Participatory design with Individuals who have Amnesia

We present experiences and insights into participatory design with individuals who have anterograde amnesia and therefore have extreme difficulty storing new memories. We discuss our design of the design process, and present a set of techniques used to support memory during and between design sessions. From this experience, we identify cognitive assumptions of participatory design that break down when working with amnestics. We generalize these ideas into an analytical framework for researchers and practitioners who intend to use participatory design with persons having various kinds of cognitive impairments. We illustrate the framework by analyzing a cognitive deficit unrelated to memory that we encountered, and an unanticipated benefit from what at first appeared to be a liability in working with this design team

A study of agrammatism with special reference to Hebrew

The aim of the thesis was to test empirically Grodzinsky's account of agrammatism. Grodzinsky's account is based on Chomsky's Government and Binding theory and it claims that the comprehension deficit in agrammatism is due to the deletion of 'trace' present in passive and relative clauses. English and Hebrew speaking patients were tested. The experiment exploited a special feature of the Hebrew language in which it is possible to construct passive sentences without trace. In addition to passive and obJect relative clause sentences, other sentence types were also used. The results did not support the trace deletion hypothesis of Grodzinsky. An alternative version of his hypothesis, according to which sentences that require coindexation between two elements in the sentence are difficult for agrommatic aphasics did obtain support. The results also suggested that reversible sentences are particularly difficult for agrammatic patients. Grodzinsky's account also claimed that in agrammatism governed prepositions are impaired and ungoverned prepositions are preserved. In order to test this part of the theory an indepth case study of a Hebrew speaking agrammatic patient who never used prepositions in her spontaneous speech was carried out. The study tested the hypotheses of Grodzinsky and Friederici and it concluded that Grodzinsky's hypothesis according to which governed prepositions are impaired and ungoverned prepositions are preserved is not supported by the evidence. Meaningful prepositions as Friederici suggested, were more likely to be produced in certain tasks. Although this also cannot explain the total omission of prepositions of this patient. In addition to the preposition case study, the patient's ability to deal with the Hebrew verb system was investigated. Both the preposition and the verb study suggested that in agrammatism it is not the principles of Universal Grammar that are violated but the particular features of individual languages

Aphasia Compendium

Aphasia is an acquired central disorder of language that impairs a person’s ability to understand and/or produce spoken or writing language. The study of aphasia is important in different clinical and fundamental areas, including neurology, psychology, linguistics, and speech-language pathology. This book presents comprehensive information on the diagnosis and treatment of aphasias. Chapters cover such topics as linguistics and the study of aphasias, different types of aphasias, treatment approaches, imaging, and much more

Discourse characteristics of Creole-speaking Mauritian adults with mild to moderate aphasia

Bibliography: leaves 134-143.With the shift away from evaluation of isolated aspects of linguistic performance, discourse assessment has become an important tool in assessing the communication competence of individuals following a neurological insult. The present research investigates the effects of mild to moderate aphasia on the dscourse performance of Creole speaking Mauritians. A control group was included so as to differentiate aspects of discourse from normal to pathological and with a view to discerning compensatory strategies of adults with aphasia in discourse

The role of self-regulated learning on foreign vocabulary learning: a multi-case study

In recent years, a considerable body of empirical research has acknowledged the role of self-regulated learning (henceforth SRL) in the domain of English as a foreign language (EFL). However, the study investigating the role and mechanism of SRL in vocabulary learning is still in scarcity particularly in Indonesian contexts. To address this noticeable gap, this multi-case study aims to explore the role of SRL on vocabulary learning strategies use and mechanism from the experience of undergraduate EFL learners. After signing the informed of consent form sheets, two undergraduate students from two different countries (Indonesia and Egypt) voluntarily participate in this study. By employing a series of semi-structured interviews and conducting narrative thematic analysis (Braun Clarke, 2006), the findings showcase that both participants employ a myriad of vocabulary learning strategies such as rehearsal, elaboration, and social strategy. Additionally, the empirical evidence indicates that they have higher level of motivation and persistence to maintain vocabulary-learning activity. The findings suggest the important practical implications for teachers, learners, and institution. This article also discusses limitations and recommendations

Role of speech-language pathologists in aphasia therapy and rehabilitation as reported by practicing speech-language pathologists

This thesis examined the roles of speech-language pathologists (SLPs) within aphasia therapy and rehabilitation. Research compiled in the literature review explained the disorder of aphasia, and the roles of SLPs when working with people who have aphaisa, as outlined in the ASHA policy document Roles of Speech-Language Pathologists in The Identification, Diagnosis, and Treatment of Individuals with Cognitive-Communication Disorders: Position Statement (2005b). This study investigated ASHA-certified, masters-level SLPs’ preparedness to work with aphasia patients, as well as their familiarity of their roles and resonsibilities in aphasia therapy and rehabilitation, and their awareness of the possible forms of treatment for aphasia. An electronic survey was developed to investigate these three research questions and was emailed to 519 SLPs across the United States. One-hundred five (105) surveys were completed. The survey responses indicated that SLPs felt prepared to participate in aphasia rehabilitation upon receiving their CCC-SLP, and were also familiar with a majority of the roles and responsibilities of SLPs in aphasia rehabilitation. A majority of the SLPs surveyed were not aware of the broad range of treatment programs available for patients with aphasia. Further research is needed to investigate the possible correlation between graduate-level education in aphasia and participants’ familiarity with the topic of aphasia

Complete loss of case and gender within two generations: evidence from Stamford Hill Hasidic Yiddish

Yiddish was the everyday language spoken by most Central and East European Jews during the last millennium. As a result of the extreme loss of speakers during the Holocaust, subsequent geographic dispersal, and lack of institutional support, Yiddish is now an endangered language. Yet it continues to be a native and daily language for Haredi (strictly Orthodox) Jews, who live in close-knit communities worldwide. We have conducted the first study of the linguistic characteristics of the Yiddish spoken in the community in London’s Stamford Hill. While Krogh (in: Aptroot, Aptroot et al. (eds.) Leket: Yiddish studies today, Düsseldorf University Press, Düsseldorf, pp 483–506, 2012), Assouline (in: Aptroot, Hansen (eds.) Yiddish language structures, De Gruyter Mouton, Berlin, pp 39–62, 2014), and Sadock and Masor (J Jew Lang 6(1):89–110, 2018), investigating other Hasidic Yiddish-speaking communities, observe what they describe as morphological syncretism, in this paper we defend the claim that present-day Stamford Hill Hasidic Yiddish lacks morphological case and gender completely. We demonstrate that loss of morphological case and gender is the result of substantial language change over the course of two generations: while the case and gender system of the spoken medium was already beginning to undergo morphological syncretism and show some variation prior to World War II, case and gender distinctions were clearly present in the mental grammar of both Hasidic and non-Hasidic speakers of the relevant Yiddish dialects at that stage. We conclude the paper by identifying some of the language-internal, sociolinguistic and historical factors that have contributed to such rapid and pervasive language change, and compare the developments in Stamford Hill Hasidic Yiddish to those of minority German dialects in North America