Ataxia, Parkinson Disease
Conditions
Keywords
speech rhythm, speech therapy
Brief summary
The objectives of this study are to determine i) the effect of rhythmic entrainment of speech with hand gestures and auditory rhythmic cues on intelligibility and speech naturalness in Spanish-accented speakers of English in two pathology groups: ataxic dysarthria and hypokinetic dysarthria secondary to idiopathic Parkinson's disease; and ii) the extent to which speech rate and effort are control parameters of entrainment. These objectives will be achieved with the following specific aims: Specific Aim 1: Determine the effect of three rates of hand gestures and auditory rhythmic cues and the degree to which learning and carry-over occur. Specific Aim 2: Determine the effect of increased speech effort, operationalized as clear speech, and the interaction effect of clear speech with hand gestures and auditory rhythmic cues. Specific Aim 3: Investigate the perception of speech rhythm and its relationship to entrainment.
Detailed description
The objectives of this study are to determine i) the effect of rhythmic entrainment of speech with hand gestures and auditory rhythmic cues on intelligibility and speech naturalness in Spanish-accented speakers of English in two pathology groups: ataxic dysarthria and hypokinetic dysarthria secondary to idiopathic Parkinson's disease; and ii) the extent to which speech rate and effort are control parameters of entrainment. These objectives will be achieved with the following specific aims: Specific Aim 1: Determine the effect of three rates of hand gestures and auditory rhythmic cues and the degree to which learning and carry-over occur. Specific Aim 2: Determine the effect of increased speech effort, operationalized as clear speech, and the interaction effect of clear speech with hand gestures and auditory rhythmic cues. Specific Aim 3: Investigate the perception of speech rhythm and its relationship to entrainment. The protocol calls for 12 talkers to participate in a single case experimental design: 6 Spanish-accented speakers of English and 6 native English speakers, and each language group consisting of 2 healthy controls, 2 adults diagnosed with ataxic dysarthria and 2 adults diagnosed with hypokinetic dysarthria secondary to idiopathic Parkinson's disease. Sixty monolingual healthy adult listeners will rate intelligibility, accentedness, and ease of understanding.
Interventions
BEHAVIORALAuditory
Use of auditory cues to improve speech production
BEHAVIORALGestures
Use of gestures to improve speech production
Sponsors
University of Utah
Herbert H. Lehman College, City University of New York
Study design
Allocation
NON_RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
TREATMENT
Masking
NONE
Intervention model description
Single case experimental design
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
21 Years to No maximum
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* diagnosis of idiopathic Parkinson's disease (4) or dysarthria secondary to ataxia (4) or healthy (4) * monolingual speaker of American English (6) or native speaker of Spanish who speaks English with a Spanish accent (6) * age 21 or older
Exclusion criteria
* Cognitive impairment that prevents participation in the therapy * Fluent speakers of languages other than English or Spanish * younger than 21 years
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Intelligibility | immediately upon completion of the therapy | Intelligibility = the accuracy with which a listener understands a speaker. It will be measured by having the subjects undergoing the therapy (the talkers) read 28 phrases using accompanying gesture or auditory cues and listeners will transcribe the sentences. The number of words accurately transcribed / the number of words in the phrase = intelligibility score for each phrase per listener |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Ease of understanding | Immediately upon completion of the therapy | Ease of understanding = the ease with which listeners understand the speakers. It will be measured by having the subjects undergoing the therapy (the talkers) read 28 phrases using accompanying gesture or auditory cues and listeners will rate how easy it is to understand the talkers using a 0 to 9 visual analog scale with 0 = very easy and 9= very hard, for each phrase per listener |
| Speech naturalness | immediately upon completion of the therapy | Speech naturalness = the degree to which the listeners consider the speakers to have natural or unnatural speech. It will be measured by having the subjects undergoing the therapy (the talkers) read 28 phrases using accompanying gesture or auditory cues and listeners will rate how natural-sounding the talker sounds by using a 0 to 9 visual analog scale with 0 = very natural and 9 = very unnatural, for each phrase per listener |
Countries
United States
Outcome results
None listed