Communication Partners Research Articles

Smart Predict: adding partner-suggested vocabulary to increase efficiency in a dual tablet AAC typing application

Smart Predict is a novel two-tablet application developed to improve conversational efficiency for people who use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) devices. The Smart Predict system consists of two distinct applications that were built for use with two Android tablets and/or phones with Bluetooth® capability. One application is referred to as the AAC User app and the second application is called the Partner app. Smart Predict integrates vocabulary supplementation from communication partners in real-time while persons who rely on AAC generate text and maintain full control to choose words within a word prediction line. Using single-case research designs with adapted alternating treatments under two counterbalanced treatment conditions (AAC User app alone versus AAC User app + Partner app), we examined message efficiency with persons who rely on switch scanning for on-screen keyboards. User experience questionnaires were administered to determine satisfaction and workload, and to provide feedback for future development efforts. Three adults with complex communication needs and motor impairments conversed with research staff about fourteen movie trailers. Characters per minute and switch selections per character produced by the person with complex communication needs and motor impairments were measured during 15-minute interviews to represent communication speed and effort. Results indicate that message efficiency increased with the dual-tablet Smart Predict, indicating faster message generation with the vocabulary supplementation system. User satisfaction increased and perceived effort decreased under the Smart Predict conditions. Given these results within a research and development framework, the Smart Predict concept is a viable feature that could be considered within smart AAC technologies.

Measuring successful conversations in couples with and without aphasia: A scoping review.

Aphasia impacts communication and relationships. While counselling is increasingly recognised as a component of the speech-language therapy role, the success of conversation partner training is typically measured in terms of communication alone. This scoping review aimed to describe how successful conversation is currently measured with couples-with and without aphasia, to inform the development of an ecologically valid measure for couples with aphasia. The scoping review was reported in alignment with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis Extensions for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-SCR). MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL and PsycINFO databases were searched for conversation treatment studies for couples with and without aphasia. Patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) were extracted from included studies and screened against the three-tier model of situated language to shortlist those that measure everyday communication. Items within shortlisted PROMs were further described using the refined International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health linking rules. Following screening and full-text review, 46 studies were included, consisting of 24 studies conducted with couples with aphasia and 22 studies conducted with couples without aphasia. For couples with aphasia, 13 PROMs were identified that measured everyday communication. Of these, 23% were dyadic (i.e., measured from the perspectives of both members of the couple); however, they usually only appraised the communication behaviours of the person with aphasia. For couples without aphasia, eight PROMs were identified that measured everyday communication; all were dyadic and measured both attitudes and communication behaviours of both partners. Conversation relies on the interaction of two people, and success in conversation is best rated by those having the conversation. The use of PROMs is recommended as part of person and relationship-centred practice; however, there is currently no validated PROM for conversation in aphasia that considers the perspectives and behaviours of both the person with aphasia and their communication partner. The PROM items identified in this study will form the basis of future research to develop a PROM for couples' conversations in aphasia. What is already known on the subject Communication partner training (CPT) for couples, where one person has aphasia, can improve conversation skills and enhance relationships. Clinician-rated measures, such as conversation analysis, have been used to measure the outcomes of CPT. However, there is a lack of person-centred or self-rated outcome measurement instruments. that is, patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) for couples' conversations in aphasia. What this paper adds to existing knowledge We have identified outcome measurement instruments used in conversation treatment studies for couples with and without aphasia. We found that most PROMs used in aphasia treatment studies were not dyadic, that is, they did not include the self-report of both communication partners. In contrast, the PROMs used with couples without aphasia were dyadic and contained items that measured a more complex range of both partners' emotions, behaviours and attitudes. What are the potential or actual clinical implications of this work? This study provides insights into the content and characteristics of PROMs for couples' conversation therapy and may assist clinicians in selecting outcome measurement instruments in their practice.

Blame-Correct Support for Receiver Properties in Recursively-Structured Actor Contracts

Actor languages model concurrency as processes that communicate through asynchronous message sends.Unfortunately, as the complexity of these systems increases, it becomes more difficult to compose and integrate their components. This is because of assumptions made by components about their communication partners which may not be upheld when they remain implicit. In this paper, we bring design-by-contract programming to actor programs through a contract system that enables expressing constraints on receiver-related properties.Expressing properties about the expected receiver of a message, and about this receiver's communication behavior, requires two novel types of contracts.Through their recursive structure, these contracts can govern entire communication chains. We implement the contract system for an actor extension of Scheme, describe it formally, and show how to assign blame in case of a contract violation.Finally, we prove our contract system and its blame assignment correct by formulating and proving a blame correctness theorem.

Dyadic Training of Communication Partners for Autistic Students: A Feasibility Study

Access to communication is a primary challenge affecting the education of Autistic students who use augmentative and alternative communication devices. This is compounded by potential communication partners (e.g., teachers and classroom paraeducators) who have insufficient training and skills to meaningfully engage these students in communication. To address these deficits in skills and training, this feasibility study used a multiple probe across participants design to test the effects of using behavioral skills training on dyads of teachers and paraeducators in increasing teacher-delivered opportunities to respond and student communication responses. The results show that after training, teachers’ opportunities to respond and use student-specific strategies increased. Following the teachers’ implementation of the strategies, students’ prompted and unprompted communication increased. These results provide evidence that supports the use of behavioral skills training to support communication partner skill development and student communication needs. These methods showed positive social validity with participants and demonstrate a professional development method that is more feasible for use by school staff than individual training. The results of this study provide initial evidence of the effectiveness of these methods with dyads of participants as well as with licensed teachers, extending the extant research, which often focuses on the individual training of paraeducators.

Реконтекстуалізація в перекладі студентського сленгу

Student slang as a secondary communication system is used by students exclusively in the context of informal conversation, since slang units cannot be used appropriately without knowing specific university terminology. The difficulty of translating such profanity is caused by the need for recontextualization – the translator's reconstruction of the source and target text contexts. The study of student slang words, in particular the techniques of translating them from English into Ukrainian, is relevant due to the dynamic nature of student slang, as well as the expansion of the boundaries of contemporary academic mobility of students. The purpose of the article is to determine the peculiarities of using the recontextualization strategy in the main techniques of translating student slang from English into Ukrainian. The integrated study of recontextualization in student slang translation involved the application of the following methods: the method of continuous sampling (for assembling slang units from student web-blogs), the method of descriptive observation (for defining possible techniques of translating student slang), methods of analysis and synthesis (for singling out lexical and stylistic peculiarities of student slang translation and formulation of conclusions). Results. Within the framework of sociocognitive approach, context is considered to be a special mental construct generated by participants in their episodic memory in the course of communicative interaction. The relevant constituents of the unique, subjective and dynamic context model include the sender and receiver of the message, their relationship, personal (situational) and sociocultural knowledge, evaluations and emotions, place and time of communication. A translator as a mediator of communicative interaction between the sender and the receiver of the message, also constructs a context model. Effective translation activity is possible only if the peculiarities of the context models of both the sender and the receiver of the message are taken into account. That is why the translator's context model is formed by incorporating the context models of both communicative partners into an integrated context model. Recontextualization as a linguistic and cognitive operation is aimed at reconstructing a communicative situation in the conceptual coordinates of communicative partners. Recontextualization in translation is a comprehensive translation strategy that affects all structural and communicative levels of the text and is used to adapt the translated text to the conditions acceptable in the target environment and the pragmatics of bilingual interaction. The strategy of recontextualization in student slang translation includes several stages: reconstructing the integrated context model that will resonate with the usual, everyday conditions of student life; domesticating the source text through analogy and specification; using appropriate translation techniques and transformations to reproduce the meaning of student slang in the target language. A comprehensive analysis of the illustrative material proved that the strategy of recontextualization involves such most frequent techniques of translating student slang as the search for appropriate equivalents in the target language, descriptive translation, explication and calquing. The highlighting stylistic features of translating student slang include metaphor, metonymy and antonomasia. The stylistic load of student slang often causes translation difficulties, since the strategy of recontextualization requires the involvement of a wide range of not only situational background, but also encyclopaedic knowledge. Originality. The article presents the attempt of making a deep insight into the application of the recontextualization strategy in translating student slang from English into Ukrainian. Conclusion. The results of the study prove that student slang is a multifaceted and emotionally coloured linguistic phenomenon that serves not only as a means of communication but also as a kind of sypher encoded in a mosaic of words and phrases. The strategy of recontextualization as a multi-stage linguistic and cognitive operation is focused on the reconstruction of the communicative situation by the translator in order to adapt the target text and adequately translate slang units. It is proved that the main techniques of translating student slang from English into Ukrainian are the search for appropriate equivalents in the target language, descriptive translation, explication and calquing. Metaphor, metonymy and antonomasia are the most effective and frequent stylistic means aimed at fulfilling the pragmatic function of slang units. We consider the study of possible ways of translating student abbreviations and phraseological units from English into Ukrainian to be much promising.

Topic maintenance in non-fluent aphasia conversation

Background: Studies on communication partner training programs for persons with aphasia reveal improvements in the conversation partners’ communication skills. This article explores the strategies for topic maintenance developed by the conversational partners of three people with non-fluent aphasia before and after an intervention on conversational strategies. Method: We used conversation analysis to examine video-recorded samples of everyday conversations (pre- and post-treatment and follow-up) between three couples. The assessment for topic management was performed with Conversation Analysis Profile for People with Aphasia (CAPPA). The intervention was conducted over a period of five weeks. The partners were trained to use strategies for better topic maintenance (multiple-choice, multimodality, and message verification). At six weeks post-therapy, a third recording was made. Results: After the intervention, changes in topic maintenance were observed. The use of strategies is related to the pre-existing context and the presence of visual support. Discussion/Conclusion: Individuals with non-fluent aphasia and their conversation partners engage in multimodal conversations and benefit from the use of strategies to overcome barriers to understanding, leading them to maintain a conversational topic.

Designing Cultural Adaptations of Caregiver-Implemented Interventions for Latinx Caregivers of Children Who Use Augmentative and Alternative Communication: Key Considerations.

Caregivers play a critical role in their children's development and serve as their primary communication partners. Family interactions provide the most naturally occurring opportunities for children with complex communication needs to learn language in the context of family routines. A growing body of research suggests that caregivers can effectively support their children's use of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) systems when provided with appropriate training and coaching through caregiver-implemented interventions (CIIs). However, the efficacy of these interventions remains untested among culturally and linguistically diverse caregivers. Given the increasing diversity in the United States, there is a pressing need to develop CIIs that align with the cultural and linguistic preferences of diverse families. Using the Ecological Validity Framework and the Checklist for Cultural Adaptations, this tutorial explores considerations for culturally adapting caregiver-implemented AAC interventions for Latinx caregivers of children with AAC needs. The aim is to ensure that interventions are relevant, meaningful, and respectful of cultural and linguistic practices. Through carefully crafted cultural adaptations, interventions can achieve greater acceptance by caregivers. This tutorial suggests a series of cultural adaptations to ensure accessibility, sustainability, and success of caregiver-implemented AAC interventions for Latinx caregivers of children with AAC needs. By incorporating cultural and linguistic considerations into the intervention design, we can enhance its acceptability among Latinx caregivers. This, in turn, can lead to improved outcomes in AAC implementation within the home environment.

Persevering through communication challenges: a qualitative descriptive exploration of communication experiences in aphasia

ABSTRACT Background People with aphasia often experience activity limitations and participation restrictions despite wanting to engage in communication activities that are satisfying and meaningful. Communication partner support, the complexity of the communication environment, and the thoughts and feelings of people with aphasia have important implications for both language processing and communicative participation. The perspectives of PWA about the role that environmental and personal factors (e.g. thoughts and feelings) play in their communication experiences could inform clinical practice. Aims To qualitatively explore the communication experiences of people with aphasia and how environmental demands and personal factors (especially emotional responses) affect these experiences. Methods & Procedures Fourteen participants with aphasia completed semi-structured interviews immediately following testing sessions for a larger mixed-methods project investigating the relationship between mood, attention, and language function. Interview questions related to their everyday communication experiences and how their communication environment affected their communication and concentration as well as how their emotions affected their communication. Interviews were recorded, transcribed orthographically, then analyzed using a generic qualitative descriptive approach. Coding was completed in two rounds, which included inductive and deductive coding. Codes were synthesized by reflexively analyzing code co-occurrence. Outcomes & Results Key antecedent variables included language deficits associated with aphasia and environmental demands, often leading to communication challenges. Participation was highlighted as the principal outcome, ranging from proactive engagement to withdrawal. Mental rehearsal, feelings, and attitudes mediated participation, but feelings and attitudes were also described as outcomes. Communication partners played a pivotal mediating role, often determining positive or negative outcomes. Supportive partners facilitated engagement, optimism, and contentment, while unsupportive partners led to frustration. Conclusions The results of this study highlight the role of various factors in influencing the communication experience of people with aphasia and indicate that, within the context of communication challenges, communication partners, attitudes, feelings, and participation play critical and interacting roles. Preparatory strategies such as mental rehearsal can also facilitate participation. These findings imply that targeting communication partner support, mental rehearsal focused on social scripts, or psychosocial adjustment could have important effects on participation.

Artificial intelligence (AI) in diagnostic and therapeutic decision-making-atool or communication partner?

Artificial intelligence (AI) is a tool that is only as good as its user. In the case of humanoid robots, an AI system can be seen as a social counterpart. Decision intelligence (DI) is a term that stems from engineering. DI as a science is used to process data with findings from the social sciences and decision theories. The aim is to improve decision-making processes. However, AI should be categorized as a tool and not as a communication partner. AI analyzes information from studies, guidelines, and textbooks from the outset-taking individual patient information into account. Physicians with a high level of clinical expertise can ask more specific questions about the latter. ChatGPT is trained with millions of texts from the internet, social media, online forums, journal articles, and books; it covers almost all areas of life.

Approaches towards pragmatic language assessment in Indian pre-schoolers: A survey among speech-language pathologists.

Pragmatic language assessment in children is performed in line with standard protocols, guidelines, and best practices. The absence of these aspects in the Indian context has resulted in the quest to explore the approaches used by speech-language pathologists (SLPs) to assess pragmatic language impairments. This survey explored the current practices of SLPs towards the assessment of pragmatic language among preschool children in India. It also aimed to identify the barriers, facilitators and identify the level of knowledge, skill and overall practice of SLPs towards their practices using self-appraisal. A total of 100 SLPs(94 females and 6 males) working with preschool aged children (three-to-six-year-olds) from across different Indian states participated in the survey. Participants were enquired about the aspects of pragmatic language assessed, methods used for assessment, awareness and use of Indian tools, the settings, members, and language used for the assessment. Additionally, they were asked to mention the specific tools used, informal methods used, barriers and facilitators, and self-appraise their knowledge, skill and overall practice. Majority of participants assessed multiple aspects of pragmatic language. All used a combination of different assessment methods, with the participants commonly using informal compared to formal approaches. Preschoolers were assessed at multiple settings, along with different communication partners. Lack of awareness on assessment tools developed in India was the major barrier, while the use of informal tasks or activities were the major facilitators influencing pragmatic language assessment to a greater extent. The knowledge and skills for the assessment of pragmatic language obtained poorer scores compared to practices. The assessment practices of the SLPs were largely influenced by the unavailability of developed or adapted tools for Indian preschoolers, leading to the need to develop indigenous assessment tools. Certain considerations for further assessment practices have been identified and discussed.

The dynamics of intercultural clinical encounters in times of pandemic crisis. Swedish healthcare providers’ reflections on social norms in relation to sexual and reproductive healthcare

BackgroundExperiences from the COVID-19 pandemic may help to better understand resilience, competences and skills for healthcare providers and the healthcare system. Within sexual and reproductive health inequalities for migrants exist and it is an area where promoting both cultural competency and healthcare equity in the clinical encounter is expected of healthcare providers yet can create tension. The aim is to explore healthcare providers experiences of encounters with migrants in the context of the pandemic and the subsequent changes in routines and norms. MethodsA qualitative study based on semi-structured interviews with 31 healthcare providers working in sexual and reproductive healthcare in southern Sweden. Interviews were conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic influencing how healthcare providers reflected on their experiences. Analysis was done using reflexive thematic data analysis. FindingsHealthcare providers reflected on how changes in routines increased the understanding of challenges and enablers in the intercultural encounter including the impact on communication and role of relatives and male partners. They emphasized the dynamics of culture in the clinical encounter and healthcare system through highlighting the importance of structural awareness, self-reflection and the flexibility of conducts and norms, often given a cultural connotation. ConclusionThe COVID-19 pandemic resulted in changes of previously established routines directly affecting clinical encounters, which provided a unique opportunity for healthcare providers to reflect, with communication and self-reflection being discussed as central in complex encounters. It highlighted the dynamics of presumed deeply rooted cultural norms and the interplay with social factors affecting healthcare providers and patients alike.

Фаббинг: стремление к поверхностным контактам с другими и избегание глубинных контактов с собой

<p style="text-align: justify;"><strong>Objective. </strong>Analysis of the relationships between phubbing behavior and the characteristics of communication skills, sociability, escapism and existential fulfillment of people aged 18 to 50 years. <strong>Background. </strong>In the situation of digitalization of society, it is important to understand new types of communicative norms of human interaction. There is a demand to uncover the main factors and predictors of phubbing behavior in modern society, as well as to understand the role of phubbing in changing the nature of communication. <br><strong>Study design. </strong>The study revealed the relationship between phubbing behavior and communication and sociability of an individual. The relationships between phubbing patterns and indicators of existential fulfillment and the depth of contact with oneself and other people were also examined. The study was conducted using correlation analysis. <br><strong>Participants. </strong>The study involved 316 people aged 18 to 50 years (54% women, 46% men). The sample was stratified by gender, age (youth/middle-aged people), and level of education (higher education/specialized secondary education). <br><strong>Measurements. </strong>The following methods were used in the study: General Phubbing Scale (Phubber) (Chotpitayasunondh, Douglas, 2018); The Generic Scale of Being Phubbed (GSBP) (Phubbee) (Chotpitayasunondh, Douglas, 2018); Sociability test (Bogacheva, 2021); Methodology for measuring the level of expression of escapism (Teslavskaya, Savchenko, 2019); Test of existential motivation (TEM) (V.B. Shumsky, E.M. Ukolova, E.N. Osin, Ya.D. Lupandina, 2016). <br><strong>Results. </strong>Phubbing behavior is interconnected with such personality characteristics as sociability, contact, social adaptability and ergicity. Escapism reduces the likelihood of phubbing behavior and is not a direct characteristic of it. Existential fulfillment, meaningfulness of life and one's future, satisfaction with one's life and oneself reduce the likelihood of phubbing in relation to a partner. Phubbing behavior is more pronounced in women. There is a connection between active phubbing and having a higher education. The vast majority of the sample (both young people and mature people) consider phubbing to be an acceptable social norm of modern communication. <br><strong>Conclusions. </strong>The desire for quick, superficial and varied contacts increases the likelihood of phubbing in relation to a communication partner, and meaningfulness of one’s own life and deep contact with oneself reduces the likelihood of such behavior.</p>

The coproduction of a multilevel personal narrative intervention for people with aphasia in a community communication support group—A pilot study

IntroductionPeople with aphasia (PWA) face challenges in sharing personal stories due to communication difficulties. Discourse treatment in aphasia focusing on personal narrative macrostructure has yet to receive the attention this warrants of researchers and clinicians. Emerging person-centered approaches involve coproduction and codesign with PWA for meaningful discourse treatments. Few studies explore discourse treatment's impact on functional communication. This pilot study aims to explore whether the use of the coproduction approach in the development of a multilevel personal narrative intervention at the group level increased the production of macrostructure elements in trained and untrained narrative discourse contexts, improved aphasia severity and functional communication skills, and advanced quality of life of the participants with aphasia.MethodsAn ABA design was followed featuring a pre-treatment baseline assessment phase, a treatment phase, and a post-treatment assessment phase immediately after treatment was completed. Three people with chronic stroke-induced aphasia, three communication partners, and a moderator took part in the study. All participants were members of a university-led community aphasia communication group. The research protocol consisted of eleven, two-hour, weekly sessions over an 11-week block. Nine treatment sessions were carried out following codesign and coproduction methods that focused on participants with aphasia producing words, sentences, and total communication strategies to express macrostructure elements in their personal stories. Assessment measures were collected at baseline and post-treatment to evaluate improvements in trained and untrained narrative abilities, aphasia severity, functional communication, and the impact of aphasia on quality of life.ResultsMultilevel personal narrative therapy improved the narrative skills of the participants with aphasia at the macrostructural level of narrative discourse. Improvements were also observed in functional communication and quality of life post-treatment.DiscussionThe involvement of participants with aphasia in the codesign and coproduction of the treatment content for the group intervention facilitated improvement in narrative skills, functional communication, and overall quality of life with aphasia. It is recommended that researchers and clinicians consider using content from the personal narratives of clients with aphasia to build discourse treatment and adopt codesign and coproduction approaches, when designing interventions for people with chronic aphasia, to improve communication outcomes in everyday life.

Teaching compassionate-based behaviors across communication partners to students of applied behavior analysis: a preliminary investigation of comparative effectiveness

Applied behavior analysis (ABA) focuses on providing socially significant treatments and practices. Recent advancements in ethically-minded research have encouraged practitioners to think beyond the technical skills required for implementing behavior-analytic practices and consider how these practices are delivered. Compassionate care in ABA has recently been conceptually defined and subsequently researched to explore ways to explicitly and systematically teach compassionate-care-based skills within the scope of ABA. Researchers have noted barriers specific to the time required to teach compassionate-care-based skills using behavior skills training (BST) especially when working to train groups in compassionate care skills. Further, these studies have focused primarily on using compassionate care towards interactions with caregivers as communication partners. This study operationalized the compassionate care-based skill of receiving feedback within a behavioral analytic lens and taught it to eight master's students enrolled in an ABA course. An experimental case study approach was used to evaluate the relative benefit of modified behavioral skills training (BST) versions, including conditions with and without rehearsal opportunities and individualized performance feedback. Results indicated that all participants demonstrated significant skill increases across multiple communication partners (i.e., client, caregiver, colleague) compared to baseline sessions, with conditions including opportunities for rehearsal and performance feedback resulting in higher skill acquisition for seven of the eight participants. Conditions that required the participants to generalize to novel scenarios and novel communication partners resulted in lower competencies; however, all participant skills across all communication partners remained higher than baseline measures. Limitations included practicing skills within role-play scenarios only, the application of compassionate care-based skills in a variety of cultures, and limits related to using an experimental case study as a methodological approach. Implications for future research and practitioner-based applications are discussed.

How People Living With Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Use Personalized Automatic Speech Recognition Technology to Support Communication.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive, ultimately fatal disease causing progressive muscular weakness. Most people living with ALS (plwALS) experience dysarthria, eventually becoming unable to communicate using natural speech. Many wish to use speech for as long as possible. Personalized automated speech recognition (ASR) model technology, such as Google's Project Relate, is argued to better recognize speech with dysarthria, supporting maintenance of understanding through real-time captioning. The objectives of this study are how plwALS and communication partners use Relate in everyday conversation over a period of up to 12 months and how it may change with any decline in speech over time. This study videoed interactions between three plwALS and communication partners. We assessed ASR caption accuracy and how well they preserved meaning. Conversation analysis was used to identify participants' own organizational practices in the accomplishment of interaction. Thematic analysis was used to understand better the participants' experiences of using ASR captions. All plwALS reported lower-than-expected ASR accuracy when used in conversation and felt ASR captioning was only useful in certain contexts. All participants liked the concept of live captioning and were hopeful that future improvements to ASR accuracy may support their communication in everyday life. Training is needed on best practices for customization and practical use of ASR technology and for the limitations of ASR in conversational settings. Support is needed for those less confident with technology and to reduce misplaced allocation of ownership of captioning errors, risking negative effects on psychological well-being.

Listening to self-advocacy scripts produced by speakers with Broca’s aphasia and apraxia of speech: thoughts and emotions reported by unfamiliar communication partners

ABSTRACT Background Self-advocacy scripts are brief, scripted narratives that people with aphasia (PWA) use to self-disclose their aphasia, explain what it is, and request supportive communicative behaviors from communication partners (CPs). In previous research, PWA have reported that self-advocacy statements, including self-advocacy scripts, facilitate their interactions with unfamiliar CPs. To understand the benefits of self-advocacy scripts, it is important to directly investigate how unfamiliar CPs respond to them. Aims The aim of this study was to characterize the thoughts and emotions reported by unfamiliar adults after listening to self-advocacy scripts produced by speakers with Broca’s aphasia and apraxia of speech. Methods & Procedures This experimental study included 238 adult research participants without aphasia. Each participant was randomly assigned to listen to one script produced by a speaker with Broca’s aphasia and apraxia of speech: either a self-advocacy script or a control script about the weather that does not mention the speaker’s aphasia. Then, they answered one open-ended question (analyzed using a codebook approach) and eight rating scale questions (analyzed using Bayesian linear regression) about the thoughts and emotions they experienced while listening to the speaker. Outcomes & Results Compared to the control script, the self-advocacy script improved listeners’ knowledge about the speakers’ condition, their perception of the speakers’ intelligence, and their patience and empathy for the speakers. Conclusions Aphasia self-advocacy scripts can have powerful, positive effects on unfamiliar listeners. The present results highlight the importance of providing support in clinical practice for collaborative development of self-advocacy scripts between people with aphasia and their clinicians.

Особенности межличностного взаимодействия подростков, склонных к проявлению агрессии

<p style="text-align: justify;">The article provides an analysis of the results of a study of the unique aspects of interpersonal interaction among adolescents prone to aggression. The theoretical basis for the purpose of the work was provided by modern research, showing the versatility of the process of interpersonal interaction between adolescents and manifestations of aggression. The respondents of the study were teenagers from educational schools in Moscow, numbering 68 people aged 15-16 years. The empirical study used the aggressiveness test by L.G. Pochebut, “Aggressive behavior” methodology by E.P. Ilyin and P.A. Kovalev, interpersonal relations questionnaire by A.A. Rukavishnikov, emotional empathy questionnaire by A. Mehrabian, N. Epstein. The results of the empirical study established significant differences in the interpersonal interaction of adolescents prone to aggression. They are characterized by a desire to dominate, a lack of willingness to control their behavior, low selectivity and criticality in choosing communication partners, as well as a low level of empathy development. The obtained results can be used in work with adolescents aimed at creating favorable interactions among adolescents and reducing aggression.</p>

The impact of a university-based intensive comprehensive aphasia programme (ICAP) on language, functional communication and quality of life in people with chronic aphasia

ABSTRACT Background Intensive Comprehensive Aphasia Programmes (ICAPs) are increasingly considered the preferred option for high intensity aphasia rehabilitation. This is due to the emerging evidence that shows the potential of the programme to improve language impairment as well as psychosocial wellbeing and quality of life (QoL) in persons with chronic aphasia. Aims The aim of the study was to investigate whether a university-based, student-led, online ICAP led to measurable improvements in language, functional communication and QoL in persons with aphasia (PwAs). Methods & Procedures Eleven PwAs (six women, five men; M age = 60.4 years; M time post onset = 14.6 months) participated in a 10-week ICAP that provided 36 hours of treatment in total. Outcome measures relating to language impairment, functional communication and QoL were administered before and after the ICAP and included a range of subtests of the Comprehensive Aphasia Test (CAT) and the Communication Activities of Daily Living – second edition (CADL-2), the Assessment for Living with Aphasia (ALA), the Aphasia Impact Questionnaire (AIQ-21) and the Communication Outcomes after Stroke Scale (Carer COAST). Pre- and post-ICAP performances were tested for significance using Wilcoxon signed-rank tests. In addition, effect sizes were calculated. Outcomes & Results Post-ICAP, significant gains occurred in the CAT subtests of auditory and reading comprehension as well as naming objects, with large effect sizes being noted for the subtests of reading comprehension and naming objects. Significant changes were also observed between the pre- and post-assessment scores for the AIQ-21 and the Carer COAST, whereby the latter yielded large effect sizes. By contrast, CADL-2 and ALA scores did not change significantly as a result of the ICAP intervention. Conclusions Results indicate that the ICAP effectively improved participants’ language and functional communication skills, as well as QoL for both PwAs and their communication partners. Findings further indicate that a student-led ICAP implemented in a university setting can be considered a viable and pragmatic solution to offering ICAPs to achieve the high intensity needed to effect positive changes in communication.

Telepractice in Aphasia: Troubleshooting and Planning Assessments Using the Virtual-Appropriate Decision Approach

Purpose: This article describes the use of the Virtual-Appropriate Decision Approach (VADA). VADA is a systematic data gathering and problem-solving approach for planning and troubleshooting human, setting, and technology-related issues that may arise when conducting aphasia assessments via telepractice. Case examples are provided to illustrate and discuss its application for clinical and research settings. Method: We describe how VADA was used to analyze and mitigate challenges during administration of aphasia assessments in five (four cisgender males, one cisgender female) research participants via telepractice. Case discussions are organized by aphasia types and identify a variety of human, setting, and technology-related issues, which are analyzed via the VADA framework. Successes, challenges, and recommendations for conducting aphasia assessment via telepractice are included for each case. Conclusions: Unique challenges exist when using telepractice to conduct clinically valid standardized aphasia assessments for research or in the clinic. VADA is a systematic process to gather, analyze, evaluate, and address human, setting, and technology factors that impact aphasia assessments conducted via telepractice. The use of aphasia-friendly printed materials, assistance from communication partners, and similar task practice were adaptations that helped facilitate the assessment process.

Benefits and limitations of using AI in German language lessons on the example of ChatGPT

Today’s artificial intelligence systems, using the ever-increasing textual resources available in virtual space, are changing our perception of language and influencing the way we communicate and learn. The recently launched ChatGPT platform, based on an autoregressive algorithm, naturally imitates an omniscient communication partner. The high popularity achieved by the system in a very short time, especially among young users, should be a reason to consider the impact of this type of tool on modern education, including the teaching of foreign languages and the role of the teacher in the teaching process. The following article will present, based on practical examples, the benefits and limitations of using artificial intelligence in German language lessons, both from the teacher and student perspective.