Sibling relationships and the interaction within these relationships play a central role in children’s general development and will therefore impact on functional outcomes of children with severe speech and language disabilities. Siblings of children with disabilities have often felt excluded from family interactions, possibly causing negative attitudes towards participation with their siblings, in turn impacting negatively on the functional outcomes of their siblings with disabilities. The main aim of this research is to determine the attitudes of typically-developing children towards participation with their younger siblings with severe speech and language disabilities in four everyday life situations, namely: play (major life areas), communication, activities of daily living as part of domestic life and interpersonal relationships (time and responsibility issues). Twenty-seven older, typically-developing siblings of children with severe speech and language disabilities were selected to complete the measuring instrument (SAS). The results indicated that the participants held the most positive attitudes towards participation in play (major life areas) but that they held less positive attitudes towards communication participation and that they were least positive about participation in interpersonal relationships (time and responsibility issues). This study succeeded in documenting attitudes of siblings towards participating in four everyday life situations with their younger sibling. It is envisaged that these results will provide tentative guidelines for how activity-based interventions can best be structured to support both the child with a disability and their sibling. Copyright / Dissertation (Master of Arts)--University of Pretoria, 2012. / Centre for Augmentative and Alternative Communication (CAAC) / unrestricted

One third of all patients with acute stroke acquire the language impairment aphasia. The assessment of aphasia is important in order to give a correct diagnosis and treatment. Two types of aphasia assessments are assessment of language function and assessment of functional communication (communication in everyday life). The assessment is usually performed by a speech and language pathologist (SLP) but it can also be performed by a family member or close friend with a proxy rating questionnaire. In this study the correlation between proxy rating of functional communication and SLP assessment of both language function and functional communication were examined. The assessments were performed at 16 days and 6 months after stroke onset. The study also examined if two proxy ratings correlated. The study was conducted using ANH and CETI proxy ratings, and the SLP assessments NGTA and ANELT. The results revealed a strong, statistically significant, correlation between proxy rating and SLP assessment and a very strong, statistically significant, correlation between the two proxy ratings. All correlations remained strong over time. When differences between proxy rating and SLP assessment were observed there was a tendency that proxies rated the functional communication higher than the SLP did. When the participants were divided into groups based on severity of aphasia, the results revealed a greater consistency between proxy rating and SLP assessment for people with mild aphasia than for those with moderate to severe aphasia. / En tredjedel av alla som drabbas av stroke får den förvärvade språkstörningen afasi. Det är viktigt att bedöma afasi för att bland annat kunna diagnosticera och lägga upp behandling. Två sätt att bedöma afasi är bedömning av språkfunktion och bedömning av funktionell kommunikation (kommunikation i vardagslivet). Vanligtvis utförs bedömningen av logoped men svårigheterna kan också bedömas genom anhörigskattning. I denna studie undersöktes samband mellan anhörigskattning av funktionell kommunikation med logopedisk bedömning av både språklig funktion och funktionell kommunikation vid 16 dagar samt vid 6 månader efter insjuknandet i stroke. Dessutom undersöktes huruvida två olika anhörigskattningar korrelerade med varandra. Testerna som användes var anhörigskattningarna ANH och CETI samt logopedbedömningarna NGTA och ANELT. Resultaten visade en stark, statistiskt signifikant korrelation mellan anhörigskattning och logopedbedömning samt en mycket stark, statistiskt signifikant korrelation mellan anhörigskattningarna. Korrelationerna var fortsatt starka över tid för alla jämförelser. Observation av skillnader mellan anhörigskattning och logopedisk bedömning visade att anhöriga tenderade att skatta den funktionella kommunikationsförmågan högre än logopedbedömningen av samma förmåga. Vid gruppindelning efter afasigrad observerades att för personer med lätt afasi fanns större samstämmighet mellan anhörigskattning och logopedisk bedömning än för personer med måttlig till grav afasi.

Made available in DSpace on 2017-06-01T18:24:20Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Andrea_Ferraz.pdf: 824960 bytes, checksum: dd32468b3f4b82d29d5e72b2c7592be5 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2007-05-03 / Nowadays, the brazilian speech therapy clinic, with autistics, is still dominated by the use of corrective and normative procedures, aiming at communication basically. Moving away from the positivism s point of view and adopting the subjectivism ideas (that values the particular), beyond the language conception as a mean of action and the dialogic game as a joint construction of meanings, this research investigated the role of the verbal-linguistic resources, prosodics and paralinguistics in the construction of the autistic child language, in the speech therapy clinic. Specifically, this study had the objective of searching the conversation marks basically the interactionals and the catenation ones, the vowels prolongations, intonations, rhythm and vocal pitches alterations, the cinesic, the tacesic, the prosemic, the correction, the paraphrasing, the repetition, the pause, the hesitation, the interruption and the silence. It was also verified the incidence of these resources en the relation between the autistic child and the speech therapist. The participants of the study were two speech therapists and their patients, among eight and twelve years old, with autism diagnostic, characterized, in this research, as 1 and 2 diade. The data collection was done weekly, through video recorders, gotten during the speech therapy sections. The data were analyzed by means of the video recorders transcriptions, with basis in the discursive fragments, in agreement to the purposes of the Conversation Analysis. The results demonstrated the role played by the resources in the dialogic interactions in the therapists speech turns and in their patients turns. It was observed an equilibrium in the use of the resources by the speech therapists and an inaquality with prevalence of paralinguistic resources by the patients. This study noticed the use of babbling or echolalia by the patients, considering the relation with the repetitions (essencial resource to the speech). With the intention of establish a contrast between the resources, it was required a detailed overlook from the video recorders, and, later, an analisys about the echolalia behavior all along the interactions analysed. As a conclusion, the verbal-linguistic resources, prosodics and paralinguistics were current during the díades interactions. The balanced use of the resources envolved, as the observed in the therapists speech turn, allowed a better speech constructuion. It was also evidenced the imediatism existent in the face-to-face interaction, and that it is very hard to certify the difference between the echolalia or babbling and the repetition. Therefore, this difficulty suggests that both must be meaned in the therapy process, allowing big discursive possibilities to the speakers. / Nos dias atuais, a clínica fonoaudiológica brasileira, com pacientes autistas, ainda permanece impregnada do uso de procedimentos corretivos/normativos, visando fundamentalmente à comunicação. Assumindo um afastamento dessa percepção objetivista, segmentada e comportamentalista, e adotando uma concepção mais subjetiva (onde se valoriza o particular) de linguagem como forma de ação e do jogo interacional como uma construção conjunta da significação, investigou-se, nesse estudo o papel dos recursos lingüísticos verbais, prosódicos e paralingüísticos na construção da linguagem da criança autista, na clínica fonoaudiológica. Especificamente, esta pesquisa teve como objetivo investigar o papel dos aspectos lingüísticos verbais (marcadores conversacionais basicamente interacionais e seqüenciadores), lingüísticos prosódicos (alongamentos vocálicos, entonações, alterações no ritmo, alterações na altura vocal) e paralingüísticos (a cinésica, a tacêsica, a proxêmica, a correção, o parafraseamento, a repetição, a pausa, a hesitação, a interrupção e o silêncio) na construção da linguagem da criança autista. Verificou-se, também, como objetivos específicos, a incidência do uso de elementos lingüísticos verbais, lingüísticos prosódicos e paralingüísticos na relação fonoaudiólogo/criança autista na prática fonoaudiológica. Os participantes do estudo foram duas fonoaudiólogas e seus pacientes, de 08 e 12 anos, com diagnóstico de autismo, caracterizados nesse estudo como díade 1 e 2. A coleta de dados foi feita semanalmente, através de gravações de vídeo dos atendimentos fonoaudiológicos. Os dados foram interpretados com base na transcrição das gravações de vídeo, e nos recortes discursivos, como propostos pela Análise da Conversação. Os resultados mostraram o papel desempenhado pelos recursos lingüísticos verbais, prosódicos e paralingüísticos nas interações dialogadas, tanto nos turnos das terapeutas como nos turnos dos sujeitos. Observou-se um equilíbrio na utilização dos recursos pesquisados nos turnos das terapeutas e um desequilíbrio, como maior prevalência de utilização dos recursos paralingüísticos nos turnos dos sujeitos. De forma complementar, verificou-se a ocorrência de ecolalias nos turnos das crianças. Tendo em vista sua semelhança com as repetições, recurso fundamental na elaboração do texto falado, recorreu-se à observação minuciosa das gravações de vídeo, no intuito de se estabelecer uma diferenciação entre tais recursos. Percebeu-se que, nas crianças autistas pesquisadas, a diferenciação entre a repetição e a ecolalia centrava-se em três características nas emissões ecolálicas: ausência de contato visual, atividade motora constante e reprodução fiel de recursos como alongamento vocálico, entonação e alteração de tom. Como conclusão, percebeu-se que os recursos lingüísticos verbais e prosódicos desempenharam o papel de articular os segmentos do discurso, destacar aspectos importantes do texto falado, facilitar a compreensão, orientar o interlocutor durante a interação, traduzir o estado emocional dos interactantes e facilitar o acesso ao significado do discurso. Os recursos paralingüísticos operaram no processamento do texto falado, na organização do pensamento dos interactantes, na delimitação dos tópicos, na ênfase, e chamaram a atenção de forma decisiva na manutenção da interação. Destaca-se, ainda, que a utilização equilibrada dos recursos estudados, como observada nos turnos das terapeutas, permitiu uma melhor formulação do texto falado. Constatou-se, também, que, diante do imediatismo da interação face a face, é extremamente difícil estabelecer a diferença entre a ecolalia e a repetição, sugerindo, portanto, que ambas devam ser significadas no processo terapêutico, permitindo ao seu usuário maiores possibilidades discursivas

Made available in DSpace on 2017-06-01T18:24:25Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 dissertacao_ana_carolina.pdf: 1620660 bytes, checksum: e0aa908548b1510131eddb6ac5addd3d (MD5) Previous issue date: 2008-08-11 / From the acoustic-phonetic analysis of the sounds of speech (spectrogram), this dissertation aims to describe vocalic patterns of Brazilian Portuguese (BP) in patients without larynx, held at the beginning and after four months of phonological intervention but also compare these vocalics patterns of the total laryngectomized with other standards established in vocalics subject unchanged in accordance with the standards in the studies referred by Behlau (1984), and also verify that this method of measurement of acoustic analysis through the spectrogram would be a facilitator, an action appropriate, the prognosis for the process of rehabilitation in the issuance of vocalic production of total laryngectomized with therapy instituted. The measures were analyzed acoustic frequency of formants (in Hz), and duration and intensity of vocalic production of Brazilian Portuguese (BP) in patients laryngectomized. For this study, 10 subjects were selected in treatment at the Hospital Cancer of Pernambuco, with seven males and three females, submitted to the total withdrawal of the body laryngeal. The vowels analyzed the Brazilian Portuguese were the oral, presented orally to the participants to repeat, since the majority of the participants was illiterate, combined with the on / k / injector, or facilitating the issuance esophageal and required to repeat the form of stacatto (repetition of consecutive syllable). The recordings were performed in quiet environment. The sampling rate used was 11025 Hz and resolution of 16 bits. For the realization of the acoustic analysis of the samples, were used programs Fonoview, version 1.1, Voxmetria, version 2.7 and Praat, version 4.6.22. The results were discussed and substantiated in the theory of the production of speech acoustics. The results found that the acoustic spectrografic analysis allows the tracking of acoustic parameters allowing a feedback treatment and monitoring, and a means objective and useful for the study of esophageal voice. There were figures for the frequency of acute formants, an increase of 37.29% in intensity after training phonological and shorter duration of spontaneous production of vowels and syllables as you can better control the esophagic voice , production becomes faster . From this study, it is expected that the acoustic spectrografic analysis adapted to be used in clinical practice as a reference method for the prognosis of patients totals laryngectomized in the process of phonological rehabilitation / A partir da análise fonético-acústica dos sons da fala (espectrograma), esta dissertação busca descrever os padrões vocálicos do português brasileiro (PB) em pacientes laringectomizados totais, realizada no início e após quatro meses de intervenção fonoaudiológica, como também comparar esses padrões vocálicos dos laringectomizados totais com outros padrões vocálicos estabelecidos em sujeitos sem alterações de acordo com os padrões nos estudos referidos por Behlau (1984), e ainda verificar se este método de mensuração de análise acústica através do espectrograma será ou não um facilitador, um recurso adequado, para o prognóstico no processo de reabilitação na emissão da produção vocálica dos laringectomizados totais com a terapia instituída. As medidas acústicas analisadas foram freqüência dos formantes (em Hz) e duração e intensidade da produção vocálica do português brasileiro (PB) nos pacientes laringectomizados. Para este estudo, foram selecionados 10 sujeitos em tratamento no Hospital do Câncer de Pernambuco, sendo sete do sexo masculino e três do sexo feminino, submetidos à retirada total do órgão laríngeo. As vogais analisadas do português brasileiro foram as orais, apresentadas oralmente aos participantes para repetição, já que a maioria dos participantes era de analfabetos, combinados com a consoante /k/ injetora, ou seja, facilitadora da emissão esofágica e solicitada à repetição em forma de stacatto (repetição consecutiva da sílaba). As gravações foram realizadas em ambiente silencioso. A taxa de amostragem utilizada foi de 11025 Hz e resolução de 16 bits. Para a realização da análise acústica das amostras, foram utilizados os programas Fonoview, versão 1.1, Voxmetria, versão 2.7 e o Praat, versão 4.6.22. Os resultados foram discutidos e fundamentados na teoria acústica da produção de fala. Os resultados constataram que a análise acústica espectrográfica permite o monitoramento dos parâmetros acústicos possibilitando um feedback do tratamento e o acompanhamento, sendo um meio objetivo e útil para o estudo da voz esofágica. Verificaram-se valores agudos para a freqüência dos formantes, aumento de 37,29% de intensidade após treino fonoterápico e menor duração de produção espontânea das sílabas e vogais à medida que se consegue melhor controle da voz esofagiana, a produção torna-se mais rápida. A partir desse estudo, espera-se que a análise acústica espectrográfica seja utilizada e adaptada à prática clínica como um método de referência para o prognóstico dos pacientes laringectomizados totais no processo de reabilitação fonoterápica

Stroke is a rapidly increasing disease worldwide, and speech and language impairments are common in stroke patients. A patient’s ability to speak, listen, read and write is reduced after stroke which affects the patient's independently living and quality of life. After an initial evaluation at the hospital, the stroke survivors are referred to the stroke rehabilitation centre where the speech therapists assist them in their challenging and long journey towards speech and language relearning. To enhance the patient's quality of life and to facilitate the speech therapists, technology-enhanced systems can play an important role. However, the currently used software applications such as online speech and language relearning applications are not specifically designed after the user’s need, and the user’s participation and empowerment are compromised. Medical caregivers and stroke patients are the main stakeholders and potential users of these software applications. Therefore, this study is aimed to understand the medical caregivers and the stroke patients’ needs for technology-enhanced speech and language relearning from medical caregivers’ viewpoint.  Design science research strategy was adopted to create, implement and evaluate the artefact. Some important stakeholders such as speech therapists, a stroke specialist doctor, information and technology professionals and one stroke survivor participated in this study. Following the speech therapist’s expert opinion, an application for speech and language assessment was developed as an artefact. The application was then evaluated for technology acceptance with the speech therapists. The Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) was used as the theoretical foundation for making the interview questions and data analysis.  The user's requirements for software application differ from one patient to another depending upon the patient's overall health after stroke, their age, social life, the level of speech and language loss, and previous experience with technology use. Stroke is common in adults and adults like to participate in designing their relearning process; therefore, adults should be involved in deciding the learning objectives, and adult learning principles are helpful to understate their needs for speech and language relearning. Due to impaired physical and cognitive conditions, the patients need a bigger interface with larger fonts and pictures and more constructive colours than usual. Tablets with touch pens are preferred hardware. The speech therapist should have the possibility to change the exercises runtime according to the patient's abilities and stamina to do the exercises.  The technology acceptance evaluation showed that the developed application was easy to use and efficient for speech therapists. The study participants also highlighted some critical issues for better usability and technology acceptance. The application should be synchronized with speech therapists’ existing workflow and routines, and it should directly be connected to the hospital records system so that the patients’ data can easily be transferred to their journals.  The role of facilitating conditions such as proper education and training about the system, and personalised support is also important in technology acceptance. The user’s trust in the system’s security and privacy and their personal integrity were also highlighted as main determinants for technology adoption and use. To achieve better coherence between the users and technology, all the tasks/exercises and sub-tasks in the application should be designed in close collaboration with speech therapists and stroke patients. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, only one stroke survivor was interviewed in this study. However, the patients’ perspective is of utmost importance, and in future research, they will be involved in the design and development of such technology-enhanced systems.

School education puts great demands on children’s linguistic abilities, and children with language difficulties might therefore have problems reaching educational goals. Speech and language pathologists (SLP) can help these students achieve the school's goals through different language and communication efforts. However, there is a lack of knowledge about how SLPs work in Sweden in general. The purpose of this study is thus to contribute with knowledge about how SLPs work in Swedish schools. The goal is to identify which methods service deliveries they use and to analyze the service deliveries based on prevailing evidence, as well as to contribute with experiences and reflections of the SLPs regarding their work. The study was conducted using two methods to collect data from the SLPs working in schools; a nationally distributed electronic survey, and semi-structured interviews with a smaller number of SLPs who mainly worked in school settings.  The results show that the organizational work conditions vary for SLPs in Swedish schools. The workload is perceived as high by a majority, while most tend to enjoy their profession. The collaboration with other professions is described as partially functional. Consultation is the service delivery method that is most often used, followed by individual intervention outside the classroom. Working in the classroom is less common. There is evidence regarding the different service delivery methods used, but the conditions do not always seem to offer the opportunity to implement them in the way that has been shown to have the best effect in earlier studies. The SLPs believe that there are several advantages of working in a school environment. Despite this, feelings of inadequacy and loneliness are sometimes experienced. Learning the school's governing documents was considered a challenge. Employers and schools having an understanding of what speech therapists can contribute to the school setting is considered a success factor. The SLPs hope that the forthcoming guidelines from Svenska logopedförbundet (SLOF) regarding SLP work in schools will clarify their role and working methods. A statutory provision of the profession in the student health team is also considered to be an opportunity of development that could lead to more SLPs working in schools.

Philosophiae Doctor - PhD / This thesis investigated the education support services provided by occupational therapists, physiotherapists and speech and language therapists in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. Changes in the education policy in South Africa to an inclusive education system have major implications for the way therapists provide support. Therapists have been challenged to move from a medical model of support with a focus on highly specialised treatment for a small number of individual learners with disabilities, to a systemic and health promoting model which focuses on support for the education system, including all learners, teachers and parents. The aim of this research was to develop an appropriate and integrated approach for therapists to support schools within an inclusive and health promoting schools framework in South Africa. Participatory action research using quantitative and qualitative methodology was used. Two surveys were conducted in the Western Cape Province. The first was a survey of all therapists to determine who was working with pre-school and school-aged learners and where. The second survey was of all therapists working in special schools and a small number of private practitioners to identify the roles of the therapists in providing direct and indirect support. In two of the seven education districts in the province, focus group discussions were held with 45 teachers from special and ordinary schools, and 21 parents of school-aged learners - to identify the support they needed. Workshops, incorporating focus groups, were also held with the therapists to, firstly, identify the support they needed to give to learners, teachers, parents and the education system and, secondly, to identify the competencies they needed to give this support. The data from the surveys were subjected to simple descriptive statistical analysis. These analyses reveal that therapists have a very wide range of roles relating to direct support, including: assessment, intervention with individual learners and learners in groups, and evaluation. Interventions include the development of hearing, speech and communication skills; skills for activities of daily living; life skills; home management skills; work related skills; motor function skills; and play and leisure skills. Therapists from different disciplines frequently provide the same type of support. Indirect support provided includes support for the schools system, teachers and parents. Thirty six percent of the therapists in this study want to increase the proportion of time they spent on indirect support. The study also revealed that multidisciplinary collaboration and teamwork were Teachers involved in the study identified that they need an enormous amount of support in fulfilling their crucial roles in identifying barriers to learning; identifying the support learners need; and addressing the barriers. This includes the need for support to teach a diverse group of learners; adapting content, presentation and evaluation of the curriculum; adapting the physical environment; accepting new roles of teachers and therapists; making changes to the school system; developing relationships with the parents; addressing challenges related to socio-economic problems; networking with the community; facilitating positive attitudes to diversity; developing supportive relationships with therapists; and further training poorly developed. Teachers involved in the study identified that they need an enormous amount of support in fulfilling their crucial roles in identifying barriers to learning; identifying the support learners need; and addressing the barriers. This includes the need for support to teach a diverse group of learners; adapting content, presentation and evaluation of the curriculum; adapting the physical environment; accepting new roles of teachers and therapists; making changes to the school system; developing relationships with the parents; addressing challenges related to socio-economic problems; networking with the community; facilitating positive attitudes to diversity; developing supportive relationships with therapists; and further training. Parents in this study indicated that they need access to education and support for their children, including direct support for their children; effective means of communicating with their children; specific competencies to facilitate caring for their children; emotional support; advocates to work with them in support of their children addressing environmental physical and attitudinal barriers, and developing a supportive community; and supportive relationships with therapists.

<p>Automatsko prepoznavanje govora je tehnologija koja računarima<br />omogućava pretvaranje izgovorenih reči u tekst. Ona se može<br />primeniti u mnogim savremenim sistemima koji uključuju komunikaciju<br />između čoveka i mašine. U ovoj disertaciji detaljno je opisana jedna<br />od dve glavne komponente sistema za prepoznavanje govora, a to je<br />jezički model, koji specificira rečnik sistema, kao i pravila prema<br />kojim se pojedinačne reči mogu povezati u rečenicu. Srpski jezik spada<br />u grupu visoko inflektivnih i morfološki bogatih jezika, što znači<br />da koristi veći broj različitih završetaka reči za izražavanje<br />željene gramatičke, sintaksičke ili semantičke funkcije date reči.<br />Ovakvo ponašanje često dovodi do velikog broja grešaka sistema za<br />prepoznavanje govora kod kojih zbog dobrog akustičkog poklapanja<br />prepoznavač pogodi osnovni oblik reči, ali pogreši njen završetak.<br />Taj završetak može da označava drugu morfološku kategoriju, na<br />primer, padež, rod ili broj. U radu je predstavljen novi alat za<br />modelovanje jezika, koji uz identitet reči u modelu može da koristi<br />dodatna leksička i morfološka obeležja reči, čime je testirana<br />hipoteza da te dodatne informacije mogu pomoći u prevazilaženju<br />značajnog broja grešaka prepoznavača koje su posledica<br />inflektivnosti srpskog jezika.</p> / <p>Automatic speech recognition is a technology that allows computers to<br />convert spoken words into text. It can be applied in various areas which<br />involve communication between humans and machines. This thesis primarily<br />deals with one of two main components of speech recognition systems - the<br />language model, that specifies the vocabulary of the system, as well as the<br />rules by which individual words can be linked into sentences. The Serbian<br />language belongs to a group of highly inflective and morphologically rich<br />languages, which means that it uses a number of different word endings to<br />express the desired grammatical, syntactic, or semantic function of the given<br />word. Such behavior often leads to a significant number of errors in speech<br />recognition systems where due to good acoustic matching the recognizer<br />correctly guesses the basic form of the word, but an error occurs in the word<br />ending. This word ending may indicate a different morphological category, for<br />example, word case, grammatical gender, or grammatical number. The<br />thesis presents a new language modeling tool which, along with the word<br />identity, can also model additional lexical and morphological features of the<br />word, thus testing the hypothesis that this additional information can help<br />overcome a significant number of recognition errors that result from the high<br />inflectivity of the Serbian language.</p>

The diploma thesis is oriented on special education. The main goal is to find out and describe whether and how is speech and language therapy established in regular kindergartens at the foothills of Orlické mountains. The work is divided into five chapters, four of them are theoretical and the fifth chapter is a practical one. The first chapter is focused on the way how the preschool education is organised in the Czech Republic. It describes the legislation system, clarifies the system of curricular documents established in our republic and mainly the framework educational program for preschool education. The second chapter describes the preschool-child ontogenesis including all aspects of his/her personality and it also depicts the child-speech ontogenesis. The third chapter is focused on the main types of impaired communication ability of preschool children. The fourth chapter is focused on the speech therapy intervention provided in the Czech Republic. The fifth chapter presents combined research, within which the qualitative method of dialogue and the quantitative method of questionnaire were used, together with non-structured observation and comparative analysis among kindergartens. The chapter defines the research goals and used methods, sets the hypotheses and the research sample. In...

The submitted diploma thesis deals with the topic of diagnostic and therapeutic procedures in speech therapy intervention for people with aphasia. The work is divided into four chapters, while the first three chapters are theoretically oriented the fourth chapter represents the empirical part of the work. In the first chapters, the diploma thesis deals with the theoretical definition of individual areas which are needed to understand the researched issues, specifically focuses on the concept of communication, explains the connection between brain and speech and, last but not least, defines the period of adulthood and old age. Concurrently this chapter presents the principles of speech therapy intervention with a focus on providing speech therapy intervention in the Czech Republic. The focus of the theoretical part of the thesis is the second chapter, which provides a direct (detailed) insight into the issue of aphasia as a neurogenic disorder of speech communication. The chapter deals with aphasia in terms of definition, etiology, symptomatology and classification approaches. Withal it represents a speech therapy intervention for people with a neurogenic speech disorder, aimed at diagnosis, therapy and prevention. The third theoretical chapter introduces the psychological and social aspects related...