24.3109, Review: Cognitive Science; General Linguistics: Damico, M=?UTF-8?Q?=C3=BCller_?=& Ball (2012)

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LINGUIST List: Vol-24-3109. Wed Jul 31 2013. ISSN: 1069 - 4875.

Subject: 24.3109, Review: Cognitive Science; General Linguistics: Damico, Müller & Ball (2012)

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Monica Macaulay, U of Wisconsin Madison
Rajiv Rao, U of Wisconsin Madison
Joseph Salmons, U of Wisconsin Madison
Mateja Schuck, U of Wisconsin Madison
Anja Wanner, U of Wisconsin Madison
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Date: Wed, 31 Jul 2013 10:50:35
From: Chris Plant [Chris.plant at jcu.edu.au]
Subject: The Handbook of Language and Speech Disorders

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EDITOR: Jack S Damico
EDITOR: Nicole  Müller
EDITOR: Martin J. Ball
TITLE: The Handbook of Language and Speech Disorders
PUBLISHER: Wiley-Blackwell
YEAR: 2012

REVIEWER: Chris Plant, James Cook University

SUMMARY

‘The Handbook of Language and Speech Disorders’ (hereafter referred to as ‘The
Handbook’), edited by Jack Damico, Nicole Müller & Martin Ball, presents 26
chapters that are grouped into four parts. Part I, “Foundations”, consists of
six chapters discussing issues that are described as germane to all areas of
language and speech disorders, whereas Parts II, III, and IV are more disorder
specific chapters relating to “Language Disorders”, “Speech Disorders”, and
“Cognitive and Intellectual Disorders”, respectively.

To present a brief summary review of each of the 26 chapters would be lengthy
and also unnecessary for the current review. Therefore, chapters from Part I
will be reviewed in more individual depth as these chapters are the most
representative of The Handbook's unique contribution to the field of speech,
language and communication disorders. This is not to underestimate the value
of the chapters in Parts II, III, and IV, but rather merely to say that for
the majority of these chapters, the content is fairly transparent from the
chapter titles (i.e. the reader knows what to expect).

This review will proceed with more in-depth description and review of Part I,
followed by more general description and review of Parts II, III, and IV.

Part I: Foundations

Chapter 1, ''The social and practical considerations in labeling'', by Jack
Damico, Nicole Müller, and Martin Ball, discusses the drivers and potential
impact of assigning diagnostic 'labels' to persons with speech, language and
communication disorders. The authors claim that the primary aim of initial
clinical encounters is for the clinician to establish a diagnostic label to
attach to the individual in front of them. The authors then go on to discuss
potentially positive and negative consequences of such labeling behavior.
Labeling is described within a social constructivist framework and the authors
present  specific examples of how the social construction of certain disorders
has evolved over time. For example, the authors discuss how senility was
previously perceived as a normal consequence of aging whereas now it is seen
as a disorder that can be differentiated from the norm. A further example
discussed is that of autistic spectrum disorders and how it is commonly
perceived that identification of children with autistic spectrum disorders is
perpetually increasing following, among other factors, changes in diagnostic
criteria from the third to the fourth evolutions of the ‘Diagnostic and
Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders of the American Psychological
Associations’. Concluding this thought-provoking chapter is the assertion that
clinicians working with such populations need to consider the individual
within the context, whilst also attempting to “discover the reality behind the
label and the individuality of each client's condition” (p. 28).

Chapter 2, ''Diversity consideration in speech and language disorders'', by
Brian Goldstein and Ramonda Horton-Ikard, discusses issues surrounding the
increasingly recognised issue of culturally and linguistically diverse
speakers. The chapter discusses issues relating to language variation and the
notions of language difference versus language disorder before moving on to
highlighting issues of multilingualism and how this may impact on clinical
practice. For example, the chapter discusses the known difficulties of
conducting speech and language assessments with speakers from culturally and
linguistically 'different' groups such as the frequent lack of available
standardized and published assessment resources for such speakers. However,
the chapter does then also describe some of the more commonly practiced
adaptations that clinicians may consider in order to gather some data to
inform clinical decision-making (e.g. repeating test instructions, providing
cues to elicit target behaviors, adding practice items, and so on). The
chapter concludes by arguing that clinicians need to demonstrate cultural
competence in order to successfully provide services for culturally and
linguistically diverse/different populations. Cultural competence is achieved
through awareness of how various “cognitive, linguistic, social, and cultural
factors interact to influence the language learning behaviors” (p. 51), and
occurs through the processes of: i) increasing awareness; ii) increasing
knowledge; and iii) increasing skills. From the outset of the chapter, the
authors do acknowledge that the majority of issues are contextualized using
research and observation within the US context, with numerous examples of
African American English speakers, almost exclusively in pediatric settings;
however, the authors do extract out salient principles that could be applied
to other culturally and linguistically diverse groups, thus making this
chapter useful more generally.

Chapter 3, ''Intervention for children with auditory or visual sensory
impairments'', by Laura Kretschmer and Richard Kretschmer, presents a
comprehensive review of research concerning speech and language acquisition
and development in children with primary hearing and/or primary visual
impairments. This includes a discussion surrounding issues of early
identification and early intervention, the effects of such impairments on
parent-child interactions, the acquisition of spoken language, and the
acquisition of signed languages (in the case of hearing impaired children).
The chapter argues that for speech and language pathology clinicians to play
an effective role in intervention for such children, they need to be fully
knowledgeable of typical speech and language development in addition to being
knowledgeable about the potential impact that the implementation of
technologies (e.g. cochlear implants) and alternative communication modes
(e.g. encouraging use of sign) may have with such children.

Chapter 4, ''Intelligibility impairments'', by Megan Hodge and Tara Whitehill,
discusses the concept of intelligibility and the applications of obtaining
measurements of intelligibility. A principle application of intelligibility
measurements is presented as a measure of severity of speech impairment, and
furthermore, as a measure of communication impairment. The authors carefully
differentiate ‘intelligibility’ (i.e., the reflection of “a talker's ability
to convert language to a physical signal (speech) and a listeners' ability to
perceive and decode this signal” (p. 99)) from the related, and often easily
confused, concepts of ‘comprehensibility’ (i.e. the ability for the speech
message to be understood within a particular communicative context) and
‘acceptability’ (i.e. roughly speaking, the extent to which a person's speech
is acceptable according to individual perceptions and social norms).
Intelligibility is described as a multi-faceted phenomenon that can be
influenced by one or a combination of inadequacies in a person's speech (e.g.
articulation, voice, loudness, prosody) and/or language (e.g. semantics,
morphosyntax, discourse). The chapter discusses various factors that should be
considered by the clinician when measuring intelligibility and determining the
impact of reduced intelligibility (e.g. characteristics associated with the
speaker, characteristics associated with the listener, characteristics of the
elicitation/speech task, characteristics associated with the speaking
environment, and so on). The authors go on to present the application of
speech intelligibility in relation to how it can inform the need for
intervention, how it can inform decisions regarding the type of intervention
to provide, and also in terms of how repeated pre- and post- measures of
intelligibility can be gathered in order to measure the effectiveness of
intervention.

Chapter 5, ''Genetic syndromes and communication disorder'', by Vesna
Stojanovik, presents rationales for why researchers and clinicians in speech
and language disorders should be familiar with developments in our
understanding of genetic syndromes and the impact that syndromes may have on
communication. It is argued that the study of speech and language in clients
with genetic syndromes has increasing potential to inform our theoretical
understanding of language development within the broader context of cognitive
development. For example, citing previous research, Stojanovik argues that the
investigation of genetic syndromes allows naturalistic insight into how
development of language and other cognitive functions can dissociate and
seemingly follow different developmental trajectories. While the chapter makes
it clear that speech and language are unlikely to be totally dissociable from
other aspects of cognitive development (due to the influence that different
aspects of cognition have on each other), the general principles of
dissociability are illustrated through specific discussions of three syndromes
(i.e. Williams syndrome, Downs syndrome, and Fragile-X syndrome) that
highlight different patterns of speech and language development. The author
concludes by stating that while research has progressed in terms of
understanding individual syndromes, there is a desperate need for more
comparative studies (especially longitudinal studies) that investigate
cognitive and language development over time in such conditions. Also, in
order for studies to fully inform theories of language and cognitive
development, it is imperative that such research consider development as close
to birth as possible.

Chapter 6, ''Principles of assessment and intervention'', by Bonnie Brinton
and Martin Fujiki, begins by presenting the reader with a scenario whereby a
newly graduated speech pathologist is dropped into a preschool classroom
situation surrounded by children of varying, and often complex, needs. The
reader is then encouraged to empathize with this speech pathologist, who is
likely to experience self-doubt and feelings of being overwhelmed. The authors
go on to provide reassurance that such feelings of being overwhelmed are
natural (even for clinicians with more experience who may be moving into
unfamiliar clinical areas) and then offers advice by presenting several
principles of assessment and intervention that are valid across different
clinical contexts that clinicians can use to offer a kind of structured
decision-making process. Some principles that are presented and discussed
include (among others): beginning with the end in mind (i.e. going into
intervention with a clear understanding of what the 'ultimate' aim of
intervention is likely to be, from a long-term perspective, i.e., not only
focusing on short-term goals); the fact that good intervention relies on good
assessment; the need to focus on what is truly important in order to achieve
functional and authentic goals; and, the appreciation that intervention is
most likely going to involve a substantial amount of time and effort from both
the clinician's and the client's behalf. Throughout the chapter, as well as in
its conclusion, there is recognition that services for clients are unlikely to
always be 'perfect', whether they be in relation to periods of intervention,
or even within the context of an individual clinical session. However, it is
argued that by following guiding principles and reflecting on previous
experiences, speech pathology clinicians will be able to “contribute to an
improved quality of life for the individuals … [they] serve” (p. 148).

Chapters within Parts II, III, and IV generally attempt to follow the
'prototypical' structure of presenting sections (not necessarily in this
order) covering: definitions of the disorder in question; historical
development; incidence and prevalence data; causes; subtypes and
classifications within the disorder; theoretical underpinnings; assessment and
evaluation; and intervention. As may be expected, this consistent structure is
more easily achieved for some topics than others. This is affirmed by the fact
that no single chapter presents all of the above mentioned sections and that
some chapters present a unique structure in order to more effectively present
the content.

Part II: Language Disorders

This part consists of eight chapters discussing language disorders from a mix
of both developmental and acquired perspectives: (7) “Autism spectrum
disorders: The state of the art” (John Muma and Steven Cloud); (8) “Delayed
language development in preschool children” (Deborah Weiss and Rhea Paul); (9)
“Specific language impairment” (Sandra Gillam and Alan Kamhi); (10) “Pragmatic
impairment” (Michael Perkins); (11) “Learning disabilities” (Robert Reid and
Laura Jacobson); (12) “Reading and reading impairments” (Jack Damico and Ryan
Nelson); (13) “Substance abuse and childhood language disorders” (Truman
Coggins and John Thorne); and (14) “Aphasia” (Chris Code).

Part III: Speech Disorders

This part presents eight chapters focused on speech disorders, again, from
varying perspectives: (15) “Children with speech sound disorders” (Sara
Howard); (16) “Dysarthria” (Hermann Ackermann, Ingo Hertrich and Wolfram
Ziegler); (17) “Apraxia of speech” (Adam Jacks and Donald Robin); (18)
“Augmentative and alternative communication: An introduction” (Kathryn Drager,
Erinn Finke and Elizabeth Serpentine); (19) “Fluency and fluency disorders”
(John Tetnowski and Kathy Scaler Scott); (20) “Describing voice disorders”
(Richard Morris and Archie Bernard Harmon); (21) “Orofacial anomalies” (Jane
Russell); and (22) “Speech disorders related to head and neck cancer:
Laryngectomy, glossectomy, and velopharyngeal and maxillofacial deficits” (Tim
Bressmann).

Part IV: Cognitive and Intellectual Disorders

This final part presents four chapters that discuss situations where speech
and language disorders may be more secondarily related to primary disorders of
cognitive functioning: (23) “ADHD and communication disorders” (Carol Westby
and Silvana Watson); (24) “Communication deficits associated with right
hemisphere brain damage” (Margaret Lehman Blake); (25) “Traumatic brain
injury” (Jennifer Mozeiko, Karen Lé and Carl Coelho); and (26) “Dementia”
(Nicole Müller).

EVALUATION

Overall, The Handbook continues the tradition of linguistics related handbooks
published under the Wiley-Blackwell name by presenting a comprehensive and
contemporary discussion of the state of the area/s under discussion. This is a
notable challenge within the field of speech and language disorders, as
discussed by the editors in the Introduction chapter. For one, the field has
expanded rapidly over the last 15-20 years to include more disorders that fall
within the remit of researchers and clinicians working within the field.
Secondly, there has been, and continues to be, a fairly extensive paradigm
shift within many sub-disciplines within the field of speech and language
disorders, which follows a more global move in healthcare professions toward
working according to principles of the World Health Organization's
International Classification of Functioning, Disability and Health (ICF)
framework. This has led to a situation where the impairment as such is no
longer the sole focus of assessment and intervention and greater emphasis is
given to investigating the actual impact of the impairment on the
patient’s/client’s/student’s ability to participate in activities of daily
living and within the environment/s in which they operate (e.g. home, work,
school, etc.). . However, despite this expansion and paradigm shift, The
Handbook rises to the challenge and presents a consistent message across all
chapters, achieving an appropriate balance between description of disorders
and appropriate contextualization (i.e., the consequences of disorders for the
individual). Therefore, the editors should be commended for compiling The
Handbook, as it will surely stand as a significant work for a period of time.

In terms of the overall content, while Part I presents The Handbook’s unique
conceptual contribution to the field of speech and language sciences, it is
important to highlight that all chapters presented within Parts II, III, and
IV are successful in presenting overviews of specific subject matter,
including an integration of up-to-date and quality research as appropriate.
The majority of chapters also effectively present how the understanding of
disorders has developed over time, either by explicitly describing the
historical development of attitudes and the understanding of the disorders in
question and/or by describing the underlying theoretical literature on which
current understanding is based. Therefore, there is a successful blend of both
seminal and current research woven through chapters in these Parts – as would
be expected in an effective handbook.

With regards to the target audience of this handbook, it is quite clearly
directed towards clinicians and researchers working with speech, language and
communication disorders. For this audience, the Handbook is successful in
providing an overview of the current state of knowledge in relation to the
topics covered. The Handbook as a whole would be a difficult recommendation to
make for early students of speech, language and communication disorders, as it
does generally assume a fair amount of background knowledge in most of the
areas covered. While some chapters offer a broad, non-specialist introduction
to the subject matter, other chapters may be less accessible to students,
given their highly specialised nature and the tendency for the subject matter
to not receive a great deal of attention (relatively speaking) within speech
pathology courses (outside of the United States at least; e.g. Chapters 13, on
substance abuse and childhood language disorders, and Chapter 21, on orofacial
anomalies). However, more advanced students (i.e. later stage undergraduates
and research level students) could still stand to benefit from reading The
Handbook as a whole or from reviewing individual chapters, as needed.

The majority of the chapters’ authors are well respected academics based in
institutions in the United States. This in itself is not an issue, however,
there is perhaps a US-centric perspective in terms of the research literature
that is presented within The Handbook. This is also evident when topics are
placed within the context of ‘the healthcare system’. As an initial example,
Chapter 1 ''Social and practical considerations in labeling” is quick to
suggest that a primary aim for clinicians within an initial session with a
client is to establish a clinical diagnosis, as this will open or close
therapy options within an insurance-based healthcare system. Chapter 2,
“Diversity considerations in speech and language disorders”, successfully
acknowledges a US-centric view, with much of the research presented being
derived from work with African American English speakers. However, it also
attempts to extract key themes that emerge that may generalise to clinicians
and researchers working within other contexts. In comparison, Chapter 11
“Learning disabilities”, fails to acknowledge that the term 'learning
disabilities' is itself used differently in different English-speaking
countries. The chapter is explicit in defining 'learning disability' within
the US context and is consistent with the definition adhered to by the
American Speech- Language -Hearing Association (ASHA, 1991), which considers
disorders that are exclusive of intellectual impairment. However, 'learning
disability' as used in the United Kingdom and Australia tends to be more
inclusive of intellectual impairment, and as such, the term 'language-learning
disability' would be more commonly recognised (e.g. Royal College of Speech
and Language Therapists, 2006). This omission is somewhat ironic, considering
the chapter spends significant time discussing the development of the
definitions of 'learning disability' within the US context. It should be
stressed, however, that this is a minor issue, as the chapter itself is very
explicit and specific with its intended use of terminology.

As a minor remark, while not necessarily fitting with the primary focus of the
Handbook, it is a notable omission that there is no chapter regarding
disorders of swallowing.  Considering that speech and language clinicians, who
would be within the target audience for this Handbook, working across a number
of settings encounter dysphagia in tandem with communication disorders. This
may have been a useful addition to Part I Foundations.

As a further minor remark, the current reviewer feels that Chapter 18,
“Augmentative and alternative communication: An introduction”, by Kathryn
Drager, Erinn Finke and Elizabeth Serpentine, may have been more effectively
situated within Part I of The Handbook. This suggestion acknowledges that
augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) methods are not solely
applied within speech disorders but are, in reality, a consideration across
all areas of practice in which a clinician may work. However, having made this
suggestion, it is easy to see how AAC may be traditionally viewed within the
domain of speech disorders.

As already discussed, it is an extraordinary and rare task to attempt to
compile a comprehensive handbook to cover all areas of speech and language
disorders. It is therefore fortunate that the field of speech and language
disorders has received this handbook and is soon to receive The Cambridge
Handbook of Communication Disorders, edited by Louise Cummings (Nottingham
Trent University, UK), which looks to be another exciting attempt to provide a
comprehensive overview of this field of research and clinical practice. It
will be interesting to conduct a thorough comparison between these two
publications, however, a conclusion of whether either of these offerings is to
be considered more effective than the other is a moot point, as the field of
speech and language disorders as a whole will no doubt benefit from both
attempts to provide a comprehensive description of the current state of the
field.

REFERENCES

American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. (1991). Learning disabilities:
issues on definition [Relevant Paper]. Available from www.asha.org/policy

Cummins, L. (Ed). The Cambridge Handbook of Communication Disorders.
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Forthcoming 2013.

RCSLT. (2005). Royal College of Speech & Language Therapists Clinical
Guidelines. Bicester: Speechmark Publishing Ltd.


ABOUT THE REVIEWER

Christopher Plant holds a Ph.D. in Speech and Language Sciences from Newcastle
University, UK (2012). His Ph.D. research focused on investigating the
semantic representations of nouns and verbs and their implications for
conducting speech and language intervention for people with aphasia. He is
currently a lecturer in speech pathology at James Cook University, Australia
and continues to be interested in research investigating the
cognitive-neuropsychology of language processing and implications for
assessment and intervention in speakers with acquired disorders of
communication. He can also be found on Twitter @ChrisSPlant








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