INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF LANGUAGE & COMMUNICATION DISORDERS

Child, family and professional views on valued communication outcomes for non-verbal children with neurodisability: A qualitative meta-synthesis
Buckeridge K, Abrahamson V, Pellatt-Higgins T, Sellers D and Forbes L
There are many children with neurodisability who are unable to rely on speech to communicate and so use a range of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) methods and strategies to get their message across. Current instruments designed to measure the outcomes of speech and language therapy interventions lack specific attention to communication outcomes that are valued by non-verbal children with neurodisability, their families and support networks. This qualitative meta-synthesis was conducted to identify valued communication outcomes to inform the next stage of developing a novel outcome measure.
Learner training for phonetic transcription of typical and/or disordered speech: A scoping review
Lee A and Bessell N
Phonetic transcription is a core skill of speech and language therapists/pathologists (SLT/Ps) for clinical assessment of speech sounds and/or errors, and linguists for investigation of phonetic phenomena in various languages; hence, it is included in the curriculum of the corresponding degree programme. Many experts and course instructors have discussed their opinions on different aspects of phonetic transcription teaching and/or reported their own training programmes. However, no review has systematically summarized the types of expert recommendations and training methodology reported in the literature. Such information is important for mapping the knowledge gaps, refining current teaching and planning further research.
A survey of dysphagia services practice in China
Li Y, Zhang Q, Zeng J and Wang L
Dysphagia services have only recently been formalised within Chinese health services. There has been no comprehensive evaluation of all aspects of dysphagia services practice in China.
Meta-analysis reveals low language capacity in childhood is associated with mental health problems in adulthood
Lim SWY and Lum JAG
Children and adolescents with language problems have poorer mental health compared with their non-language impaired peers. Less is known about mental health in adults with a history of language problems. This paper presents a systematic review and meta-analysis that addresses this gap in the literature. Specifically, it summarises the results from studies examining anxiety and depression in adults (aged 18 years and over) who were identified with language impairments or problems earlier in development.
Lexical retrieval difficulties in post-COVID-19 syndrome: Insights from verbal fluency and naming tasks
González-Nosti M, Barrenechea A, Miguel-Abella RS, Pérez-Sánchez MDC, Fernández-Manzano L, Ramírez-Arjona A, Rodríguez-Pérez N and Herrera E
Although considerable research has been conducted on post-COVID-19 syndrome (PCS), cognitive symptoms, particularly those related to language, are still not well understood.
Stakeholder perspectives on educational needs and supports for students with developmental language disorder
Ziegenfusz S, Westerveld MF, Fluckiger B and Paynter J
Students with developmental language disorder (DLD) often experience academic underachievement, and require adjustments and accommodations to access the curriculum. Teachers, allied health professionals and parents/caregivers have varying roles in the education process, and it is essential they work together to provide optimal support. However, their perspectives on the areas of functioning most impacting learning, the difficulty of school-based tasks and the helpfulness of educational support have received limited attention.
Effectiveness of French Phonological Components Analysis in individuals with chronic aphasia
Masson-Trottier M, Marcotte K, Rochon E, Leonard C and Ansaldo AI
Over 50% of individuals with aphasia face ongoing word-finding issues. Studies have found phonologically oriented therapy helpful for English speakers, but this has not yet been studied in French. It is essential to assess the effectiveness of such a therapy in French, considering the distinct linguistic typologies between both languages, which may impact the outcomes of phonologically oriented interventions.
Gender and age biases in the assessment of speech accuracy: A study of speech-language clinicians' ratings of /s/ accuracy
Munson B, Wruck C, Benway NR and Preston JL
Typically developing children assigned male at birth (AMAB) and children assigned female at birth (AFAB) produce the fricative /s/ differently: AFAB children produce /s/ with a higher spectral peak frequency. This study examined whether implicit knowledge of these differences affects speech-language pathologists'/speech and language therapists' (SLPs'/SLTs') ratings of /s/ accuracy, by comparing ratings made in conditions where SLPs/SLTs were blind to children's sex assigned at birth (SAB) to conditions in which they were told this information.
How speech and language therapists and parents work together in the therapeutic process for children with speech sound disorder: A scoping review
Pritchard K, Stojanovik V, Titterington J and Pagnamenta E
Speech sound disorders (SSDs) are broadly defined as difficulty producing speech sounds in childhood. Reported prevalence of SSD varies from 2.3% to 24.6%, depending on how SSD is defined and the included age range. SSDs that do not resolve before age 8 can have a lasting impact on a child's academic achievements. The intensity of intervention for SSD is important to ensure effectiveness. However, there is a gap between the evidence base for intensity and speech and language therapists' (SLTs) clinical practice. One way that SLTs try to bridge this gap is by working with parents. SLTs believe that working with parents/caregivers is vital for a child with SSD to make progress.
Microstructure competences and grammatical errors of Danish-speaking children with developmental language disorder when telling and retelling narratives and engaging in spontaneous language
Olsen LS and Jensen de López K
Research on the grammatical characteristics of children with developmental language disorder (DLD) across languages has challenged accounts about the nature of DLD. Studies of the characteristics of DLD in different languages can reveal which components of DLD emerge irrespective of language and which components are language specific.
A systematic review of evidence relating to the use of telesupervision for speech-language pathology students on clinical placements
Walters J, Bryant L and Hemsley B
The use of telepractice in delivering speech-language pathology services is increasing and speech-language pathologists are providing supervision to students on clinical placements through telesupervision. The review examined literature on telesupervision for speech-language pathology students on a clinical placement.
Validity and reliability of the revised scale of avoidance and struggle behaviours in stuttering (r-SASBS)
Hancer H and Tokgoz-Yilmaz S
Secondary behaviours, which encompass reactions developed due to an individual's fear and stress about stuttering, have the potential to exacerbate the condition. Therefore, self-evaluation of secondary behaviours is significant in the multidimensional approach for people who stutter (PWS).
Assessment and treatment of gesture in neurogenic communication disorders: An international survey of practice
Caute A, Roper A, Dipper L and Stark BC
Gesture and speech collaborate in conveying meaning, and gesture is often leveraged by people with neurogenic communication disorders, such as aphasia, cognitive-communicative impairments and primary progressive aphasia, when words fail them. Because gesture is imagistic, transitory and holistic, there are inherent challenges when assessing and treating it.
Collaborative approaches with stakeholders in speech-language pathology: Narrative literature review
Hassett J, Spencer L, Hewat S, Wales K and Webb G
Collaborative approaches in speech-language pathology (SLP) aim to integrate the experience of clients and people important to them by including these stakeholders actively in decision making. This inclusion can lead to more effective, engaging, and safer SLP practice. A variety of collaborative approaches have evolved in response to sociocultural contexts, and as a result, there are many different approaches currently in use such as co-design, co-production, and co-creation. However, despite widening acceptance and utilisation of collaborative approaches, the use and evidence for these in SLP literature have not been considered collectively. The current study aims to explore how collaborative approaches, used to develop products or services in SLP, are reported in literature.
The vague language use scale: Clinical utility and psychometrics from adults with traumatic brain injury
Greenslade KJ, Bushell JK, Dillon EF and Ramage AE
Pragmatic communication difficulties encompass many distinct behaviours, including the use of vague and/or insufficient language, a common characteristic following traumatic brain injury (TBI) that negatively impacts psychosocial outcomes. Existing assessments evaluate pragmatic communication broadly, often with only one or two items capturing each behaviour, thus limiting sensitivity and precision to variations within each behaviour. Given that greater nuance is needed to detect subtle pragmatic communication differences and investigate underlying cognitive mechanisms, a more refined measure is critical to improve psychosocial outcomes. The Vague scale was developed to address those needs.
Exploring vowel errors produced in nonword repetition in children with speech and language disorders
Vuolo J and Gifford TL
Accurate nonword repetition (NWR) is contingent on many underlying skills, including encoding, memory and motor planning and programming. Though vowel errors are frequently associated with childhood apraxia of speech (CAS), several recent studies have found that children with developmental language disorder (DLD) produce high rates of vowel errors in NWR tasks.
Parental communication dynamics with children who stutter: A scoping review
Hartman I, Klop D and Swartz L
Parents of children who stutter (CWS) are often uncertain, hesitant and uncomfortable to communicate openly with their CWS and other people on the topic of the stutter and disclosing the stutter to the child and/or other people.
Animal-assisted services for adults with acquired neurogenic communication disorders: A scoping review
McSween MP, Day T, Hill J and Wallace SJ
There is increasing interest in the incorporation of animal-assisted services (AAS) in therapy for adults with acquired neurogenic communication disorders. AAS have the potential to enhance speech and language therapy engagement and outcomes. However, a greater understanding of the nature and potential benefits of these interventions is needed.
Personalized, performance-specific speech intervention in children with a cleft palate: A systematic review protocol
Alighieri C, Bettens K, Vandewiele F and Van Lierde K
The provision of speech intervention in children requires personalized, child-tailored approaches. Different speech-intervention approaches exist to eliminate cleft-related speech errors in children with a cleft palate. However, it is unclear what approach works best for the subtypes of cleft-related speech errors.
Cultural adaptation and psychometric analysis of Communication Activities of Daily Living third edition in Spanish and Catalan for people with aphasia
Roca C, Ivern I, Cifre I and Bruna O
In the Spanish and Catalan context, there is currently a lack of standardized, linguistically adapted tools to assess people with communication disorders. This lack is especially evident when it comes to instruments designed to assess functional communication.
How to create accessible research summaries for the developmental language disorder community
Gasparini L, Ziegenfusz S, Turner N, Leitão S, St Clair MC and Jackson E
Eighty-five percent of medical research goes to waste, partly because it is not appropriately communicated to stakeholders. This represents a critical issue for the research community, especially because individuals who are impacted by research should be able to readily access that research. Making research findings accessible to key stakeholders is an important step in implementation science and in enabling research to have meaningful impacts. Plain language summaries are a tool to make research more accessible to individuals with communication disorders. While guidelines exist to support researchers to develop plain language summaries for some populations, no such guidelines exist for the developmental language disorder (DLD) community.