith Kathryn Van Bemmel

Dissertations and Theses

The normal development of articulation is built upon the normal development of motor skills (Morris, 1970). Cerebral palsy is caused by brain damage and is characterized by neuromuscular incoordination. This interferes with normal development of motor skills. It also may interfere with normal development of speech if dysarthria is present. Because of these factors, the synergy of movement of the oral muscles used in feeding, in speech and in execution of diadochokinetic movements of the oral muscles is affected.

The purpose of the study was to determine whether or not the performance of feeding skill movements or the performance of …

A Quantitative Study Based On A Sonographic Examination Of Four Vowel Sounds In Alaryngeal Speech, Cheryl Ann Schultz

Dissertations and Theses

Laryngectomy, as a treatment for malignant laryngeal lesions, requires the patient to seek a substitute method of producing speech. Three types of alaryngeal speech were described: esophageal, Asai, and artificial larynx. One consideration in deciding which mode of speech is best for the patient is how closely each type of alaryngeal speech approximates normal.

This investigation was an objective examination of esophageal, Asai, and artificial larynx speech as compared with normal in males and females.

Toward A Phenomenology Of Acculturation : An Investigation Of Foreign Students' Perception Of Competency Along Phenomenological Dimensions Of Acculturation By Means Of Guttman's Scalogram Analysis, Janet Metzger

Dissertations and Theses

The acculturative process is a continuing process beginning at the moment of contact between peoples of different cultures. This process subsumes the acquisition of new traits from concrete elements to behavioral patterns to abstractions, a growth in perception, and socialization into the host culture. The process is affected by other variables such as personality structure and national origin. Thus far, it has been difficult to find empirical studies which reveal how a person perceives and feels as he moves through these processes.

The Assessment Of Interviewee Experience Of The Expressive And Interpersonal Meanings Of Interviewer Nonverbal Behavior, Carol Ann Bloom

Dissertations and Theses

The present study investigated the expressive and interpersonal functioning of nonverbal behavior within a dyadic relationship. A questionnaire derived from the Interpersonal Perception Method of Laing, Phillipson, and Lee (1966) was developed to assess the impact of an interviewer’s nonverbal behavior on the interviewee’s experience of herself, the interviewer, and their relationship.

To determine this impact and evaluate the usefulness of the instrument, two interviewer nonverbal behavior sets were defined. Two female interviewers interviewed a total of sixteen female interviewees for each behavior set, using the same verbal style and interview format throughout each one-time interview. The interviewees then filled …

Assessment Of Hearing Sensitivity By Use Of The Acoustic Reflex In The Geriatric Population, Donna Elvira Gilham

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to investigate the use of the SPAR test (Sensitivity Prediction by the Acoustic Reflex) on a sample of older adults who professed negative otologic histories. Twenty-seven subjects, ranging in age from sixty-four to eighty-three years of age (54 ears) were ultimately chosen as subjects. A young adult group, ranging in age from eighteen to thirty years of age, with normal audiometric hearing levels served as controls. Reflex threshold levels were obtained using 500 Hz., 1000 Hz., and 2000 Hz. pure tones and noise stimuli. Assessment of hearing loss was calculated on the difference between …

Auditory Short-Term Memory Span And Sequence For Five Different Stimulus Types, Sandra L. Burford

Dissertations and Theses

This study investigated the effects of stimulus type on the measurement s of short-term auditory memory span and short-term auditory memory for sequence to determine if span and sequence measures were the same within each of five subtests and if span and/or sequence measures varied across all five subtests. A total of forty-five normal second, third, and fourth grade subjects were individually administered the Auditory Memory Test Battery (AMTB) which consisted of five tape-recorded tests of recall for digit sequences, unrelated word sequences, related word sequences, nonsense word sequences, and sentences. The subjects responded verbally to the randomly presented subtests. …

Listener Perception Of Fluent, Breathy, And Imprecisely Articulated Speech Of Stutterers, Diane Carol Campbell

Dissertations and Theses

Because communication involves both a sender of messages, each person could influence the other’s feelings about speaking and listening. The reactions of each member of this communication network will determine how communication will flow in the future. With an understanding of the feedback system between speakers and listeners, researchers have designed management programs which allow the speaker who stutters to develop a new pattern of speech which does not hinder his communication efforts. Fluency is the primary consideration, and normalcy of speech is second. One such program has been devised by Casteel (1974).

In Casteel’s stuttering management program a person …

A Comparison Study Of The Syntactical Language Skills Of Children In The Monterey Language Program With Children Not In A Formal Language Program, Bonnie Lucille Owens

Dissertations and Theses

Primarily this study sought to investigate growth of syntactical skills in language delayed children enrolled in the Monterey Language Program (MLP) (Gray and Ryan, 1973a) in several Portland Public Schools during the 1974-75 school year. The Programmed Conditioning for Language Test (PCLT) (Gray and Ryan, 1973a) and the Northwest Syntax Screening Test (NSST) (Lee, 1970) were administered and pretest scores compared to posttest scores. A comparison group was administered the same test; their growth in syntactical skills as measured by the PCLT and NSST was compared with the growth of the experimental group. A secondary purpose of this investigation was …

Effects Of Verbal And Pantomime Stimulus Input On The Short Term Sequential Recall Of Aphasic Adults, Lauryl Suzanne Ivers Grotting

Dissertations and Theses

The question posed in this investigation was: Which stimulus input mode, verbal, pantomime, or combined verbal and pantomime, is more effective in facilitating short term sequential recall of language material with aphasic adults?

A Comparison Of The Vocabulary Ability Of Four- And Five-Year-Old Bilingual Mexican-American Children With That Of Monolingual Anglo-American Children, Amparo Abila

Dissertations and Theses

This study sought to investigate the Spanish and English receptive pictorial vocabulary of four- and five-year-old bilingual Mexican-American children. The performance of bilingual Mexican-American children on the Mexican-American Inventory of Receptive Abilities--MIRA (Nelson-Burgess and Meyerson, 1975) and the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test--PPVT (Dunn, 1959) was compared to that of monolingual Anglo-American children of the same relative age range and socioeconomic level.

The Maximum Duration Of Phonation Of /A/ In Normal And Hoarse Voiced Children, Jo Coombs

Dissertations and Theses

Hoarseness seems to be the primary type of voice disorder occurring in school-aged children. Voice experts have suggested measurement of maximum phonation times as a clinical tool for assessing vocal function (Fairbanks, 1940; Westlake and Rutherford, 1961; Irwin, 1965; Boone, 1971). Most of the studies on duration of phonation have used adults as subjects; few investigations have involved children. An apparent need, therefore, existed to investigate duration of phonation in young children.

An Investigation Of The Performance Of Black Children Age 3.6 To 6.0 On Three Subtests Of The Illinois Test Of Psycholinguistic Abilities, George Edward James

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to compare language performance on three subtests of the Illinois Test of Psycholinguistic Abilities (ITPA) of a Black population of children ages three years six months through six years in Portland, Oregon, with the standardizing population of the ITPA. These subtests are Auditory Reception, Grammatic Closure, and Verbal Expression.

The null hypotheses tested were:

1. There is no difference in scores on the Auditory Reception subtest of the ITPA between the standardizing test population and that of Black children ages three years six months through six years in Portland, Oregon.
2. There is no difference in …

A Study Of The Relationship Between Articulation Proficiency And Auditory Conceptualization Ability, Alana Fenwick Bradley

Dissertations and Theses

This investigation compared the auditory conceptualization ability (Lindamood and Lindamood, 1970) or vocal phonics (Van Riper, 1963) of third grade students with and without articulation deficits in an attempt to determine if a relationship exists between auditory conceptualization ability and articulation ability. The specific question posed was: Is there a statistically significant difference in auditory conceptualization ability between third grade children with various degrees of articulation deficits and third grade children without articulation deficits.

A Comparison Of Two Articulation Management Approaches, Cindy Sue Sykes

Dissertations and Theses

This clinical project sought to examine two different approaches to the treatment of functional articulatory disorders and to implement these two approaches in the actual management of two articulation disordered clients. The two approaches selected were the traditional auditory-stimulus method (Van Riper, 1972) and the sensory-motor approach (McDonald, 1964b) to testing and treatment. It was the intention of this project to compare the results of articulation intervention of the two methods.

Articulation Error Rates For Oral Reading Tasks In Children With Developmental Apraxia Of Speech, Kenneth Jerry Arkell

Dissertations and Theses

Recently, there have appeared in the literature treatment approaches for the disorder of developmental apraxia of speech in children. These treatment approaches make use of the visual modality, and specifically use reading stimulus materials to improve articulation skills. Several authors have endorsed this use of reading materials in the treatment of developmental apraxia of speech in children including Morley (1965); Rosenthal (1971); Rosenbek and Wertz (1972); and Rosenbek et al. (1974). These treatment approaches have been offered via the literature without the benefit of empirical verification that children with DAS will make fewer articulation errors while reading aloud than they …