CASL

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New word learning in people with aphasia
(2009) Kelly, Helen; Armstrong, Linda
Background: The theory of speech and language therapy intervention for people with aphasia is still under-articulated, and some people with aphasia respond better to therapy than others. The reasons for individual variation in response to therapy have not yet been fully established but may partially reflect a person with aphasia's ability to utilise a range of cerebral mechanisms, such as re-accessing damaged neural pathways and establishing new ones. Most current therapies aim to help the person with aphasia access their previously available language abilities. New learning may offer an alternative therapy approach. However, there is little evidence to date on the effect of aphasia on a person's capability to learn new linguistic information. Aim: To explore the new vocabulary learning potential of people with aphasia. Methods & Procedures: Twelve participants, under the age of 65 years and with a range of aphasia severity and personal backgrounds, were taught 20 novel words over four consecutive days. Their learning of this new vocabulary was measured via a range of single-word processing tasks based on the cognitive neuropsychological model. Ten participants repeated the tasks a few days later to establish whether the new vocabulary had been retained in long-term memory. Outcomes & Results: All of the participants demonstrated some ability to learn the new vocabulary (both novel word forms and novel word meanings), with scores ranging from 15% to 99% on the various assessments. At the follow-up session, the ten participants retained between 49% and 83% of their previous scores. Conclusions: This study has important implications for aphasia rehabilitation as it has shown that people with aphasia have the potential to learn new linguistic material, even in the presence of severe language impairments. This capacity could be exploited in therapy. Previously known words could be taught as new. Pre-therapy assessment of the person with aphasia's learning capacity and style would promote individually-tailored learning experiences and so, potentially, more effective therapy and better clinical outcomes.
Parkinson's disease and aided AAC: some evidence from practice.
(Wiley-Blackwell, 2000) Armstrong, Linda; Jans, Deborah; MacDonald, Alison
Clinical observation that people with Parkinson's disease (PD) seem to have diVerent training needs from other adult client-groups in developing eVective use of aided augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) was the catalyst for this study. There is little good-quality research evidence available on the eVectiveness (or lack of eVectiveness) of aided AAC use by those with PD. One of the main aims of this preliminary study, therefore, was to elicit the experiences and attitudes of speech and language therapists in this speci_ c area of their practice as the basis for future eYcacy research and clinical practice. Thirty speech and language therapists were questioned about their experience of introducing low- and high-tech AAC devices to this client-group. Of particular interest was the discovery of the factors identi_ ed by the therapists as in_ uencing their introduction of aided AAC to someone with PD and aVecting implementation and successful use. The factors reported were both diseasespeci _ c (e.g. motor problems) and more general factors (e.g. carer support) relevant to the process of introducing aided AAC to other adult client-groups. Implications for future research and practice are discussed. Some research questions are posed and the inclusion of people with PD and their carers in practice development is promoted.
Aiding chronic written language expression difficulties: a case study.
(Psychology Press, 2000) Armstrong, Linda; MacDonald, Alison
This paper describes some progress made in helping a young aphasic man (MD) to overcome what had appeared to be intractable written language expression diculties, which continued to be signicant for him. Traditional therapy methods based on cognitive neuropsychological assessment had failed to help MD to generalize improvement in his spelling particularly, but not exclusively, of longer and irregular words. Both a splint which allowed him to use his dominant hand for writing directly onto a computer screen and a simple word-processing programme with synthesized auditory feedback and lexical and grammatical prediction (Write:OutLoud- and Co:Writer- ) enabled him to produce more normal written output (increased quantity and more normal quality). The discussion also focuses on how eectiveness of language therapy can be measured in this man with chronic aphasia. Introduction

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