Birth talk in second stage labor.

In this secondary analysis of videotape data, we describe birth talk demonstrated by caregivers to women during the second stage of labor. Birth talk is a distinctive verbal register or a set of linguistic features that are used with particular behaviors during specific situations, has a particular communication purpose, and is characterized by distinctive language features. Birth talk is found cross-culturally among speakers of diverse languages. Our findings show that birth talk occurred mainly during contractions and co-occurred with two general styles of caregiving: "directed toward forced bearing down" and "supportive of physiologic bearing down." We also describe talk that occurred during rest periods, which was similar across the two styles. Caregivers' use of language tended to be either procedural (giving directions, instructions) or comfort related (encouraging and supporting). Linguistic features of the talk consisted of utterances of short duration, level pitch patterns with no sudden pitch shifts, and a restricted pitch range.

Prevalence of stuttering in African American preschoolers.

PURPOSE: In this study, the authors sought to determine the prevalence of stuttering in African American (AA) 2- to 5-year-olds as compared with same-age European Americans (EAs). METHOD: A total of 3,164 children participated: 2,223 AAs and 941 EAs. Data were collected using a 3-pronged approach that included investigators' individual interactions with each child, teacher identification, and parent identification of stuttering. RESULTS: No statistically significant difference for stuttering was found between AA and EA children. Using the investigator and teacher method of identification, the prevalence of stuttering was 2.52% for the entire sample. For both racial groups, boys exhibited a higher prevalence of stuttering than girls. Of the 3 predictors (age, race, sex) of stuttering, only sex was a significant predictor. CONCLUSIONS: AA 2- to 5-year-olds are not overrepresented in the stuttering population for this age group. When data are combined for both racial groups, the prevalence of stuttering is 2.52%. More boys than girls stuttered in this sample of preschoolers.

Preventing multiple-choice tests from impeding educational advancement after acquired brain injury.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this article is to present management strategies that can be used to breach barriers created for students with acquired brain injuries by testing the students in the multiple-choice format. METHOD: This article presents a case study of a high school student with severe hydrocephalus and difficulties with state-mandated reading comprehension tests who was denied exceptional student education services because her grades were "so good." Result Although an honor student who received academic awards, she was never taught how to pass the state reading test and was denied her diploma at graduation. IMPLICATIONS: The cognitive obstacles posed by the multiple-choice format can be specified and treated. In-service training can help school staff and officials to recognize and serve these children promptly so that academic disability can be prevented.

Performance of three racial/ethnic groups on two tests of executive function: clinical implications for traumatic brain injury (TBI).

The purpose of this study was to determine if race/ethnicity may influence performance of college students on the Behavioral Assessment of Dysexecutive Syndrome (BADS) and the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test (WCST), two different tests of executive function (EF). A total of 149 participants who self-identified as African American (AA), European American (EA), and Latina/o American (LA) constituted the three different racial/ethnic groups. Participants ranged in age range from 18 to 24 years old (SD = 1.29) and none reported histories of disabilities. The BADS was administered to 149 college students and the WCST was administered to 142 of the same participants. No statistically significant differences were found for race/ethnicity or gender on the WCST. Statistically significant differences were found for race/ethnicity on the Profile Scores (raw scores), standard scores (SS) and the Zoo Map subtest of the BADS, but no statistically significant differences were found for gender on these same tasks. While there should be less concern in administering WCST to diverse groups who are English speakers, caution should be taken in administering and interpreting the BADS for individuals from diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds.

Prevalence of voice disorders in African American and European American preschoolers.

Several studies have reported prevalence rates for voice disorders in school-aged children. Less is known, however, about such prevalence in preschoolers, and whether racial, ethnic, or cultural diversity may influence it. The presence of voice disorders in a total of 2445 African-American and European-American preschool children, 1246 males and 1199 females, from 2 to 6 years of age is reported here. Presence of a voice disorder characterized by hoarseness was identified by a three-prong approach including teacher identification, investigator screening, and parent identification. Speech-language pathologists listened individually to each child's speech as they engaged each child in play-conversation activities. A voice disorder was identified on the basis of the judgment of two speech-language pathologists. Voice disorders characterized by hoarseness were identified in 95 children or 3.9% of the total sample by the investigators. Statistical analysis revealed no significant differences for age, gender, or race.

Analysis of normal discourse patterns.

Twenty-five normal young adult college students provided speaking and writing samples using two elicitation procedures: picture description and personal narrative. Patterns of productivity, efficiency, and coherence were investigated while considering the demands imposed by mode of expression, task elicitation, cognitive distance, and verbal working memory. Samples were divided into top (S1) and bottom (S2) halves. Within group (S1/S2) and between group (pictured activity description/personal narrative) comparisons were made for oral vs. written samples, and performance measures were correlated with verbal working memory scores. Results indicated that the productivity measure was influenced by the type of elicitation task and was not related to verbal working memory scores. Efficiency was influenced by mode of expression and demonstrated a low correlation with verbal working memory scores. Coherence ratings were not influenced by type of elicitation task, mode of expression, or length of sample, and were not related to verbal working memory scores. Results are discussed in terms of the clinical utility of these discourse measures.

Written discourse of adolescents with closed head injury.

Written discourse of adolescents with closed head injury (CHI) was compared to that of normal controls. It was expected that the writing of adolescents with CHI would be disordered on one or more of the eight measurements used (productivity, efficiency, lexical, incomplete, or elliptic cohesion, global or local coherence, and maze use). Eight adolescents with closed head injury and matched controls provided written descriptions of a pictured activity. Analysis using t-tests indicated that adolescents with CHI used fewer words to express each idea in writing (p = 0.05), and that the relationship between successive ideas was rated as less than that of controls (p = 0.002). Implications are that written as well as oral discourse should be assessed after CHI. Writing is a more controlled process than speaking; and, therefore, may be used clinically to structure the development of ideas after CHI.

Digit speech recognition thresholds (SRT) for non-native speakers of English.

Although Central Institute for the Deaf (CID) W-1 stimuli are routinely used for speech recognition threshold (SRT) testing, they are not always familiar to new learners of English and often lead to erroneous assessments. To improve test accuracy, alternative stimuli were constructed by pairing familiar English digits. These digit pairs were used to measure SRT for 12 non-native speakers of English and 12 native speakers of English. Results indicate that digit pairs effectively measure SRT for both participant groups; and more importantly, for non-native speakers of English, digit pairs are more accurate than CID W-1 words in measuring the hearing threshold for speech. Digit-pairs have cross-linguistic appeal and should greatly facilitate accurate SRT testing for listeners with minimal exposure to English.

Mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI): assessment and treatment procedures used by speech-language pathologists (SLPs).

The purposes of this study were to identify how individuals with MTBI are assessed, to determine the referral process to and from speech-language pathologists (SLPs), to describe the frequency, structure, and nature of treatment, to identify how individuals with MTBI and their families are educated about the injury and counselled, and to assess current follow-up procedures. One-hundred and forty-three hospital and rehabilitation centre based SLPs from North Carolina and Illinois responded to a survey developed to address these areas of interest. Findings indicated current diagnostic tools used by SLPs lack the sensitivity to detect the subtle cognitive communication deficits associated with MTBI, referral and follow-up procedures are not sufficiently implemented in facilities to meet the growing needs of individuals with MTBI, and SLPs would benefit from increased training regarding the management of individuals with MTBI including educating and counselling patients and their families.