Speech Pathology and Audiology Commons^™

The Frequency Of Retroflex /R/ Production In Elementary School Children, Vicki Barna Wood

Dissertations and Theses

In articulation treatment and diagnosis, it is essential to possess a thorough knowledge of what is "normal" as well as what is "defective" articulation. The /r/ phoneme is one of the most frequently occurring and most commonly defective sounds. There are two different tongue positions for the /r/ phoneme described in the literature (retroflex and central hump), with many assumptions about which tongue position is "normal" or "most common." None of these assumptions, however, are based on empirical data.

The purpose of this study was to provide some normative data regarding which of the two tongue positions is most common …

An Investigation Of The Influence Of Dialectal Interferences On The Nsst Scores Obtained By Portland Black Children, Margaret Jeanne Callahan

Dissertations and Theses

The primary purpose of this study was to determine if dialectal interference as described by Walter Wolfram was exhibited by black children in Portland, Oregon when given the NSST by Laura Lee. This author was concerned with syntactical interferences on the expressive portion of this test.

A secondary purpose of this investigation was to provide suggested norms for differentiating children with language deficits from children with language differences.

Seventy black children with normal speech and language were selected from two public schools, a Head Start Center and a day care center. These children were between the ages of 3-0 to …

A Beginning Investigation Into The Language Development Of The Deaf Child Compared To That Of The Hearing Child: Some Problems And Solutions In Data Collection, Sallie Ann Frye

Dissertations and Theses

This paper will attempt to present what factual material is available comparing language development in the deaf with normal language development. It will discuss problems which have become apparent in the search for this data and some solutions to the problems. Preschool language development will be taken up first, followed by a consideration of school age written and oral language, and concluding with a discussion of associations as they affect the verbal behavior of the deaf child.

Age, Intelligence, And Socioeconomic Status Variance In Preposition Acquisition By Children, Georgie Hustead

Dissertations and Theses

Numerous linguistic studies have been done to substantiate the importance of prepositions in the English language. However, no normative studies have been done on the acquisition of expressing prepositions.

The purpose of this investigation was to determine if there were demonstrable trends which would indicate a need for normative data on the acquisition of twenty-six prepositions tested on the Expressive Preposition Test (EPT). The study set out to determine at what age levels a given percentage of the prepositions were expressively acquired and if the socioeconomic status (SES) of the child’s family would be a determiner as to the age …

Masking Patterns Of High Frequency Pure Tones, Judith Eide Widen

Dissertations and Theses

Previous investigations of masking have established that the action of the masking tone spreads upward in frequency, creating significantly more masking (threshold shift) above the masker frequency than below. It was the purpose of this study to investigate the masking pattern produced by high frequency pure tones, heretofore uninvestigated.

Masking patterns were obtained for nine normal hearing young adults utilizing the method of adjustment. The masking produced by an 11000 Hz pure tone of 40 dB sensation level was measured at three frequencies above and three frequencies below the masker frequency. Analysis of the data revealed a downward spread of …

Intelligibility Of Speech Compared Through Two Limiter Compression Circuits, Lee M. Odell

Dissertations and Theses

Hearing aid manufacturers commonly engineer automatic gain control (AGC) circuits which are aimed at reducing sound tolerance problems and improving speech intelligibility among wearers. The most common type of AGC engineered is one utilizing a fast attack time. The present study was designed to evaluate the effects of both fast and slow attack times on the intelligibility of speech. Twenty-four normal hearing subjects listened to sixty pre-recorded sentences through two types of hearing aid circuits. Thirty sentences were modified by a fast attack AGC circuit, and thirty sentences were modified by a slow attack AGC. The subjects marked one of …

Effects Of Semantic Associational Strength And Verbal Sequence Length On The Auditory Comprehension Of Aphasic Adults, Laurel J. Brown

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of semantic associational strength (SAS) upon adult aphasics' auditory comprehension abilities. Twenty-eight adult aphasics (25 males and 3 females) and 12 normal control subjects were presented three experimental tasks, each containing 45 items. Experimental task 1 contained single word picture sets of high SAS, moderate SAS, and low SAS words. Experimental task 2 contained two word picture sets of high, moderate, and low SAS words, and experimental task 3 contained three word picture sets of high, moderate, and low SAS words. Subjects heard one, two, and three word verbal sequences …

An Investigation Of Handedness And Its Relationship To The Site Of Contact Ulcers, Colleen S. Colleary

Dissertations and Theses

This investigation attempted to determine the relationship of the site of contact ulcers and subject’s handedness. Literature concerned with contact ulcers has indicated that cerebral dominance tends to determine the site of the lesion. Four research questions were posed, two questions were presented in the form of the null hypothesis. The questions were: (1) Is the proportion of right-handed subjects with left-sided ulcers equal to the proportion of left-handed subjects with left-sided ulcers? (2) Is the proportion of right-handed subjects with right-sided ulcers equal to the proportion of left-handed subjects with right-sided ulcers? (3) Will the site of contact ulcers …

Effects Of Speaker-Sex-Difference On Listeners' Perception Of Vocal Roughness In Normal Vowel Productions, Patsy J. Phillips

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of speaker-sex-difference on listeners' perception of vocal roughness in the vowel [ӕ] produced by normal male and female speakers. In a previous investigation by Wendahl (1963) it was found that when listening to two synthesized vowels, of equal aperiodicity, judges tended to rate the lower pitched vowel as being more vocally rough. If this is true for listeners' perception of human vowel productions as well then it might be advantageous for voice clinicians, when making vocal roughness assessments, to regard male and female speakers as two separate populations in view …

An Investigation Of Vocational Rehabilitation Among Northwest Laryngectomees, Susan L. Leonti

Dissertations and Theses

Rehabilitation for patients recovering from surgical removal of the larynx should include vocational considerations with accompanying economic modifications. The literature pertaining to rehabilitative management of laryngectomees revealed numerous investigations concerned with physical restoration, remedial speech training and psycho-social adjustment, while few studies have been conducted concentrating upon vocational consequences of a laryngectomy.

The primary purpose of this investigation was to examine the pre- and post-operative vocational status of laryngectomized patients residing in the Northwestern section of the United States.

Verbal Sequencing Ability As A Predictor Of Reading Disability, Paul Elmer Quin

Dissertations and Theses

Early identification of children with reading and learning problems seems imperative. By using early identification predictors, a high risk group of children with possible reading problems could be located. This would facilitate placement and appropriate educational strategies for this group of children. By proper placement and planning, educators then would be able to set up remedial and/or preventive programs for these children before the pattern of unsuccessful attempts and improper training becomes irreversible. This study was designed to determine if verbal sequencing ability was a valid predictor of reading ability for a group of 31 preschool children. Secondarily, the investigation …

An Investigation Of Between-Ear Tympanometry Measures In Normal-Hearing Young Adults, Barry Lynn Kimmel

Dissertations and Theses

In recent years, tympanometry has been used to provide objective and definitive information regarding the status of middle ear conditions and functions. The present standard for tympanometric normalcy is based upon between-subject measures. This standard, however, does not allow precise differentiation between normal and pathological tympanometry curves. A within-subject comparison of right and left ear tympanometry curves of normal-hearing subjects could provide a narrow standard of tympanometric normalcy which would be more useful in differentiating between pathologic and non-pathologic middle ear function. The within-subject relationship between tympanometry curves for right and left ears was investigated by comparing the individual right …

An Investigation Of Temporary Threshold Shift Among Helmeted Motorcycle Riders, Alamander Hicks

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of the present study involved the investigation of the significance of wind noise as a contributing factor toward temporary threshold shifts among a select sample of motorcycle riders. Five normal-hearing, helmeted, female subjects were administered pure-tone air-conduction hearing tests immediately before and within 2 minutes after exposure to three noise-related aspects of motorcycle riding. The amount of hearing loss present at 3k, 4k and 6k Hz after each 20 minute exposure condition was recorded as the TTS for that subject. The three conditions consisted of motorcycle noise only, wind noise only and motorcycle and wind noise combined. A …

Comparison Of Amounts Of Verbal Response Elicited By A Speech Pathologist And A Mother In The Clinic, Sherry Lee Nelson

Dissertations and Theses

One of the primary responsibilities of a speech pathologist is the assessment of a child's language. Many studies have been done in the area of language development. The results of these studies have varied causing concern among researchers over the validity of the data gathered. Many factors that could affect the results of previous research have been investigated. Until recently, however, there has been relatively little research about the effects of examiner differences on the results of language assessments.

Research in the area of examiner differences has resulted in the discovery of factors which could affect the results of language …

The Rhetoric Of Garner Ted Armstrong, Stephen George Dick

Dissertations and Theses

Garner Ted Armstrong is fast becoming a well known religious and political commentator. The purpose of this thesis was to describe and discuss the techniques and characteristics of Mr. Armstrong's rhetoric. The question to be answered was "What are the characteristics of a successful religious broadcaster?" The method used-in the selection of the speeches to be used in this study consisted of selection a number of speeches (56), then breaking them down into theme categories. After analysis, there were eleven categories. One speech was selected from each category, and these eleven speeches were the speeches that were used in the …

Implications Of An Oral-Gestural Training Program In The Acquisition Of Speechreading Skills, Mary Lu Wood

Dissertations and Theses

In order for the hearing handicapped child to derive maximum benefit of language acquisition through maturation, a method of receptive communication is essential at the earliest age possible. It is felt that speechreading is this method. The need for a method of training speechreading cues to prelingual, aurally handicapped children is based on the fact that most visual speechreading methods require the use of language. If speechreading can be regarded as a learning process involving the discrimination of visual cues that maybe disassociated from language expression then training the child to discriminate various facial expressions may actually enhance speech-reading ability. …

The Effect Of Labeling Disfluencies As 'Stuttering' And Contingent And Yoked "Wrong" On The Disfluencies Of Normal Speakers, Dennis Ray Staines

Dissertations and Theses

A labeling variable suggested by Wendell Johnson's "diagnosogenic" theory of the onset of stuttering was included in this study of the disfluencies of normal speaking college students in order to explore further the hypothetical relationship between normal disfluency and the onset of stuttering. A total of 60 Ss were randomly assigned to the following groups, each containing 10 Ss: I. Labeling Chastisement plus Contingent "wrong;" II. Labeling Chastisement plus Yoked (non-contingent) "wrong;" III. Labeling Chastisement - No "wrong;" IV. No Labeling Chastisement Contingent "wrong;" V. No Labeling Chastisement - Yoked "wrong;" VI. No Labeling Chastisement - No "wrong" …

The Structuring Of Procedures Utilized In An Adult Stuttering Treatment Program, Sarah Jane Prichard

Dissertations and Theses

In recent years, operant conditioning techniques have been effectively used to modify a variety of behaviors. For the most part, the modification of stuttering behavior has relied solely on the use of punishment. The shaping of "fluency” through differential reinforcement has been reported as a behavioral approach for the treatment of stuttering; however, the effectiveness of this technique in combination with other "teaching" tools, such as, modeling, instruction, and explanation has not been reported in the literature.

The purpose of this study was to construct behavioral definitions of terminology utilized in a stuttering treatment program at Portland State University to …

Comparison Of Amounts Of Verbal Response Elicited By A Speech Pathologist In The Clinic And A Mother In The Home, Joan Mathis

Dissertations and Theses

Language assessment of children is an essential task of the speech clinician and many studies have been concerned with the validity of the data gathered. Few studies, however, have investigated examiner variability as a possible source of deviation in language assessment. This study was designed to evaluate and compare the amount of verbal output which children with normal language use when examined by two different examiners when the examiners are in their most comfortable setting.

Six children, four years of age, were examined by a speech pathologist in the clinic and the mother in the home and the 12 fifteen-minute …

A Comparative Analysis Of The Untrained Lip Reading Ability Of Mothers Of Young Hard Of Hearing Children Versus Mothers Of Young Normal Hearing Children, Janet Andrews Boileau

Dissertations and Theses

This paper provides a brief history of attitudes toward the deaf and the evolution of teaching and instruction of the deaf. It then discusses a pilot study that probed the acquisition of lip reading skills and the influence of mothers in the process.

An Electromyographic Comparison Of Muscle Action Potentials Of Listeners Presented Time-Compressed And Normal Speech Stimuli, Barbara S. Moon

Dissertations and Theses

Speech compression is a method of electromyographically reducing the speech signal, resulting in a decrease in the time required for presentation of a message by increasing the number of words per minute. Research in the area of speech compression has to this time been focused on determining the listener response by means of comprehension testing. While comprehension testing uncovers the individual's ability to resolve, organize, and recall a message at accelerated rates, it gives no information about the listener's psychophysical response to compression. Does the individual find listening to compression to be tension-provoking or stressful? Or can a listener accommodate …