Plasticity of the internal model for speech sounds: Articulatory changes during intensive visual biofeedback treatment

Abstract

Visual biofeedback, commonly delivered by a display of ultrasound of tongue position, has demonstrated effectiveness for treating residual speech errors in older children and adults. It can be challenging to make kinematic measures during treatment without the use of a head stabilizing system, however, and it is likewise not possible to measure the changes in speech motor control that accompany improvements in speech sound production. Opti-Speech, a visual biofeedback treatment software that uses EMA to provide positional data, has the benefit of providing a steady stream of position data throughout baseline and treatment sessions. In this study, Opti-Speech treatment was provided with an intensive schedule (2x/day for 5 days) to two adolescent males with persistent speech errors (i.e., lateralized /s/). Marked improvements in /s/ accuracy and quality were noted over the course of treatment and are reported in another paper (Mental et al., this meeting). Kinematic measures were made of tongue position thr...