Parallel Distributed Processing (PDP) modelling has simulated developmental learning across a range of domains such as reading (e.g. Seidenberg & McClelland,1989) or Semantics (e.g. Rogers et al. 2004). However aside from two notable exceptions (Plaut, 1996; Welbourne & Lambon Ralph, 2005b) modelling research has not addressed the simulation of relearning during spontaneous recovery or rehabilitation after brain damage, and no research has considered the effect of the learning environment. This thesis used an established PDP model of semantic memory (Rogers et al., 2004) to simulate the influence of the learning environment. A novel quantitative measure (called representational economy) was developed to monitor efficiency during learning. Developmental learning is considered to be multimodal (e.g. Gogate et al., 2000) whereas rehabilitation is normally carried out through therapy sessions employing unimodal learning tasks (Best & Nickels, 2000). This thesis hoped to discover whether multimodal rehabilitation may be more efficient (as suggested by Howard et al., 1985). Three sets of simulations were conducted: The first set contrasted multimodal and unimodal learning in development and recovery, and tested internal representations for robustness to damage finding multimodal learning to be more efficient in all cases. The second set looked at whether this multimodal advantage could be approximated by reordering unimodal tasks at the item level. Findings indicated that the multimodal advantage is dependent upon simultaneous item presentation across multiple modalities. The third set of simulations contrasted multimodal and unimodal environments during rehabilitation while manipulating background spontaneous recovery, therapy set size and damage severity finding a multimodal advantage for all conditions of rehabilitation. The thesis findings suggest PDP models may be well-suited to predicting the effects of rehabilitation, and that clinical exploration of multimodal learning environments may yield substantial benefits in patient-related work.

Thesis (M Speech Path)--Stellenbosch University, 2012. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Narrative skills have found to be a predictor of academic success with clear correlations to later reading and writing abilities in children. The quality of narratives and the language disorders displayed in specific clinical populations has also been correlated, making narratives a useful diagnostic tool. To be able to know what is atypical, one has to know what is normal. Normative based assessment materials are very limited in South Africa. Commercially available assessments are often inappropriate because of the complex nature of narratives and the influence of socio-economic, linguistic and cultural factors. There is therefore a need not only to develop appropriate assessment materials but also to obtain normative data for use in the South African context. The main research question this study attempted to answer is: What are the patterns of narrative development in normally developing children? A total of 62 typically developing children from schools in a middle class residential area was selected. Three different age groups were identified: Grade R (5 to 6 years), Grade 1 (6 to 7 years) and Grade 3 (8 years 6 months to 9 years 6 months) based on their different exposure to literate language. It was assumed that they would display distinct patterns of narrative development, with an increase in the complexity of narrative features with age. A wordless picture book, regarded as appropriate for the South African context, was developed and used to elicit a narrative from each participant. Narratives were analysed using a comprehensive narrative assessment protocol. Assessment areas included macrostructure, microstructure, use of literate language and the use of abstraction. Results were compared in terms of group differences and developmental trajectories. The assessment protocol showed similar story lengths in all age groups, suggesting that when the developed wordless picture book was used as elicitation stimulus, any significant differences between groups could be of diagnostic value. Results showed clear developmental trajectories in terms of macrostructural measures. The group differences between Grade R and Grade 1 in terms of microstructural measures were not significant. There was, however, a significant increase in terms of syntactic complexity and lexical diversity from Grade R to Grade 3. No significant development was observed in terms of the use of literate language features across the year groups and a group effect was offered as a possible explanation. In contrast to concrete statements, children as young as 5 years old used mainly abstractions in their generated narratives. / AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Narratiefvaardighede is nie net ‘n voorvereiste vir akademiese sukses nie, maar korreleer ook met lees- en skryfvaardighede in kinders. Weens die korrelasie tussen die kwaliteit van narratiewe en die taal van kinders met spesifieke taalgestremdhede, het narratiewe ook diagnostiese waarde. Om te weet wat atipies is, moet ‘n mens weet wat normaal is. Normatiewe evaluasiemateriaal is baie beperk in Suid-Afrika. Die evaluasies wat kommersieël beskikbaar is, is dikwels ontoepaslik weens die kompleksiteit van narratiewe en die invloed van sosioekonomiese, linguistiese en kulturele faktore. Dit is daarom belangrik om geskikte evaluasie materiaal te ontwikkel en normatiewe data te bepaal vir gebruik in die Suid-Afrikaanse konteks. Met hierdie studie is daar gepoog om die volgende navorsingsvraag te beantwoord: Hoe ontwikkel narratiewe in normaal ontwikkelende kinders? ‘n Totaal van 62 tipies-ontwikkelende kinders is geselekteer uit hoofstroomskole in ‘n middelklas residensiële omgewing. Drie verskillende ouderdomsgroepe is geteiken op grond van hulle blootstelling aan geletterdheidstaal: Graad R (5 – 6 jaar), Graad 1 (6 – 7 jaar) en Graad 3 (8 jaar 6 maande – 9 jaar 6 maande). Daar is aangeneem dat die groepe baie spesifieke patrone in narratiefontwikkeling sou toon, met ‘n toename in die kompleksiteit van narratiewe met toename in ouderdom. ‘n Woordlose prenteboek, wat beskou is as toepaslik binne die Suid-Afrikaanse konteks, is ontwikkel en gebruik om ‘n narratief van elke deelnemer te ontlok. Narratiewe is ontleed met behulp van ‘n omvattende evaluasieprotokol. Areas vir ontleding het makrostruktuur, mikrostruktuur, gebruik van geletterdheidstaal en die gebruik van abstraksie ingesluit. Resultate is vergelyk ten opsigte van groepsverskille en ontwikkelingspatrone. Die storielengte van die verkillende ouderdomsgroepe het ooreengestem en suggereer dat wanneer die woordlose prenteboek as ontlokkingstimulus gebruik word, enige beduidende verskille tussen groepe van diagnostiese waarde is. Die resultate het duidelike ontwikkelingspatrone getoon ten opsigte van makrostrukturele meetings. Groepsverskille tussen Graad R en Graad 1 was onbeduidend ten opsigte van mikrostrukturele metings. Daar was egter ‘n beduidende toename ten opsigte van sintaktiese kompleksiteit en leksikale diversiteit van Graad R tot Graad 3. Geen beduidende ontwikkeling is waargeneem ten opsigte van die gebruik van geletterdheidstaal oor die jaargroepe nie en ‘n groepseffek is as moontlike verduideliking gegee. Kinders so jonk as 5 jaar oud het hoofsaaklik abstrakte taal teenoor konkrete taal in hul narratiewe gebruik. Kliniese implikasies vir spraak- en taalterapeute is bespreek.

This thesis is concerned with the experience of aphasia in Khayelitsha, a township on the outskirts of Cape Town characterised by poverty, violence, limited resources and a culture and language that differs from the setting of most speech and language services in South Africa. It is based on three years of intermittent fieldwork that entailed participant observation of the everyday life of five adults living with aphasia and interviews with participants, kin and healthcare workers in various settings. Grounded in sociocultural theory, this thesis has aimed to provide an ethnographic account of cultural frameworks of interpretation of communication impairment following stroke and of the daily reality of life for adults living with aphasia in this setting. An exploration of causal notions in this setting provided interesting commentary on social and cultural processes and how people, caught up in these processes, search for meaning and for cure. Participants entertained plural notions of causation of aphasia and explored numerous therapeutic avenues. The wide variation in causal notions included biomedical causes, social and behavioural determinants, and the influences of supernatural powers, such as witches and ancestors. Similarly participants experienced aphasia through multiple healing systems, including traditional, biomedical and religious therapy options. All however seemed to be ambiguous sources of help. Whilst encounters with the health system presented serious challenges to participants, traditional and religious avenues for help were obscured by a burgeoning and not always ethical open market offering miracle cures. An articulation of the circumstances of this group of adults provided further commentary on the influence of the social context on aphasia. In a context where sociopolitical processes have had a disintegrating effect on social cohesion, questions of support, care and security were of primary concern. Prejudices towards the elderly and women were more acutely felt and vulnerability, isolation, insecurity and fluidity of circumstance emerged as overarching themes. The central argument in this thesis is that the genesis of these experiences can be found in contextual factors in Khayelitsha, such as poverty, inequality, urbanisation and changing cultural paradigms. These emerging themes highlight the disjunctions between the medical alignment of the discipline of speech language therapy in South Africa and the capacity for socially-engaged practice. They also highlight the socio-cultural complexity of the experience of aphasia, specifically the influences of culture and poverty. There is thus theoretical and clinical relevance in using anthropological objectives to explore the world of the adult living with aphasia and the interface between context and service provision. Interventions and healthcare communications that will make a meaningful difference to adults with aphasia in a setting such as Khayelitsha are proposed.

Este estudo buscou compreender o contexto cultural que envolve as práticas das mães residentes na comunidade pesqueira de Zimbros em Bombinhas, Santa Catarina e foi construído a partir do diálogo entre Fonoaudiologia, Saúde Pública e as Ciências Sociais. O caminho metodológico contou com contribuições da Etnografia, utilizando-se na pesquisa a observação participante realizada na sala de espera da Unidade de Saúde do bairro. A partir da análise dos textos dos diários de campo, observei a importância de construir-se uma escuta em relação à população e explorar mais o espaço da Unidade de Saúde como um espaço comunicativo para que a população possa ressignificar as suas práticas. As práticas das mães refletem a maneira como a comunidade entende as questões de linguagem. Neste local há um silêncio em relação às questões de linguagem que estão atreladas ao desejo da criança de falar, a espera do tempo certo para falar, sendo mais evidentes para as mães as questões atreladas ao uso de chupeta, à amamentação e/ou alimentação. A função das mães circula entre atender os desejos do filho ou repassar normas de conduta. Portanto, a Fonoaudiologia deve aprofundar as questões relacionadas à linguagem e cultura; construir formas alternativas de abordar a população, buscando situações dialógicas e que possam auxiliar outros profissionais a valorizarem as falas das mães. / This study has sought to understand the cultural context which involves the practice of the mothers living in the fishing community of Zimbros in Bombinhas, Santa Catarina State, and was developed from the dialog among Speech Therapy, Public Health, and Social Sciences. The methodological path featured the contributions from Etnography, by using, in the research, the participant observation carried out in the waiting room of the neighborhood’s Health Department. From the analyses of the field diary texts, I have noticed the importance of developing a hearing related to the population and futher exploring the Health Department space as a communicative space so that the population may give a new meaning to their practices. The mothers’ practices reflect the way in which the community understands the language issues. In this place, there is a silence with reference to the language issues which are linked to the child’s desire to speak, the right waiting period to speak, where the issues which are more evident to the mothers included the use of pacifiers, breastfeeding and/our feeding. The mothers’ roles range from meeting the child’s wishes to passing on behavior rules. Therefore, Speech Therapy must further study the issues related to language and culture, develop alternative ways of approaching the population, seeking dialogical situations that may help other professionals to value the mothers' speeches.

Este estudo buscou compreender o contexto cultural que envolve as práticas das mães residentes na comunidade pesqueira de Zimbros em Bombinhas, Santa Catarina e foi construído a partir do diálogo entre Fonoaudiologia, Saúde Pública e as Ciências Sociais. O caminho metodológico contou com contribuições da Etnografia, utilizando-se na pesquisa a observação participante realizada na sala de espera da Unidade de Saúde do bairro. A partir da análise dos textos dos diários de campo, observei a importância de construir-se uma escuta em relação à população e explorar mais o espaço da Unidade de Saúde como um espaço comunicativo para que a população possa ressignificar as suas práticas. As práticas das mães refletem a maneira como a comunidade entende as questões de linguagem. Neste local há um silêncio em relação às questões de linguagem que estão atreladas ao desejo da criança de falar, a espera do tempo certo para falar, sendo mais evidentes para as mães as questões atreladas ao uso de chupeta, à amamentação e/ou alimentação. A função das mães circula entre atender os desejos do filho ou repassar normas de conduta. Portanto, a Fonoaudiologia deve aprofundar as questões relacionadas à linguagem e cultura; construir formas alternativas de abordar a população, buscando situações dialógicas e que possam auxiliar outros profissionais a valorizarem as falas das mães. / This study has sought to understand the cultural context which involves the practice of the mothers living in the fishing community of Zimbros in Bombinhas, Santa Catarina State, and was developed from the dialog among Speech Therapy, Public Health, and Social Sciences. The methodological path featured the contributions from Etnography, by using, in the research, the participant observation carried out in the waiting room of the neighborhood’s Health Department. From the analyses of the field diary texts, I have noticed the importance of developing a hearing related to the population and futher exploring the Health Department space as a communicative space so that the population may give a new meaning to their practices. The mothers’ practices reflect the way in which the community understands the language issues. In this place, there is a silence with reference to the language issues which are linked to the child’s desire to speak, the right waiting period to speak, where the issues which are more evident to the mothers included the use of pacifiers, breastfeeding and/our feeding. The mothers’ roles range from meeting the child’s wishes to passing on behavior rules. Therefore, Speech Therapy must further study the issues related to language and culture, develop alternative ways of approaching the population, seeking dialogical situations that may help other professionals to value the mothers' speeches.

<p>Att arbeta med kommunikativ förmåga är en av grundstenarna i logopedens yrkesutövning. Syftet med denna studie var att utveckla ett självskattningsinstrument som kan mäta kommunikativ förmåga, med möjlighet att fånga upp både positiva och negativa aspekter av förmågan. Instrumentet utvecklades i enlighet med klassisk mätteori. En första utvärdering av instrumentet gjordes i ett pilottest med 13 respondenter. Resultatet ledde till att antal items, det vill säga frågor, minskades från 133 till 78 och individuella items förändrades vid behov. 254 respondenter fyllde sedan i det reviderade formuläret på internet. Fyra faktorer kunde uttydas ur materialet. Dessa var: beteende i sociala situationer, funktionell kommunikation, lingvistisk kunskap och receptiv förmåga samt röst. De fyra faktorerna förklarade 30,4% av variansen i materialet. Cronbachs alfa för alla 78 item var α = 0,76. Resultatet av denna studie är ett instrument i behov av ytterligare revidering och utveckling, främst med avseende på validering.</p> / <p>Working with communication is a key element in professional speech and language therapy. The aim of this study was to develop a self-report instrument that measures communicative ability, with a possibility to capture both positive and negative aspects of communication. The instrument was developed in accordance with classical measurement theory. A first evaluation of the instrument with 13 respondents was conducted. As a result the number of items, ie questions, was reduced from 133 to 78 and individual items were altered when needed. 254 respondents then answered the revised form on the internet. Four factors could be extracted from the material. These were: behavior in social situations, functional communication, linguistic skills and receptive skills plus voice. The four factors explained 30,4% of the variance within the material. Cronbach's alpha for all 78 items was α = 0,76. The result of this study is an instrument in need of further revision and development, primarily with respect to validation.</p>

Inhalt: 1. Einführung 1.1 Methoden zur Untersuchung sprachlicher Fähigkeiten 1.2 Die Anfänge der Erforschung von Mehrsprachigkeit 2. Funktionelle Bildgebung 2.1 Einfluss des Erwerbsalters 2.2 Einfluss der Sprachkompetenz 3. Elektrophysiologische Daten 3.1 Einfluss des Erwerbsalters 3.2 Einfluss der Sprachkompetenz 4. Neurokognitive Modelle 4.1 Lexikalisch-semantische Modelle 4.2 Lexikalisch-Grammatikalisches Modell 4.3 Implizit-Explizites Modell 5. Schlussfolgerung 6. Literatur

Inhalt: 1. Einführung 2. Sprachförderung von mehrsprachigen Kindern 2.1 Sprachfördermaßnahmen 2.2 Qualitätskriterien bei einer Sprachförderung 3. Sprachdiagnostik 3.1 Sprachtherapie mehrsprachiger Kinder 3.2 Differentialdiagnostik 4. Zusammenfassung 5. Literatur

Inhalt: 1. Einleitung 2. Hintergrund 2.1 Die prosodische Organisation des Deutschen 2.2 Implikationen für den Erwerb der Wortprosodie im Deutschen 3. Methode 3.1 Datenerhebung 3.2 Empirische Analyse 4. Ergebnisse: Die Entwicklung des Prosodischen Wortes im Deutschen 5. Analyse der empirischen Daten 5.1 Grundannahmen 5.2 Analyse der Entwicklungsstufen 6. Zusammenfassung und Diskussion 7. Literatur

Inhalt: 1. Einleitung 1.1 Blickbewegungen beim Lesen 1.2 Kognitive Kontrolle und verteilte Verarbeitung 2. Fragestellungen und Hypothesen 3. Methoden 3.1 Probanden 3.2 Material 3.3 Durchführung und Auswertung 4. Ergebnisse 4.1 Unterschiede in Effekten der Wortvorhersagbarkeit 4.2 Unterschiede in Effekten der Wortfrequenz 5. Diskussion 6. Literatur