The Role of Semantic Complexity in Treatment of Naming Deficits

Training Semantic Categories in Fluent Aphasia by Controlling Exemplar Typicality

s-kiran{at}mail.utexas.edu

The effect of typicality of category exemplars on naming was investigated using a single subject experimental design across participants and behaviors in 4 patients with fluent aphasia. Participants received a semantic feature treatment to improve naming of either typical or atypical items within semantic categories, while generalization was tested to untrained items of the category. The order of typicality and category trained was counterbalanced across participants. Results indicated that patients trained on naming of atypical exemplars demonstrated generalization to naming of intermediate and typical items. However, patients trained on typical items demonstrated no generalized naming effect to intermediate or atypical examples. Furthermore, analysis of errors indicated an evolution of errors throughout training, from those with no apparent relationship to the target to primarily semantic and phonemic paraphasias. Performance on standardized language tests also showed changes as a function of treatment. Theoretical and clinical implications regarding the impact of considering semantic complexity on rehabilitation of naming deficits in aphasia are discussed.

Note:

This article is a corrected version of that originally published in the June 2003 issue of JSLHR (46, pp. 608–622). It is reprinted here in its entirety due to substantive errors in the figure axis labels in the original article that were introduced by ASHA's Journals Production Office. The Journals Production Office apologizes to the authors and to the editors and readers of JSLHR for problems these errors have caused. In this corrected version of the article, only the figures have been changed; the text remains unchanged.

KEY WORDS: complexity, naming, treatment, aphasia, typicality

Submitted on April 4, 2002
Accepted on November 13, 2002

This article has been cited by other articles:

				S. Kiran Typicality of Inanimate Category Exemplars in Aphasia Treatment: Further Evidence for Semantic Complexity J Speech Lang Hear Res, December 1, 2008; 51(6): 1550 - 1568. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S. Kiran and L. Johnson Semantic Complexity in Treatment of Naming Deficits in Aphasia: Evidence From Well-Defined Categories Am J Speech Lang Pathol, November 1, 2008; 17(4): 389 - 400. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				E. Maas, D. A. Robin, S. N. Austermann Hula, S. E. Freedman, G. Wulf, K. J. Ballard, and R. A. Schmidt Principles of Motor Learning in Treatment of Motor Speech Disorders Am J Speech Lang Pathol, August 1, 2008; 17(3): 277 - 298. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S. Kiran Typicality Treatment for Naming Deficits in Aphasia: Why Does It Work? Neurophysiology and Neurogenic Speech and Language Disorders, April 1, 2008; 18(1): 6 - 14. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S. Kiran Complexity in the Treatment of Naming Deficits Am J Speech Lang Pathol, February 1, 2007; 16(1): 18 - 29. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]