Speech and Rhetorical Studies Commons^™

Nonlinguistic Cognitive Performance And Expressive And Receptive Language Scores In Children With Expressive Language Delay, Deborah Kay Warren

Dissertations and Theses

This study was part of the Portland Language Development Project. The purpose was to establish reliability for the Goodenough Draw-A-Man Test. Additionally, nonlinguistic cognitive performance scores were correlated with soores from expressive and receptive language test soores. Finally, scores of overall cognitive function and of nonlinguistic cognitive function in children with normally developing language (NL) and with expressive language delay (ELD) were compared. The original group size was 60 children, 30 with ELD at the age of 20 months, and 30 who were a matched control group. These subjects were reevaluated during Kindergarten. The Draw-A-Man Test was administered to assess …

Familiality Of Early Expressive Language Delay: A Sibling Study, Carol Lynn Unkefer

Dissertations and Theses

Researchers are seeking more information . on how and why language disorders tend to run in families, particularly siblings of language disordered children. The purpose of this study was to examine the prevalence of language and related disorders in the siblings of two groups of children: those with slow expressive language development (SELD) and those with a normal language history. This study sought to answer the following questions: 1) Is there a significant difference in prevalence of language problems in two groups of children: those with SELD and those with a normal language history?, and 2) Is there a greater …

The Relationship Between Intelligibility And Length And Complexity Of Language In A Group Of 4- And 5-Year-Old Children, Susan Fodell

Dissertations and Theses

Previous research has indicated that speech and linguistic variables develop concurrently. When one aspect of speech and linguistic development is delayed, there are typically associated delays in another area as well. This interactive relationship has been studied extensively in the context of phonological and syntactical development, as well as fluency and syntactical development. The relationship between intelligibility and linguistic proficiency has not been studied as extensively. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between varying levels of intelligibility and length and complexity of language in preschool-aged children. Mean length of utterance was correlated with the mean percentage …

Second Grade Academic Performance In Normal Children, Children With A History Of, And Children With Expressive Language Delay, Kathleen Ann Clancy

Dissertations and Theses

Interest in children who are diagnosed with expressive language delay has increased over the years. This has resulted in follow-up studies which have suggested that these children would have difficulties in academics during their elementary school years (Hall & Tomblin, 1978; Weiner, 1974) The current study sought to determine if children with a history of and children with continued expressive language delay would have problems with academics once they reached the second grade. The Peabody Individual Achievement Test (PIAT) was used to measure academic performance. It was chosen for it's reliable standardization and use of five different subtest areas to …

Comparison Of Training Methods In A Branch Environment, Lisa Peterson Davidson

Dissertations and Theses

This study addressed a need to identify the effectiveness of in-branch, employee administered training programs. A comparison of various training methods and a ranking of the effectiveness of those methodologies would enable managers to make informed training design and purchase decisions.

The purpose of this study was to determine the differences between four training methods as evaluated by post-training assessment scores. This study also sought to determine the following: 1) did all four methods significantly impact short term material recall?, and 2) did gender impact training effectiveness? The training methods studied were: video; study guide; video plus study guide; video …

Gender Differences In Slow Expressive Language Development, Cynthia Lee Hare-Blye

Dissertations and Theses

The contemporary research suggests that some children who present with early language delays as toddlers outgrow their delays while others continue to develop long-term language difficulties. Several studies over the years have focused on factors that might aid in predicting the outcome of late talkers. This current study emphasized exploring gender as a possible predictive factor. The purpose of this study was to determine if significant differences exist in the rate of growth in language skills, as indexed by scores on the Developmental Sentence Scoring (DSS) procedure (Lee, 1974) of boys versus girls who are late to start talking as …

Temporal Characteristics Of Words Surrounding A Moment Of Stuttering, Janice Kaye Young

Dissertations and Theses

Past theories have shown that stuttering results from a breakdown in the speaker's accurate timing of movement from one sound to the next. The efficacy of timing therapies is based on the proposal that stuttering diminishes as the amount of planning time for the phonetic voice-onset coordinations increases (Perkins, Bell, Johnson & Stocks, 1979). Acoustic information as to the parameters of the timing breakdown is critical to designing fluency facilitation and stuttering treatment programs. The present research investigated differences in word durations in the vicinity of the stuttered moment. Durations of words inunediately preceding and following the stutter were examined …

The Concepts Of Mother In Children's Stories In Translation From Print To Visual Media: A Content Analysis, Karen Martin Tanski

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this research was two-fold. First, this thesis sought to uncover the implicit concepts associated with mothers in children's stories. Second, this thesis attempted to chart changes in portrayals of mother when translated from print to a visual medium. This research maintains that the concepts of mother in children's stories contain cultural ideals that are related to society's evolving perceptions of mother.

Eighteen mother/surrogate mother portrayals were analyzed in 15 novels and 15 videotapes. Each portrayal was coded according to marital status, range of behaviors, 41 individual behaviors within five categories, and the amount of storytime.

The results …

Facilitating Independent Communication For An Adult With Severe, Nonfluent Aphasia Using A Voice Output Communication Aid, Jane Mary Stayer

Dissertations and Theses

Aphasia is an acquired general impairment of the language processes resulting from brain damage that is frequently caused by cerebrovascular accidents (CVAs). Persons with aphasia have a history of retaining important communication competencies that have the potential for helping them succeed in using augmented communication systems. Using augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) systems by adults with aphasia has been studied, but few studies have reported successfully using AAC systems in rehabilitating adults with aphasia. New advanced technologies including the availability of devices that talk, store a lot of information, and are relatively small can give AAC the potential to affect …

The R-Stick Appliance As A Device To Facilitate The Phoneme /R/, Rosemary Leblanc

Dissertations and Theses

One of the most common articulation errors made by children is on the phoneme Ir I. Treatment techniques for this sound have varied and have included the stimulus approach (Van Riper, 1972), phonetic placement techniques (Scripture, 1923), the sensory-motor approach (McDonald, 1964), the motokinesthetics approach (Young & Hawk, 1938), and sequential programming approach (Shriberg, 1975; Wood, 1988), to name a few. An integral part of many of these treatment methods is the use of the auditory stimulation. An innovative technique using a prosthetic device to facilitate the production of Ir I was used by Leonti, Blakeley, and Louis (1975), in …

The Use Of Faceplate Assemblies As Facsimiles Of Custom Hearing Instruments, James A. Fenwick

Dissertations and Theses

Custom-designed hearing instruments comprise the majority of those dispensed in the United States today. Because of their custom nature, there has been no means of evaluating them until they have been completed. There would be advantages to evaluating custom instruments prior to their completion. This study investigates a means of evaluating custom instruments prior to their final assembly into the customized shell. This is done by having the subject listen to the circuitry of the instrument while it is still mounted on the faceplate, which is accomplished by coupling the faceplate assembly to the subject's ear with foam earplug. To …

A Comparison Between Trained Ear Estimation And Orthographic Transcription When Measuring Speech Intelligibility Of Young Children, Nancy Kay Sugarman

Dissertations and Theses

When the primary mode of communication is speech, the crucial ingredient for successful communication is intelligible speech. The speech of children with disordered phonologies is often unintelligible. Accurate and reliable measurement of speech with compromised intelligibility is essential if appropriate treatment procedures are to be chosen and implemented. The focus of this investigation was the measurement of speech intelligibility in young children. The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between the subjective method of trained ear estimation and the objective method of orthographic transcription when measuring the speech intelligibility of young speakers with a wide range of …

A Comparison Of The Cohesion In The Expository Discourse Of The Optimally-Healthy Young-Old And The Optimally-Healthy Oldest-Old, Penni Gay Siemens

Dissertations and Theses

The group of people aged 85 years and older is the fastest growing chronological population on the United States (Neal et al., 1993), and while a considerable amount of research has focused on the language of the elderly (those over 65 years), relatively little study has focused specifically on those aged 85 and older. This study is valuable in that it includes a large sample of optimally healthy people aged 85 and older. This sample of the optimally-healthy oldest-old will help define what changes, if any, are a function of age alone and what changes are clinical (associated with some …

Changing Values: A Study Of The Shift In Cultural Values And Perceptions Of U.S. High School Students Following Orientation And Exposure To Russian Culture, Linda Sue Warnock

Dissertations and Theses

When cultural values differ, it is difficult for people not to judge one another's behavior on the basis of their own individual and/or cultural values. Given the profound differences in Russian and American culture, the question of what happens when these two cultures interact comes to mind.

The purpose of this study was to describe the relationship of culture specific orientation, coupled with a two week sojourn in Russia on the sojourners' perceptions of cultural values. The sojourners were high school athletes participating in the first part of a Russian - American Track and Field Exchange.

In order to ascertain …

Perceived Communication During Organizational Change, Paula Blunck

Dissertations and Theses

Organizational change often involves the creation of work teams. This research examines how the creation of self-managed work teams within a particular organization affects perceived communication. Previous research suggests that self-managed teams would socially construct a different view of the organization especially as it relates to power than would those in traditional organizational departments. Attitudes about communication and power within the organization are analyzed in nine self-managed teams and five traditional departments. This analysis is conducted through both qualitative and quantitative means. Group comments and discussions are used in a qualitative analysis. Multidimensional scaling is used to reveal underlying attitudinal …

The Preferred Learning Styles Of Greek Efl Students And Greek Efl Teachers, Debra Jane Gregory

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study was to identify the preferred learning styles of Greek EFL students and teachers in Greece. The learning styles examined were visual, auditory, kinesthetic, tactile, group and individual. The study was conducted at a private English language school in Piraeus, Greece. Ninety-two Greek EFL students (33 male and 59 female) ranging in age from 13 to 22, and 11 Greek EFL teachers (3 male and 8 female) ranging in age from 22 to 52 constitute the sample. The study used the self-reporting learning style questionnaire that Reid (1987) developed to measure the preferred learning style preferences …

Planning For Academic Success: Survey Of University Professors' Assessments Of Non-Native Students' Language Skill Needs, Carol Bondurant Sloan

Dissertations and Theses

The purpose of this study is to examine which language skills university professors believe are most essential for academic success in Portland State University classes. The study can shed light on a question for future research: Do current academic ESL classes at Portland State University teach the necessary skills to help international students maximize their second-language learning potential in university-level courses. Enrollment statistics for 1993 I 94 show 53 percent of the 815 international students declared majors in two programs: the school of Business Administration and the school of Engineering and Applied Science. This study asked 31 instructors from business …

A Comparative Study Of Phonemic Segmentation Skills In First Grade Children With Normal, Disordered, And Slow Expressive Language Development, David J. Andrews

Dissertations and Theses

Children with slow expressive language development often catch up to their normally developing peers in expressive language, but may still exhibit difficulties with metalinguistic skills. Research shows that children who have difficulty with phonemic awareness also have difficulty with reading, which is important for success in school. Speech-language pathologists assist children who have difficulty with expressive oral language and facilitate language development in children who have difficulties with learning metalinguistic skills, such as phonemic awareness.

The purpose of the present study was to compare the phoneme segmentation skills in three groups of children: (a) children with a history of oral …

Unaided Factors Predicting Client-Assessed Hearing Aid Performance, Usage And Satisfaction, Hilary J. Crowley

Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine if client-assessed hearing aid performance, usage, and satisfaction ratings could be predicted before hearing aids are purchased. Aided performance was represented by the Profile of Hearing Aid Performance, (PHAP, Cox and Gilmore, 1990), subscales. Based upon data from 46 subjects, multiple regression was applied to 16 unaided variables to determine if they could be used to predict the response variables of performance, usage and satisfaction. The 16 unaided variables included pure tone average, slope of hearing loss, the Speech Perception in Noise (SPIN) test (Kalikow, Stevens & Elliott, 1977), dynamic range, comfortable …

Questions-Asking Strategies Of Aphasic And Normal Subjects, Sharla Rae Harvey

Dissertations and Theses

Problem-solving abilities of individuals with aphasia have received limited attention in their assessment and remediation. At this time, there is substantially more information available on the linguistic performance of persons with aphasia than on their cognitive processing performance. Assessment of problem-solving abilities in this population has typically used tasks with low verbal loadings. However, both linguistic and cognitive competence are required for effective communication and activities of daily life.

The purpose of the present study was to determine if mild-to-moderate subjects with aphasia differed in their question-asking strategies as compared with normal subjects. A modification of Mosher and Hornsby's (1966) …

Literacy Enhancement And Writing Across The Curriculum: A Motivational Addendum, L. Brooks Hill, Sandra L. Ragan

Basic Communication Course Annual

This "thought piece" supplements the preceding article with complementary information drawn from a national literacy project underwritten by the Ford Foundation. This project attempted to persuade teachers in all disciplines to become more proficient in the use of written exercises and to encourage an expanded conception of literacy as an essential cornerstone of education. As a part of the writing-across-the curriculum (WAC) efforts, this extensive project helped to organize these efforts by identifying the obstacles to enhanced literacy, specifying innumerable techniques for use in diverse contexts, and motivating faculty to intensify their work on this dimension of any curriculum. This …

Title Page

Basic Communication Course Annual

No abstract provided.

Using Interactive Video Instruction To Enhance Public Speaking Instruction, Michael W. Cronin, William R. Kennan

Basic Communication Course Annual

This article discusses the nature of interactive video instruction (IVI) and the potential benefits of IVI applications in supplementing instruction in the basic communication course. It describes the IVI programs in oral communication that are currently available, the equipment required to institute IVI, and details possible applications of IVI for instructors, students, and educational institutions.

Stories As Instructional Strategy: Teaching In Another Culture, Pamela Cooper

Basic Communication Course Annual

This article describes the use of story as an instructional strategy in a basic communication course taught at the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

Computer-Mediated Communication In The Basic Communication Course, Gerald M. Santoro, Gerald M. Phillips

Basic Communication Course Annual

Computer-Mediated Communication (CMC) for instructional support is being explored at a number of colleges and universities. In this paper the authors describe their successful application of CMC to the basic communication course and the lessons they learned for successful implementation of instructional CMC.

The Basic Course In Communication Theory: A Shift In Emphasis, Warren Sandmann

Basic Communication Course Annual

This essay calls for a change in how the introductory communication theory course is taught. Standard models and texts are examined, described and critiqued. The standard model of communication theory depicts theory as a body of knowledge to be studied and applied to specific situations. This one dominant paradigm of communication theory constrains other possible approaches to understanding and teaching communication theory. The remainder of the essay offers a rationale for a shift in the teaching of communication theory, and directions for preliminary changes in the teaching of communication theory.

Ta Mentoring: Issues And Questions, Pamela L. Gray, Martin G. Murray

Basic Communication Course Annual

The widespread use of graduate teaching assistants (TAs) in higher education has generated a search for techniques to improve the quality of teaching of TAs as well as enhance the entire TA experience. One such technique is mentoring. This paper attempts to accomplish four things: (a) delineate issues to be addressed, (b) share feedback from educators with mentoring experience, (c) present questions to guide decision making, and (d) provide a bibliography of literature on mentoring. The information presented comes from a questionnaire administered to basic course directors, a conference discussion on mentoring and the personal experiences of the authors.

A Rhetorical Analysis Of The Persian Gulf Debates, Daniel F. Hickey

Masters Theses

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to analyze selected senatorial speeches for and against using military force against Iraq.

Hypothesis

It was hypothesized that Richard Weaver's hierarchy of argument will provide a useful framework for the identification of arguments and philosophical inclination of the speakers.

Materials

The primary documents comprising this study were the four speeches found in Vital Speeches of the Day by Senator Robert Dole (R-KS), Senator George Mitchell (D-ME), Senator John C. Danforth (R-MO), and Senator Sam Nunn (D-GA). All were delivered in the Senate between January 10-12, 1991. The speakers chosen were well-respected members of …

The Relationship Between Ca And Humor, Michael Sean Mcmurtry

Masters Theses

Research has shown that communication apprehension is seen as a negative effect of speaking in public as well as in other situations. The nervous and anxious feelings experienced in these contexts take away from understanding and add to the breakdown of interpersonal relationships. On the other hand, humor is found to be an excellent coping mechanism to deal with embarrassing and fear-related anxieties and it adds to group cohesiveness. The relationship between CA and humor was of investigated to determine what effects CA has on humor and how well the use of humorous messages alleviates the problems associated with CA. …

Visualization And Imagined Interaction As Cognitive Interventions For Lowering Levels Of Communication Apprehension, Kathleen A. Snyder

Masters Theses

Communication apprehension is something with which many students and people in general are faced when forced into an involuntary communication situation. Various treatments have been tested for coping with it. Imagined interaction and visualization, two cognitive processes associated with intrapersonal communication, were investigated in this study as interventions for lowering communication apprehension levels in introductory public speaking courses. One-hundred and fifty college students enrolled in introductory speech courses at Eastern Illinois University served as subjects and were assigned to one of four groups: a control group, a script visualization group, a performance visualization group, and an imagined interaction group.

The …