Phonological and morphological interventions for children with co-occurring speech and language disorder : a feasibility single case study.

Type of content
Theses / Dissertations
Publisher's DOI/URI
Thesis discipline
Speech and Language Sciences
Degree name
Master of Science
Publisher
University of Canterbury
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Language
English
Date
2021
Authors
Johnston, Brooklyn
Abstract

Purpose: This study aimed to investigate whether a morpho-phonological intervention that used phonologically and morphologically complex target words targeted in a combination of speech and language intervention strategies resulted in improvements in speech and language measures for a child with co-occurring speech and language difficulties. The study also aimed to investigate the intervention's feasibility and whether the approach lent itself to clinician- friendly administration.

Method: The study utilised a single-case design. The participant was aged four years eleven months and presented with a mild phonological disorder and queried diagnosis of developmental language disorder as measured by the Diagnostic Evaluation of Articulation and Phonology (DEAP) and Clinical Evaluation of Language Fundamentals-Preschool 2 (CELF-P2). At the beginning of the study, the participant could not mark past tense –ed and third-person singular –s words or produce word-final /v/ and word-final /sh/. The participant received 13 intervention sessions that targeted his productions of past tense –ed in words that ended in word-final consonants or cluster /sht/, and third-person singular –s in word-final consonants or cluster /vz/ through minimal pairs, focused language stimulation, and shared story interventions. The researcher conducted a subjective feasibility analysis.

Results: The participant improved his ability to mark third person singular –s but had no change in his ability to mark past tense –ed. The participant improved his ability to produce /sht/ in word imitations and spontaneous phrases but had variable results for his productions of /sht/ in spontaneous words and all productions of /vz/. The researcher identified facilitators and barriers to the intervention project's administration and provided suggestions for improving future studies' intervention procedures.

Conclusion: This was the first study investigating the effectiveness of selecting morphologically and phonologically complex target words and administering them in a morpho-phonological intervention within the same session. This was also the first feasibility study of a morpho-phonological intervention for children with co-occurring speech and language difficulties. The results show promise that morpho-phonological intervention methods could improve the speech and language abilities in children with co-occurring speech and language difficulties.

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