Kalinyak-Fliszar Michelene, Kohen Francine, Martin Nadine
Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Temple University, PA, USA.
Aphasiology. 2011 Jan 1;25(10):1095-1131. doi: 10.1080/02687038.2011.577284. Epub 2011 Aug 1.
Verbal short-term memory (STM) impairments are invariably present in aphasia. Word processing involves a minimal form of verbal STM, i.e., the time course over which semantic and phonological representations are activated and maintained until they are comprehended, produced, or repeated. Thus it is reasonable that impairments of word processing and verbal STM may co-occur. The co-occurrence of language and STM impairments in aphasia has motivated an active area of research that has revealed much about the relationship of these two systems and the effect of their impairment on language function and verbal learning (Freedman & Martin, 2001; Martin & Saffran, 1999; Trojano & Grossi, 1995). In keeping with this view a number of researchers have developed treatment protocols to improve verbal STM in order to improve language function (e.g., Koenig-Bruhin & Studer-Eichenberger, 2007). This account of aphasia predicts that treatment of a fundamental ability, such as STM, which supports language function, should lead to improvements that generalise to content and tasks beyond those implemented in treatment. AIMS: We investigated the efficacy of a treatment for language impairment that targets two language support processes: verbal short-term memory (STM) and executive processing, in the context of a language task (repetition). We hypothesised that treatment of these abilities would improve repetition abilities and performance on other language tasks that require STM. METHOD: A single-participant, multiple-baseline, multiple-probe design across behaviours was used with a participant with conduction aphasia. The treatment involved repetition of words and nonwords under three "interval" conditions, which varied the time between hearing and repeating the stimulus. Measures of treatment effects included acquisition, maintenance, and follow-up data, effect sizes, and pre- and post-treatment performance on a test battery that varies the STM and executive function demands of language tasks. OUTCOMES #ENTITYSTARTX00026; RESULTS: Improvement of repetition was mostly specific to treated stimuli. Post-treatment measures of language ability indicated improvements in single and multiple word processing tasks, verbal working memory tasks, and verbal span. CONCLUSIONS: Treatment of STM and executive processes in the context of a word repetition task resulted in improvements in other non-treated language tasks. The approach used in this study can be incorporated into other language-processing tasks typically used in treatment of language disorders (e.g., sentence processing).
言语短期记忆（STM）损伤在失语症中总是存在的。词汇加工涉及言语STM的一种基本形式，即语义和语音表征被激活并维持直至被理解、产出或重复的时间进程。因此，词汇加工和言语STM损伤可能同时出现是合理的。失语症中语言和STM损伤的同时出现激发了一个活跃的研究领域，该领域揭示了这两个系统之间的关系以及它们的损伤对语言功能和言语学习的影响（弗里德曼和马丁, 2001；马丁和萨夫兰, 1999；特罗亚诺和格罗西, 1995）。与此观点一致，一些研究人员已经开发出治疗方案来改善言语STM，以提高语言功能（例如，柯尼希 - 布鲁欣和施图德 - 艾兴贝格尔, 2007）。这种失语症观点预测，对一种支持语言功能的基本能力（如STM）进行治疗，应该会带来改善，这种改善会推广到治疗中未实施的内容和任务之外。目的：我们在语言任务（重复）的背景下，研究了一种针对语言损伤的治疗方法的疗效，该方法针对两种语言支持过程：言语短期记忆（STM）和执行加工。我们假设对这些能力的治疗将提高重复能力以及在其他需要STM的语言任务上的表现。方法：对一名传导性失语症患者采用了单被试、跨行为的多基线、多探针设计。治疗包括在三种“间隔”条件下重复单词和非单词，这三种条件改变了听到刺激与重复刺激之间的时间。治疗效果的测量包括习得、维持和随访数据、效应大小，以及在一个测试组上治疗前后的表现，该测试组改变了语言任务的STM和执行功能要求。结果：重复能力的改善大多特定于接受治疗的刺激。语言能力的治疗后测量表明，在单个和多个单词加工任务、言语工作记忆任务和言语广度方面有改善。结论：在单词重复任务的背景下对STM和执行过程进行治疗，导致了其他未治疗的语言任务的改善。本研究中使用的方法可以纳入通常用于治疗语言障碍的其他语言加工任务（例如，句子加工）。
