Communication Sciences and Disorders Commons^™

Effects Of Assistive Robotics On Tantrums In Children With Low-Functioning Autism, Taylor Whitmer, Dr. Bonnie Brinton

Journal of Undergraduate Research

In recent studies, assistive robotics has been useful in increasing joint attention skills between a child with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) and other individuals (Acerson, 2011). These data also show a potential change in tantrum behaviors before and after intervention sessions with the robot. Tantrum behaviors, although normal in young, typical developing children, often persist longer in children with ASD as a result of delayed language development (Osterman & Bjorkqvist, 2010). As tantrum behaviors persist, the time available for these children to learn is diminished as the focus of the child becomes the frustration causing the tantrum rather than the …

Modern Prescription Theory And Application: Realistic Expectations For Speech Recognition With Hearing Aids, Earl E. Johnson

ETSU Faculty Works

A major decision at the time of hearing aid fitting and dispensing is the amount of amplification to provide listeners (both adult and pediatric populations) for the appropriate compensation of sensorineural hearing impairment across a range of frequencies (e.g., 160?10000?Hz) and input levels (e.g., 50?75?dB sound pressure level). This article describes modern prescription theory for hearing aids within the context of a risk versus return trade-off and efficient frontier analyses. The expected return of amplification recommendations (i.e., generic prescriptions such as National Acoustic Laboratories?Non-Linear 2, NAL-NL2, and Desired Sensation Level Multiple Input/Output, DSL m[i/o]) for the Speech Intelligibility Index (SII) …

Intelligence And Social Behaviors Of Children With Language Impairment, Melanie Cobabe, Dr. Martin Fujiki

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Teachers and speech pathologists have noted that children with Language Impairment (LI) frequently struggle in social interactions when compared with their typical peers. They have difficulty making friends, entering on-going interactions, and are often viewed negatively by others in their own age group. The purpose of this study was to co-vary intelligence in order to eliminate it as a variable that might impact the differences in social behavior between typical and language impaired children.

Social Problems Of Children With Specific Language Impairment, Michelle H. Hutchings, Dr. Martin Fujiki

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Specific Language Impairment (SLI) is a well documented disability among many schoolaged children. Children with SLI exhibit “significant limitations in language functioning that cannot be attributed to deficits in hearing, oral structure and function, or general intelligence” (Leonard, 1987, p. 1). SLI results in disordered patterns of communication and is associated with academic failure. Increasing evidence also shows that children with SLI suffer from significant social difficulties.

Word Recognition From Continuous Articulatory Movement Time-Series Data Using Symbolic Representations, Jun Wang, Arvind Balasubramanian, Luis Mojica De La Vega, Jordan R. Green, Ashok Samal, Balakrishnan Prabhakaran

School of Computing: Conference and Workshop Papers

Although still in experimental stage, articulation-based silent speech interfaces may have significant potential for facilitating oral communication in persons with voice and speech problems. An articulation-based silent speech interface converts articulatory movement information to audible words. The complexity of speech production mechanism (e.g., co-articulation) makes the conversion a formidable problem. In this paper, we reported a novel, real-time algorithm for recognizing words from continuous articulatory movements. This approach differed from prior work in that (1) it focused on word-level, rather than phoneme-level; (2) online segmentation and recognition were conducted at the same time; and (3) a symbolic representation (SAX) was …

The Efficacy Of Social Language Intervention On Children With Specific Language Impairment—A Pilot Study, Sarah Johnson Mueller, Dr. Martin Fujiki

Journal of Undergraduate Research

In this pilot study, I investigated the efficacy of an experimental social skills intervention program for children with Specific Language Impairment (SLI). As there is a limited amount of research related to the treatment of the social skills of these children, it was my hope that such a pilot study would supply important information for future research in this area. For my research, I evaluated whether a specialized social skills intervention program produced improved social interactions in 4 children with SLI. To do this, I studied the behavioral changes of children in both a traditional language intervention group and a …

August 13, 2013, Communication Disorders & Sciences

Faculty Meeting Minutes & Agendas

The August 13, 2013 "Welcome Back" faculty meeting.

Testing The Validity Of The Byu Taiwan Mandarin Speech Materials, Briana Rae, Dr. Richard Harris

Journal of Undergraduate Research

This study adds to the ongoing work of creating a system capable of administering accurate speech recognition threshold (SRT) tests to non-native English speakers. The SRT test helps in determining the brain’s ability to hear and understand speech. Bedke-Slade (2006) developed a SRT word list comprised of 28 words in the Taiwan Mandarin language which she recorded onto a compact disc. This word list, however, was not re-tested to ensure its performance matched the outcome predicted by Bedke-Slade. That’s where I came in.

Effectiveness Of Post-Surgery Speech Therapy For Cleft Palate Individuals In A Third-World Country, Jennifer Halloran, Dr. David Mcpherson

Journal of Undergraduate Research

I traveled to Amman, Jordan to evaluate the effectiveness of speech therapy as a volunteer service for children undergoing cleft palate surgery through Operation Smile. Other studies have determined that speech therapy is necessary in cleft palate rehabilitation. This study examined whether therapy is or can be effective in developing countries as a volunteer service. The effectiveness was determined based on pre-operative communication levels compared to post-therapy communication levels as well as parent satisfaction with therapy received. Further, the challenges facing speech therapists as volunteers was determined.

Relationship Between A Measure Of Social And Emotional Development And Early Communication Development In Young Children With Cleft Palate, Jenna L. Pugh

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study was an examination of responses to a standardized assessment of social-emotional behaviors and correlation with speech and language development in young children with cleft palate and/or lip. Twenty-eight participants aged 14-35 months with nonsyndromic cleft palate and or lip were included in this study. The Infant-Toddler Social and Emotional Assessment (ITSEA) was used to identify emerging social and emotional behaviors. Descriptive analysis of ITSEA results was completed. Pearson correlation coefficient and effect size estimates were calculated between ITSEA domain raw scores and measures of speech and language development. A small proportion of participants (14%) showed ITSEA scores beyond …

Assessing For And Understanding The Impact Of Hearing Loss In Children, Sally A. Arnold Ph.D.

NYS Child Welfare/Child Protective Services Training Institute

Hearing loss in children may occur unnoticed if the family isn’t knowledgeable about hearing loss and the child is not routinely seen for medical exams or by a school or a service provider. The child welfare caseworker may be in a position to spot a potential hearing loss and make an appropriate referral.

This PowerPoint describes:

Indicators of hearing loss when assessing children;

Hearing milestones by age;

The types of hearing loss;

Appropriate referrals if a hearing loss is suspected.

This PowerPoint can be useful not just for the caseworker’s knowledge, but may be useful in helping parents understand why …

Examining Parents' Interactions With Their Children During Literacy Activities, Kerianne Frodsham Allsop

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to examine the nature of conversational interactions between parents and their children during early literacy instructional activities. Parents engaged their children in interactions within hands-on activities designed to teach specific literacy skills as part of a kindergarten project entitled Systematic and Engaging Early Literacy (SEEL). Data for this study were extracted from audio and video recordings of parent-child interactions during three targeted literacy activities. Specialized software (LENA Pro) was used to analyze the interactions regarding adult and child use of targeted words (word count) and turn taking. To gain additional information about the exchanges, …

The Effectiveness Of Systematic And Engaging Early Literacy (Seel) Intervention On Word Reading In Kindergarten Students Receiving Tier 3 Services, Christina Haley Cole

Theses and Dissertations

This study evaluated the effectiveness of the Systematic and Engaging Early Literacy (SEEL) intervention method to improve consonant-vowel-consonant (CVC) reading in four students receiving Tier 3 services. The SEEL intervention method was also combined with the use of digital books on an iPad to investigate the effects of using technology in reading intervention sessions. Previous research indicates effectiveness for the foundational principles of SEEL, which include instruction in engaging, meaningful contexts that provide frequent and intense opportunities to practice. This research involved 4 kindergarten students who qualified for Tier 3 services based on their performance on an index of difficulty …

Social Networks Of Children With Language Impairment, Serena Marita Louisa Mickelson

Theses and Dissertations

Children with language impairment (LI) often exhibit social difficulties along with language issues that can affect their friendships with peers. This study sought to identify the self-reported social networks of children with LI and compare them to the self-reported social networks of children with typical language development. Sixteen children with LI (9 girls and 7 boys) between the ages of 5-11 years, and sixteen children with typical language development matched for age and gender were studied. Children were asked to name interactants in four social circles (Blackstone & Hunt Berg, 2003): family, friends, acquaintances, and paid interactants. A parent also …

Brittany Bernal - Sensorimotor Adaptation Of Vowel Production In Stop Consonant Contexts, Brittany A. Bernal

Ronald E. McNair Scholars Program 2013

The purpose of this research is to measure the compensatory and adaptive articulatory response to shifted formants in auditory feedback to compare the resulting amount of sensorimotor learning that takes place in speakers upon saying the words /pep/ and /tet/. These words were chosen in order to analyze the coarticulatory effects of voiceless consonants /p/ and /t/ on sensorimotor adaptation of the vowel /e/. The formant perturbations were done using the Audapt software, which takes an input speech sample and plays it back to the speaker in real-time via headphones. Formants are high-energy acoustic resonance patterns measured in hertz that …

Alumni Newsletter July 2013, Communications Disorders & Sciences

Newsletters and Documents

No abstract provided.

The Longitudinal Course Of Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder In Velo-Cardio-Facial Syndrome, Kevin M. Antshel, Kaitlin Hendricks, Robert J. Shprintzen, Wanda Fremont, Anne Marie Higgins, Stephen V. Faraone, Wendy R. Kates

Communication Disorders Faculty Publications

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate predictors of persistence of attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) in a large sample of children with velo-cardio-facial syndrome (VCFS) with and without ADHD followed prospectively into adolescence. STUDY DESIGN: Children with VCFS with (n = 37) and without (n = 35) ADHD who were on average 11 years old at the baseline assessment and 15 years old at the follow-up assessment were comprehensively assessed with structured diagnostic interviews and assessments of behavioral, cognitive, social, school, and family functioning. Control participants both with and without ADHD were also followed prospectively. RESULTS: In adolescence, 65% of children with VCFS continued …

Alternative Ear-Canal Measures Related To Absorbance, S. T. Neely, S. Stenfelt, Kim S. Schairer

ETSU Faculty Works

Abstract:

Several alternative ear-canal measures are similar to absorbance in their requirement for prior determination of a Thévenin-equivalent sound…

Can Emotion Understanding Be Taught?: Evaluating An Intervention Protocol To Increase Emotion Understanding In Children With Language Impairment, Lucy Brimhall, Dr. Martin Fujiki

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Specific language impairment is traditionally defined as a diagnosis referring to “children who have difficulty learning language in the absence of intellectual disability, sensory and physical deficits, severe emotional disturbances, environmental factors, and brain damage” (Kamhi, AG 1998). Recent study of the behavior of children with SLI has revealed that there is a discrepancy between the social communication skills of typically developing children and those with SLI (Brinton & Fujiki, 2004).

Brain Electrical Source Localization Of The Masking Level Difference In College Age Students, Amanda Fujiki, Dr. David Mcpherson

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The term auditory processing disorder (APD) refers to a diverse collection of problems in the processing of auditory information. An individual with an APD may have hearing acuity within normal limits; that is, the middle ear (conductive) and inner ear (sensory) systems may function typically. The individual may demonstrate a breakdown occurring within the central nervous system, however, and this breakdown may limit the individual’s ability to understand, interpret, and use auditory information. Auditory processing disorders are thought to interfere with language development and literacy learning (Geffner, 2007, MacFarland & Cacace, 2009). The effects of APD may be highly variable …

Gender Differences In The Acoustic Parameters Of Contrastive Stress Production, Bryce Bristow, Dr. Shawn Nissen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

I was able to present the following research at the American Speech-Language and Hearing Association 2012 National Conference. I made a poster and talked to professionals and researchers from across the nation.

Brain Electrophysiological Source Localization Of Mmn & P300 Response In Auditory Processing, Amy Ragsdale, Dr. David Mcpherson

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Source localization is a tool used to identify a precise visual location within the brain which allows for interpretation of the source of the brain activity. In this research, source localization is used to provide a more accurate identification and evaluation of the neurophysiological sources that contribute to the brain’s responses to speech-like and non-speech stimuli.

The Effect Of Age On Speech Motor Performance During Divided Attention, Dallin J. Bailey

Theses and Dissertations

The present study examined the divided attention effects of three non-speech tasks on concurrent speech motor performance. These tasks targeted linguistic, cognitive, and manual motor activity. Participants included 60 healthy adults separated into three different age groups of twenty participants each: college-age (20s), middle-aged (40s), and older adults (60s). Each participant completed a speech task once in isolation and once concurrently with each of the three non-speech tasks: a semantic decision task, a quantitative comparison task, and a manual motor task. The non-speech tasks were also performed in isolation. The speech task involved repeating a target phrase each time a …

The Effect Of Using Low Dose Exposure To A Humanoid Robot To Elicit Social Engagement Behaviors In Children With Autism Interacting With A Familiar Adult, Cambrie Nicole Roueche

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the effects of low dose exposure to a humanoid robot on the social engagement skills of four children with autism during select activities with a familiar adult. Participants included two males and two females who ranged in age from four to nine at the commencement of the study. The current study was part of a larger investigation focused on the effect of exposure to a robot on social engagement with a variety of social partners and situations. Children participated in variable multiple baseline sessions followed by a varied number of sessions of traditional treatment. After traditional treatment, …

The Effects Of Emotion On Acoustic Characteristics Of Vocal Vibrato In Trained Singers, Sharee Oakes Holmes

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of emotion on several key acoustic features of vibrato including vibrato rate, extent, and steadiness (measured by FM rate COV and FM extent COV). We hypothesized that intensity of emotion would have a significant effect on vibrato rate, extent, and periodicity, although the direction of these changes was undetermined. There were 10 participants, including eight females and two males, who were graduate student singers with high competency ratings. Each participant completed a series of tasks including sustained vowels at several pitch and loudness levels, an assigned song that was determined …

Automated Identification Of Relative Clauses In Child Language Samples, Erika E. Ehlert

Theses and Dissertations

Relative clauses are grammatical constructions that are of relevance in both typical and impaired language development. Thus, the accurate identification of these structures in child language samples is clinically important. In recent years, computer software has been used to assist in the automated analysis of clinical language samples. However, this software has had only limited success when attempting to identify relative clauses. The present study explores the development and clinical importance of relative clauses and investigates the accuracy of the software used for automated identification of these structures. Two separate collections of language samples were used. The first collection included …

Brain Imaging Of Event Related Potentials In Children With Language Impairment, Hillary Ann Benton

Theses and Dissertations

Event related potentials (ERPs) may provide specific information about how particular aspects of language are processed by the brain over time. This study investigated the electrophysiology of language processing in two children with language impairment (LI) when compared to five typically developing children. The N400, P600, and the early left anterior negativity (ELAN) were analyzed after participants listened to linguistically correct, syntactically incorrect, and semantically incorrect sentences. Participants were instructed to indicate whether the sentences were correct or incorrect. Latency and amplitude of the ERP components were compared between the two groups of participants and sentence types. Results from the …

The Effectiveness Of Using Electropalatography To Remediate A Developmental Speech Sound Disorder In A School-Aged Child With Hearing Impairment, Kristina Lynne Pickett

Theses and Dissertations

Advances in instrumentation and computer technology such as electropalatography (EPG) have offered additional types of feedback to more traditional therapy for individuals with speech disorders, specifically those with hearing impairment. The purpose of this study was to document whether therapeutic integration of EPG visual feedback in combination with traditional articulation therapy for a school-aged child with an articulation disorder secondary to hearing impairment was more effective than traditional therapy alone. One participant received five sessions of each therapy approach. Six adult listeners rated the quality of the participant's production of /r/ in words recorded during the therapy sessions. The EPG …

Behavioral Inhibition And Childhood Stuttering., Victoria Tumanova, Dahye Choi, Edward G. Conture, Tedra A. Walden, Warren E. Lambert

Communication Sciences and Disorders - All Scholarship

Purpose—The purpose of this study was to assess the relation of behavioral inhibition to stuttering and speech/language output in preschool-age children who do (CWS) and do not stutter (CWNS).

Method—Participants were preschool-age (ages 36 to 68 months), including 26 CWS (22 males) and 28 CWNS (13 males). Participants’ behavioral inhibition (BI) was assessed by measuring the latency to their sixth spontaneous comment during conversation with an unfamiliar experimenter, using methodology developed by Kagan, Reznick, and Gibbons (1989). In addition to these measures of BI, each participant’s stuttered and non-stuttered disfluencies and mean length of utterance (in morphemes) were assessed.

Results—Among …

Executive Functions And Social Interactions: Developing Social Scenarios, Mackenzie Waite

Masters Theses

The aim of this study was to develop a series of vignettes to form the basis for an assessment of executive functions (EFs) for 9 – 12 year old children. Although EFs are necessary for effective social communication and positive social interactions, currently, most EF assessments focus on impersonal activities. Little research exists that incorporates real-time processing using ecologically valid social scenarios. The current study aims to develop realistic scenarios that children could encounter in daily life. Ethnographic interviews were conducted with six participants, who worked in a school with 9-12 year old children, to gain their perspective on social …