Communication Sciences and Disorders Commons^™

Pre-Kindergarteners' Performance On The Btbc, Amelia Wittwer Ouellette

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to detect the amount of variability in performance among low, middle and high SES pre-kindergarteners on the entire Boehm Test of Basic Concepts. The study sought to answer the following questions. What is the distribution of BTBC scores among low, middle and high SES pre-kindergarteners? Do the scores of pre-kindergarten children vary significantly as to socioeconomic status?

A Comparative Study Of The Developmental Sentence Scoring Normative Data Obtained In Portland, Oregon, And The Midwest, For Children Between The Ages Of 5.0 And 5.11 Years, Eileen Mcnutt

Dissertations and Theses

The focus of this study was the Developmental Sentence Scoring (DSS), developed by Lee and Canter (1971) and Lee (1974). The DSS is used to analyze a corpus of 50 utterances according to eight grammatical categories. Once a DSS score is determined for an individual child, that child's performance can be compared to that of his/ her peers, using the normative data provided by Lee (1974), and reported by Koenigsknecht (1974). This normative data has been widely used both clinically, and in research projects with little regard for the validity of the norms when applied outside the Midwest, where it …

The Influence Of Situational Cues On A Standardized Speechreading Test, Maria Navarro Montserrat

Dissertations and Theses

Aural rehabilitation programs recommend the use of situational cues by hearing-impaired individuals to facilitate understanding in everyday communication. Although this practice is generally accepted, little is known about the use of situational clues as an adjunct to speechreading performance.

The purpose of the present study was to determine the influence of situational cues on a standardized speechreading test in order to assess an individual's natural speechreading ability. The widely used, standardized Utley Lipreading Test was selected to which photoslides of message-related situational cues were added. The Utley Lipreading Test consists of two relatively equivalent test lists, containing series of unrelated …

A Comparative Study Of The Northwestern Syntax Screening Test Data, Sharon Ann Moore

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to compare NSST data (Lee, 1969, 1971) with data obtained in Portland, Oregon for children 4.0-4.11 years of age. The questions this study sought to answer were: 1) Is there a significant difference between the expressive and receptive scores obtained by Lee, (1969, 1971) and the scores obtained in Portland, Oregon? 2) What are the means, standard deviations and percentiles of the NSST scores of a select group of four-year-old children in Portland, Oregon?

A Comparative Study Of The Teem And The Morphological Aspects Of The Blst And Told-P, Kathleen Marie Zuehlsdorff

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this investigation was to examine the construct validity of a new test, which purports to measure morphology, entitled Test for Examining Expressive Morphology (TEEM) (Shipley, Stone and Sue, 1983). Additional tests of expressive morphology, the Bankson Language Screening Test (BLST) (Bankson, 1977) and the Test of Language Development-Primary (TOLD-P) (Newcomer and Hammill, 1982) were utilized to determine the association of the TEEM with two highly-researched instruments.

A Comparative Study Of The Developmental Sentence Scoring Normative Data Obtained In Canby, Oregon, And The Midwest, For Children Between The Ages Of 6.0 And 6.11 Years, Stacy Ann Tilden-Browning

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the effect of geographical differences on the Developmental Sentence Scoring normative data for children ages 6.0 to 6.11, by comparing the original DSS normative data with that obtained in Canby, Oregon. A collateral purpose was to develop norms for the geographical area of Canby, Oregon, using the DSS procedure. Forty children, ten within each of the four, three-month age subgroups between 6.0 and 6.11, were chosen. All of the children came from monolingual, middle-class families and had normal hearing, normal receptive vocabulary skills, and no known unusual social, developmental, or behavioral …

A Comparison Of Preschool Scores On The Ppvt-R And The Teld, Diana Schneider

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to compare PPVT-R age equivalents with language ages from the Test of Early Language Development - TELD 2 (Hresko, Reid, and Hammill, 1981) for a preschool population. This study sought to find the strength of association between the PPVT-R age equivalents and the TELD language ages. The subjects used in the study were 54 preschool children ranging in age from 3-6 through 4-7 years. Normal children were selected for the study based on their chronological age, sex, and socioeconomic status - SES.

A Comparison Of Motoric And Linguistic Features In Graphic Samples Of Fluent And Nonfluent Aphasic Persons Over Three Time Intervals, Babette Fisher

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to compare the graphic production of fluent and non-fluent aphasic groups in terms of motoric and linguistic characteristics at three intervals of recovery, and to analyze change over time after combining the fluent and non-fluent aphasic groups.

Some Effects Of Cochlear Implant Use On Loudness Modulation, Carol F. Ross

Dissertations and Theses

In this study, five deaf individuals with cochlear implants were presented with noise that was manipulated systematically, to test the hypothesis that deaf persons using cochlear prostheses will demonstrate intensity regulation of their vocal output that is more appropriate when their implants are turned on than when turned off. The intensity of their vocal output was measured to determine if they demonstrated a Lombard response, that is, a systematic increase in vocal intensity with increasing intensity of background noise. Results from the study were mixed. With implants on, three subjects made systematic increases in vocal intensity with increasing background noise, …

Survey Of Oregon's Public School Hearing Conservation Programs, Jill M. Jordan-Trestik

Dissertations and Theses

A survey instrument was designed to yield information regarding hearing conservation activities. This instrument was then distributed to those individuals identified as the coordinators for the various district programs.

Use Of Synthetic Speech In Tests Of Speech Discrimination, Jane S. Gordon

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to develop two tape-recorded synthetic speech discrimination test tapes and assess their intelligibility in order to determine whether or not synthetic speech was intelligible and if it would prove useful in speech discrimination testing. Four scramblings of the second MU-6 monosyllable word list were generated by the ECHO l C speech synthesizer using two methods of generating synthetic speech called TEXTALKER and SPEAKEASY. These stimuli were presented in one ear to forty normal-hearing adult subjects, 36 females and 4 males, at 60 dB HL under headphone&. Each subject listened to two different scramblings of …

Developmental Sentence Scoring: A Comparative Study Conducted In Portland, Oregon, Kathryn Marie Mccluskey

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this investigation was to replicate the study conducted by Lee and Canter (1971) and Lee (1974a) to determine if a significant difference among the scores in the two studies existed due to geographical location, and to initiate the establishment of norms for the Portland, Oregon geographical area. Forty children, selected on the basis of chronological age (4.0 to 4.11 years), normal receptive vocabulary skills, normal hearing, and a monolingual background, participated as subjects. A language sample of fifty utterances was elicited from each child and analyzed according to the Developmental Sentence Scoring (DSS) procedure.

A Validation Study Of The Screening Test For Developmental Apraxia Of Speech, Deborah L. Thorsen

Dissertations and Theses

The term "developmental apraxia of speech" (DAS) has been a confusing one since Morley, Court and Miller (1954) first applied it to articulatory patterns of a specific group of children. Until recently, the differentiation of diagnostic features of DAS in children as compared to other articulatory disorders has been difficult. One evaluation tool, developed by Blakeley (1980), to assist in differential diagnosis of DAS is the Screening Test for Developmental Apraxia of Speech (STDAS). This study examined the validity of this tool by comparing its results with the evaluations by three Speech-Language Pathologists knowledgeable in the area of developmental and/or …

Survey Of Language Acquisition Techniques Provided By Parents Of Talented And Gifted Children, Sharon Engen

Dissertations and Theses

Most of the studies on language acquisition techniques provided by parents have been addressed to the training of parents for prevention of language disabilities and disorders (Latzke, 1975). Few investigations have involved language acquisition of the superior functioning child (Patterson, 1981). Hence, the purpose of this study was to survey language acquisition techniques provided by parents of talented and gifted children (TAG) who were enrolled in the Beaverton School District Number 48 TAG program. The first question dealt with what materials and/or equipment did the parents use in aiding their child's language development. The second question dealt with which particular …

Normative Data For The Tennessee Test Of Rhythm And Intonation Patterns (T-Trip), Ray Drommond

Dissertations and Theses

Prosody is the flow of speech created by controlling elements such as pitch, rate, loudness, and stress (Tiffany and Carrell, 1977). Prosody is vital to intelligibility of speech and also communicates meaning. Despite the importance of prosody, however, few tests for the adequacy of prosodic ability in young children have been published (Koike and Asp, 1981a). To remedy this paucity of tools, Koike and Asp published the Tennessee Test of Rhythm and Intonation Patterns (T-TRIP). The clinical usefulness of the T-TRIP has been limited by a lack of normative data against which to compare individual children's performance.

The purpose of …

Normative Data On The Auditory Memory Performance Of Three- And Four-Year Old Children As Measured By The Auditory Memory Test Package (Amtp), Patricia R. Davis

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to collect normative data on the auditory memory performance of three- and four-year old children as measured by the Auditory Memory Test Package (AMTP). Specifically, this investigation sought to answer one question: is the AMTP sensitive to age differences when administered to young children ages 3.0-4.11?

Audiological Characteristics Of The Monge Family Of Costa Rica, Christine Moulton

Dissertations and Theses

The audiological characteristics of the Monge family of Costa Rica were investigated in a sample of fifty-two affected members and twelve unaffected members. Through laboratory analysis by staff personnel from the University of Costa Rica and audiological test results obtained in the present investigation, it was concluded that affected Monge members demonstrate a slowly progressive low frequency sensorineural hearing loss of autosomal dominant transmission. The initial site of lesion appears to be the apical portion of the cochlea, with significant onset occurring during early childhood following normal speech and language acquisition. The rate at which the hearing loss progresses and …

The Expressive Acquisition Of Locative And Directional Prepositions By Severely-To-Profoundly Hearing Impaired Children, Joann Warlick

Dissertations and Theses

Prepositions are important for the syntactical structure of the sentence and also to relate meaning, particularly meaning associated with concepts of place and time. Expressive acquisition of function words, including prepositions, is significantly delayed in the hearing impaired population. Yet, acquisition sequence for expressive prepositions has not been determined for this population.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the oral expressive acquisition of locative and directional single word prepositions in severely-to-profoundly hearing impaired children. The question this study sought to answer was: At what age levels are seventeen locative and directional single word prepositions expressively acquired by severely- …

The Correlation Between Expressive Language Delay In Children And Their Motor Abilities, Gail G. Cunningham

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of the present study was to determine the correlation between expressive language delay in children and their gross and fine motor skills. Twenty children five years through six years, eleven months with a diagnosed expressive language delay, were selected to participate in the study. Each was screened on the basis of normal hearing, receptive vocabulary skills, motor functioning, and an expressive language delay of one year or more. After screening procedures, each child was administered the Preschool Language Scale-PLS (Zimmerman, et al., 1969) and the short form of the Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency-BOMP (Bruininks, 1978). …

Comprehension Of Abstract And Concrete Commands By High And Low Level Aphasic Subjects : Effects Of Presentation Mode, Karen Jaruckis Lambrecht

Dissertations and Theses

This study examined the influence of three presentation modes (live voice, tape recorded, and videotape recorded) on aphasic subjects' comprehension of concrete and abstract commands.

Effect Of Tinnitus Maskers On Speech Discrimination Among Those Wearing Tinnitus Maskers, John Alexander Chonka

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect(s) of tinnitus maskers and tinnitus instruments on speech discrimination utilizing a population of subjects who currently have tinnitus and are presently wearing these devices. The hypothesis which guided this investigation states that there is no difference between discrimination scores with and without tinnitus maskers. In an attempt to test this hypothesis, speech discrimination scores were obtained from 26 listeners both in quiet and in the presence of cafeteria noise, with and without use of their tinnitus maskers.

One-Third Octave Band Augmented Speech Discrimination Testing For Cochlear Impaired Listeners, Dianne Heath

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of a 500 Hz and 3,150 Hz one-third octave band augmentation on the speech discrimination ability of listeners with cochlear hearing impairments. The results were analyzed both within the experimental group of subjects included in the present study and in comparison with data collected on a control group of normal hearing subjects reported earlier.

Adult Oral Diadochokinesis Rates : Preliminary Normative Data, Carol Kafton-Minkel

Dissertations and Theses

In the clinical evaluation and management of speech disorders, a speech-language pathologist may observe disturbances in a client's motor abilities that suggest possible neurological dysfunction. One possible disturbance is in oral diadochokinesis (DIO), an individual's ability to start and stop the movement of the articulators rapidly and execute repetitive, alternating, sequential movements typically associated with speech articulation. It is often recommended that a speech-language pathologist test DIO speed and compare the performance to available norms. There is, however, a lack of normative DIO data spanning all ages of adulthood. The purpose of this study was to develop preliminary normative data …

Pragmatic Deficits In Normal, Articulation Disordered, And Language Delayed Samples, Karen Jean Lucas

Dissertations and Theses

The purposes of this investigation were to identify, via the Pragmatic Protocol, the incidence of pragmatic disorders within public school articulation and language caseloads and a control group of normal students and to specify the pragmatic areas, i.e., utterance propositional, and/or illocutionary/perlocutionary act categories in which deficits occur.

Toward A Behavioral Analysis Of Attentiveness As A Style Of Communication, Ray Alan Coker

Dissertations and Theses

Attentiveness, a variable of communication, primarily serves a stylistic function in the communicative process by providing behavioral evidence that an individual is actively involved in message reception. Past research suggests that while both verbal and nonverbal behaviors signal attentiveness, nonverbal cues are more closely associated with this construct. Among the many nonverbal behaviors of individuals in interactions, postural positions have been deemed highly indicative of attentiveness. At present however, most of the empirical evidence attesting to this notion has been established through the use of self-report measures. As a result of the felt need by this author to improve upon …

Pragmatic Conversational Skills Of Young Adults In Normal, Emr, And Tmr Classrooms, Jane Nicholson

Dissertations and Theses

Current language theory focuses on how a person communicates within a context (Bates, 1976a). A person's communicative competence depends on how effectively she translates her cognitive and social knowledge into linguistic forms to interact in the specific situation, following pragmatic rules (Prutting, 1982b). Thus, in order to assess a person's language ability accurately, the clinician needs to assess pragmatic skills as well as cognitive, social, and linguistic skills. A person's pragmatic development culminates in the ability to participate in a conversation (Rees, 1978).

Preliminary Study : The Effects Of Instrumentation On The Air Intake Times Of The Esophageal Speaker, Sandra I. Pasak Neuburger

Dissertations and Theses

This research examined the use of visual feedback provided by electronic instrumentation to reduce air intake times of esophageal speakers during speech management. The subjects were six esophageal speakers from the Portland Metropolitan area. Three subjects made up the experimental group and three were placed in the control group. Prototype instrumentation was used to measure air intake times and give visual feedback to the experimental group during twelve sessions of speech management. The control group participated in traditional speech management procedures to reduce air intake times without benefit of instrumentation. Rate of improvement was measured using the prototype instrumentation without …

Toward A Phenomenological-Based Perspective Of Acculturation With Application To Scottish Immigrants, Dorothy M. Sermol

Dissertations and Theses

This thesis is an attempt to construct a perspective of the acculturation of immigrants drawing on certain communication- based phenomenological assumptions. From these phenomenological assumptions a Framework of Acculturation is constructed as a guide through which to examine the acculturation process. The Framework of Acculturation is then applied to the particular group of Scottish immigrants who live in the Northwest of the United States.

The Effects Of Overt And Covert Observation On The Clinical Behavior Emitted By Untrained Clinicians, Carol L.K. Middleton

Dissertations and Theses

This study examined the effects overt and covert observation of live clinical sessions have on the number of social/ neutral verbal behaviors emitted by untrained speech clinicians and their respective clients enrolled Summer Term, 1980, in the Articulation and Language Clinic at Portland State University, Speech and Hearing Sciences. The Boone-Prescott Interactional analysis System (Boone and Prescott, 1972), a numerically coded system, was used to record clinician-client interactions. Data were obtained for a randomly selected five minute period from each of forty clinical sessions.

Correlates Of Sophisticated Listener Judgments Of Esophageal Air Intake Noise, Vincent Eccleston

Dissertations and Theses

The literature on esophageal speech has identified the problem of extraneous air intake noise, suggested its possible etiology, and provided practical advice for clinical management. Documentation on the efficacy of specific methodology is lacking in the literature. Such documentation would be simplified if objective criteria were used to rate the severity of intake noise. The present study was prompted by the lack of basic data regarding listener evaluation of intake noise.

The purpose of this study was to identify physical and perceptual correlates of acceptability of esophageal air intake noise. A primary and a secondary question were asked:

Are selected …