Sentence comprehension requires both syntactic prediction and working memory processes. Evidence suggests that both are impaired in agrammatic aphasia, and can independently contribute to comprehension breakdowns, but the relationship between them, especially during real-time sentence comprehension remains unclear. Two EEG studies investigated on-line processing of sentences with non-local long-distance dependencies...
Late talkers (LTs) are a heterogenous group of children who experience delayed language development in the absence of other known causes (Fisher, 2017). Many LTs “catch up” to their typically talking peers (TTs), but some go on to experience continued difficulties with speech and language development (Dale & Hayiou-Thomas, 2013),...
Difficulties in prosody (e.g., intonation, volume, rate), turn-taking, and overly formal speech constitute common social communication deficits in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), which can significantly hinder social interactions (Paul et al., 2009). Subtle parallel differences in social communication have also been noted in parents of individuals with ASD, suggesting that...
There is strong evidence for the benefits of teaching parents of toddlers with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) intervention strategies for facilitating language development. A strategy at the core of early parent-mediated interventions for ASD is responsiveness, defined as providing a child with a verbal response each time she communicates. Responsiveness...
Respiratory-swallow coordination is implicated as an essential component of safe and efficient swallowing, yet current evidence is incomplete regarding its relevance to swallowing impairment, assessment and treatment. Three studies were conducted that: 1) characterized and confirmed the optimal respiratory-swallowing coordination patterns in healthy adults, 2) identified linkages between deviations in...
Ataxic dysarthria is a disorder affecting the naturalness of speech due to damage to the cerebellum, a neural structure critical for the timing, scaling, and sequencing of speech movements (Ackermann, Vogel, Petersen, & Poremba, 1992; Diener & Dichgans, 1992; Duffy, 2013; Rampello, Rampello, Patti, & Zappia, 2016). In healthy individuals,...