Researchers from Departments of Communication Sciences and Disorders at Brigham Young University and University of Pittsburgh have published an article qualitatively describing and characterizing internal and external factors that affect the experiences of person with aphasia (PWA) engaged in situated communication. In particular, the investigators focused their attention on how the communication experiences of PWA are affected – on the one hand – by communication challenges posed by environmental factors, and – on the other hand – by challenges stemming from subjects’ own thoughts and emotions while engaging in communication.
Participants were fourteen PWA who were questioned immediately following a testing session in an independent study focused on probing the relationships between mood, attention, and language function in PWA. These subjects provided responses in semi-structured interviews that had them reflect on their everyday communicative experiences, and how their concentration and communicative effectiveness were affected by internal factors such as emotions, and by external factors such as environmental challenges to communication. The researchers were interested in subjects reports at both the World Health Organization’s activity level of language-oriented competency, and at the participation level of contributing effectively as communicative partner.
The interviews were recorded, orthographically transcribed, checked for accuracy and completeness, and analyzed using a generic qualitative descriptive approach. Informational content was coded from complementary perspectives in two passes – one from an inductive orientation, and the other from a deductive orientation. Codes were refined through analyses of code co-occurrences.
From the analyses, participation emerges as the principal outcome of concern to subjects. They focus on the successful co-construction of meaning, by participating in communicative turn-taking with conversational partners In life situations. Along the participation spectrum, subject outcomes may range from proactive engagement for communicative purposes, through functionally minimal responses during turns, to withdrawal from response attempts altogether. Internally, participation was mediated by mood, attention, mental rehearsal, attitudes, and feelings. However, subjects considered attitudes and feelings to be also outcomes. Crucial external mediators were communication partners: supportive partners promoted engagement, good feelings, and positive attitudes, while unsupportive partners evoked frustration and psychological negativity.
For further reading: T. G. Harmon, C. Williams, G. Cardon et al. (30 Jul 2024)
Persevering through communication challenges: a qualitative descriptive exploration of communication experiences in aphasia. Aphasiology, 1–25, https://doi.org/10.1080/02687038.2024.2384540