This study examined the impact of several noise conditions on speech articulator movements during a sentence repetition task. Sixty participants in three age groups ranging from 20 to 70 repeated a sentence under five noise conditions. Lower lip movements during production of a target sentence were used to compute the spatiotemporal index (STI). It was hypothesized that STI would be lower (indicating greater stability) in the silent baseline condition. There were changes in speech production under several of the noise conditions. The duration for the 1-talker condition was significantly shorter when compared to the silent condition, which could be due to the impact of the 1-talker noise on the attention of the speaker. The peak velocity of a selected closing gesture increased in all of the noise conditions compared to silence. It could be speculated that the repetitive and predictable nature of the speaking task allowed participants to easily filter out the noise while automatically increasing the velocity of lip movements, and consequently, the rate of speech. The STI in the pink noise and 6-talker conditions was lower than in the silent condition, which may be interpreted to reflect a steadier manner of speech production. This could be due to the fact that in the 6-speaker noise condition, the overall effect was more similar to continuous noise, and thus potentially less distracting than hearing a single speaker talking. The count of velocity peaks was unexpectedly lower in the noise conditions compared to speech in silence, suggesting a smoother pattern of articulator movement. The repetitiveness of the task may not require a high level of self-monitoring, resulting in speech output that was more automatic in the noise conditions. With the presentation of noise during a speaking task, the intensity increased due to the Lombard effect in all of the noise conditions. People communicate in noisy environments every day, and an increased understanding of the effects of noise on speech would have value from both theoretical and clinical perspectives.

Despite the documented need for reliable speech audiometry materials for measures such as speech recognition threshold and word recognition score, such recorded materials are not available in the Vietnamese language. The purpose of this study was to develop, digitally record, evaluate, and psychometrically equate a set of Vietnamese bisyllabic and monosyllabic word lists for use in the measurement of speech recognition and word recognition ability, respectively. To create the speech recognition threshold materials, common Vietnamese bisyllabic words were digitally recorded by male and female talkers of Vietnamese and presented for evaluation to 20 native speakers of Vietnamese with normal hearing. Based on listener response, a set of 48 bisyllabic words with relatively steep psychometric function slopes were selected and digitally adjusted to ensure equivalency for psychometric function slope and to equate threshold to the mean pure-tone average for the test participants. To create the word recognition materials, 250 words were digitally recorded by one male and one female talker of Vietnamese and presented to the listeners for evaluation. Based on listener response, 200 words were selected and divided into 4 lists of 50 monosyllabic words and 8 half-lists of 25 monosyllabic words. The lists were digitally adjusted to ensure intensity threshold equivalency. The resulting mean psychometric function slopes at 50% for the speech recognition threshold materials is 11.3%/dB for the male talker and 10.2%/dB for the female talker. Analysis of the word recognition materials indicates no significant difference between the lists or half-lists. The mean psychometric function slope at 50% for the monosyllabic lists and half-lists is 5.1%/dB for the male recordings and 5.2%/dB for the female recordings. The results of the current study are comparable to those found in other languages. Digital recordings of the bisyllabic and monosyllabic word lists are available on compact disc.

Individuals diagnosed with Asperger‟s Syndrome (AS) have marked impairments in social interaction, including difficulty expressing and perceiving thoughts, emotions, and intentions. This deficit may be due in part to a delayed or underdeveloped Theory of Mind (ToM). The previous research investigating ToM in individuals with AS has been inconclusive. The purpose of this study was to compare three Theory of Mind (ToM) tasks, presented via three different modalities, to evaluate the recognition of complex emotions and mental states in adolescents with AS compared to typically developing adolescents. Participants in this study included twenty adolescents: 10 adolescents with AS and 10 typically developing adolescents matched by age and gender. Participants were administered three ToM tasks differing in mode of stimuli presentation: a visual mentalizing (VM) task; an auditory mentalizing (AM) task; and, a visual+auditory mentalizing (VAM) task. . Results were analyzed utilizing a factorial analysis of variance (ANOVA). No significant difference was found between the groups overall, or between the groups by task. A pairwise analysis of the data revealed non-significant differences between visual only (VM) compared to auditory only (AM) presentation of stimuli; however significant differences were found between visual only (VM) stimuli compared to the combination of visual + auditory (VAM) stimuli, and between auditory only (AM) stimuli compared to the combination of visual + auditory (VAM) stimuli. These results indicated that the recognition of complex emotions and mental states increased when the stimuli were presented through the combined visual and auditory channels. Clinical implications of these findings were discussed. Recommendations were made for future research investigating ToM in individuals with AS.

Studies conducted over the past decades have identified the presence of a greater amount of negative emotional reaction and speech disruption in particular speech situations among children who stutter, compared to those who do not (Brutten & Vanryckeghem, 2003b; Knudson, 1939; Meyers, 1986; Trotter, 1983). Laboratory investigations have been utilized to describe the particular situations that elicit the greatest or least amount of speech concern and fluency failures. More recently, in order to deal with the limitation of laboratory research, the use of self-report tests have gained popularity as a means of exploring the extent of negative emotional reaction and speech disruption in a wide array of speaking situations. However, the availability of such instruments for use with children has been limited. Toward this end, the Speech Situation Checklist (SSC) was designed for use with youngsters who do and do not stutter (Brutten 1965b, 2003b). Past investigations utilizing the SSC for Children have reported on reliability and validity information and provided useful normative data (Brutten & Vanryckeghem, 2003b; Trotter, 1983). Additionally, the findings from those research studies have consistently revealed statistically significant differences in speech-related negative emotional response and speech disorganization between children who do and do not stutter. However, since its initial construction, the SSC has undergone modifications and paucity of normative data for the current American form of the SSC has restricted its clinical use. To fill this void, the revised SSC for children was utilized in the present study to obtain current normative and comparative data for American grade-school stuttering and nonstuttering children. Additionally, the effect of age and gender (and their interaction) on the emotional reaction and speech disruption scores of the SSC was examined. The SSC self-report test was administered to 79 nonstuttering and 19 stuttering elementary and middle-school children between the ages of 6 and 13. Only those nonstutterers who showed no evidence of a speech, language, reading, writing or learning difficulty, or any additional motor or behavioral problems were included in the subject pool. Similarly, only those stuttering participants who did not demonstrate any language or speech disorder other than stuttering were contained in the study. Measures of central tendency and variance indicated an overall mean score of 78.26 (SD=19.34) and 85.69 (SD=22.25) for the sample of nonstuttering children on the Emotional Reaction section and Speech Disruption section of the SSC, respectively. For the group of stutterers the overall mean for Emotional Reaction was 109.53 (SD=34.35) and 109.42 (SD=21.33) for the Speech Disruption section. This difference in group means proved to be statistically significant for both emotional response (t=3.816, p=. 001) and fluency failures (t=4.169, p=. 000), indicating that, as a group, children who stutter report significantly more in the way of emotional response to and fluency failures in the situations described in the SSC, compared to their fluent peers. Significant high correlations were also obtained between the report of emotional response and the extent of fluency failures in the various speaking situations for both the group of nonstuttering (.70) and stuttering (.71) children. As far as the effect of age and gender is concerned, the present study found no significant difference in the ER and SD scores between the male and female or the younger and older group of nonstuttering children. Interestingly, a significant age by gender interaction was obtained for the nonstuttering children, only on the Speech Disruption section of the test.

The purpose of this pilot study was to determine if a direct, explicit method of teaching vocabulary with a Vocabulary Scenario Technique-Language Sensitive protocol (VST-LS) would yield gains in the vocabulary knowledge of 4th grade students greater than those seen in 4th grade students receiving vocabulary instruction typical to some general education classrooms. VST-LS is a detailed description of procedures intended to be used by a teacher in a general education classroom for direct vocabulary instruction. The VST-LS protocol provides for 14 word encounters involving listening, reading, writing, and speaking. Forty-one 4 th grade students consisting of 18 males and 23 females participated in the study. All participants were attending a suburban elementary school in a large urban-suburban school district. Two 4th grade teachers at the suburban elementary school agreed to participate in the study. One of the teachers who agreed to participate in the study had previously participated in a Vocabulary Scenario Technique pilot study (Ehren, Zadroga, & Proly, 2010); therefore, her 4 th grade classroom was designated as the treatment group and the second 4th grade classroom was designated as the comparison group. The treatment group received direct vocabulary instruction by a graduate student speech language pathologist (SLP) using the VST-LS protocol. The comparison group received vocabulary instruction by a 4th grade teacher using word study activities typical to some general education classrooms. Both the treatment group and the comparison group were taught 32 preselected curriculum vocabulary words across four consecutive weeks. Eight iv words were taught per week, for four weeks, during three thirty minute instruction periods (dosage = 6 hours). Two pre-test/post-test vocabulary measures, a multiple choice synonym test and a fill-in-the-blank/word-bank sentence test, were used to document both the treatment group and comparison group performances. Both the synonym pre-test and the sentence pre-test were administered to the treatment group and the comparison group one week prior to the commencement of the pilot study. Both the synonym post-test and the sentence post-test were administered to the treatment group and the comparison group one week after the conclusion of the study. A one way analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was used to examine the treatment effects of the VST-LS protocol in comparison to treatment effects of vocabulary instruction typical to some classrooms. The ANCOVA testing indicated that there was a statistically significant difference in post-test scores for both the synonym measure, F(1, 35) = 14.76, p < .001, and the sentence measure, F(1, 34) = 43.66, p < .001, between the treatment condition and the comparison condition, when controlling for pre-test scores on both the synonym measure and the sentence measure. A large effect size was demonstrated, indicated by group, in regard to both the synonym measure, partial η 2 = .30, and the sentence measure, partial η 2 = .56. On average, participants in the treatment condition scored higher on both the synonym measure (M = 24.33, SE = 0.77) and the sentence measure (M = 26.24, SE = 0.76) than did the study participants in the comparison condition (synonym measure: M = 20.14, SE = 0.77; sentence measure: M = 19.03, SE = 0.78). v The result of the VST-LS pilot study indicated that this method of direct vocabulary instruction was more successful in generating vocabulary gains in 4 th grade students than was vocabulary instruction typically seen in general education classrooms. Additionally, the result indicated that the VST-LS protocol has potential as a viable, efficient method for teachers to use when directly teaching curriculum vocabulary words to 4th grade students in general education classrooms. A summary of the findings, limitations of the study, and suggestions for the direction of future research are discussed.

Laryngopharyngeal reflux (LPR) is currently one of the most prevalent conditions associated with voice disorders being treated in voice care centers worldwide. Many singers experience voice related disturbances but are unaware that these disturbances may be the result of LPR. The purpose of this study was to quantify the perceptual symptoms and objective measures of LPR in a population of singers in order to understand the relationship between perceived symptoms, laryngeal findings, and evidence of acid exposure to the larynx. The Reflux Symptom Index (RSI), Reflux Finding Score (RFS), and the Dx-pH monitoring system were used to quantify participant symptoms, endoscopic findings, and pH levels in the oropharynx. The population included 12 semi-professional and professional singers. Significant correlations were found between the RFS, RSI and pH mild and moderate pH levels. This indicates that singers are sensitive to even small deviations of pH and this should be taken into consideration when evaluating a singers who have suspected LPR. Due to the variety of etiologies that can produce the symptoms and physical findings mentioned in this study, it is imperative that more objective data be obtained to confirm the presence of reflux in the oropharynx. As such, endoscopic findings and symptoms alone are not a good indication of reflux exposure and more objective data, like an oropharyngeal pH measurement system, should be implemented to quantify reflux in the oropharynx. The RSI and the RFS are valid tools for qualifying perceptions and physical findings however they are not without flaws.

The ability to generate inferences is a skill that is necessary to fully comprehend a text and understand the intentions, behaviors, and emotions of a conversational partner. Individuals with Asperger syndrome (AS) have been shown to demonstrate significant difficulty in inference generation in both social contexts and in reading comprehension. Although, the reciprocity of the four components of literacy (reading, writing, listening, and speaking) has been established in the literature (Bradley & Bryant, 1983; Catts & Kamhi, 2005; Englert & Thomas, 1987; Gillon & Dodd, 1995; Hiebert, 1980; Kroll, 1981; Ruddell & Ruddell, 1994); the relationship between inference generation in reading and social inference generation is not well understood. The present study investigated the efficacy of a language-focused reading inference strategy intervention (ACT & Check Strategy) on the general reading comprehension, inference generation in reading, social inference, and metacognitive ability of adults with AS. Twenty-five adults with AS were randomly assigned to either a treatment or a control group. The treatment group participants were divided into groups of 3-4 based on their availability and preferred location for treatment resulting in a total of 4 groups. Each group met in one-hour sessions twice a week for a total of six weeks. When controlling for pretest scores, the treatment group was found to perform significantly better on one measure of inference generation in reading and metacognitive ability compared to the control group. Significant differences between groups were not found in two measures of inference generation in reading comprehension or social inference ability.

The problem is to survey the significant reference materials in the field of speech correction in order to ascertain and compile in digest-form those explanations of corrective techniques that are most valid with respect to consistency, both intrinsic and comparative.

Dyslexia is a clinical diagnosis often associated with phonological processing deficits. There are, however, other areas of concern, such as the presence of auditory temporal processing (ATP) disorders. One method of investigating ATP is the gap detection (GD) paradigm. This study investigated GD performance using the Gaps-in-Noise © (GIN) test in three groups of 30 children, aged 8 to 9 years. GD thresholds and gap identification scores (%) were determined for each participant. The three groups of participants included (Group I) children with dyslexia and phonological deficits, (Group II) children with dyslexia and no significant phonological deficits, and (Group III) normal reading peers. Repeated-measures ANOVA showed that GD thresholds for the three groups were significantly different. Group I showed longer GD thresholds (RE, 8.5 msec; LE, 8 msec), than did Group II (4.9 msec for both ears) or Group III (RE, 4.2 msec; LE, 4.3 msec). Close inspection of the threshold values for the three groups revealed that the thresholds for Group II overlapped substantially with those of Group III, but not with those of Group I. Similar trends were also noted for the gap identification analysis. From a clinical perspective, the majority of participants in Group II and all participants in Group III performed within normal limits on both measures (i.e., thresholds and identifications), while performance of participants in Group I fell below established norms on these measures. Finally, additional analyses revealed that ATP was highly correlated with phonological processing measures indicating a relationship between the presence of phonological deficits and ATP deficits. This study confirmed that ATP deficit is a factor to be considered in dyslexia and suggested that the GIN © test is a promising clinical tool that should be incorporated in the evaluation procedures for children with reading difficulties.

The purpose of this current study was to first examine through assessments and the use of school-based disability criteria, the quantitative and qualitative patterns in phonological processing, phonological working memory, oral retellings, and oral and written narratives in middle school-aged children with reading disabilities (RD; N=10) and those with language impairments (LI; N=5) in order to provide data to further explain the complex profiles of these two clinical populations. Secondly, a single-subject multiple baseline across subjects design study examined the effectiveness of an intervention program targeting expository and narrative discourse in adolescents with language and reading deficits (N=4). Expository and narrative discourse assessments were replicated at post-intervention for pre and post comparisons of performance. The findings will assist speech-language pathologists in accurately and efficiently evaluating and treating these two clinical populations in linguistic areas that are critical to successful academic and social development.