Phase III Development of a Valid, Reliable, Clinically Feasible Measure of Transactional Success in Aphasic Conversation

Study Description:
The purpose of this study is to validate a measure of transactional success in semi-structured conversation in aphasia. Participants will attend four 1-hour sessions over a period of approximately two weeks, administered entirely over Zoom. In the first two sessions, we will acquire traditional measures of language and cognition, including typical discourse elicited from picture descriptions. In the second two sessions, participants will view four short video clips. After each one, they will describe what they saw/heard to the administrator, then engage in a six-minute conversation with a familiar or unfamiliar conversation partner, after which the partner will retell the story.
Aphasia Friendly Study Description:
We know that people with aphasia communicate better than they talk, but we do not have good tests to measure how well they communicate in conversation with others. The purpose of this study is to demonstrate that the test we are developing is correctly measuring what we intend to measure and that it consistently does a good job of measuring success in conversation. Participants will attend four 1-hour sessions over a period of approximately two weeks. All test sessions will be administered over Zoom. In the first two sessions, we will collect the usual measures of language and cognition, including descriptions of pictures. In the second two sessions, participants will view four short video clips, each lasting about 2.5 minutes. After each video, they will describe what they saw and heard to the SLP. After that, they will have a six-minute conversation with a familiar or unfamiliar conversation partner about what they saw and heard. Finally, the conversation partner will retell the story.
Inclusion / Exclusion Criteria:
Persons with aphasia must be 18 or older and fluent in English, with normal or corrected vision and hearing. They must pass a basic screen of auditory comprehension and be willing to be videotaped retelling stories. They must have access to a laptop, tablet, or personal computer and have someone who can participate in one 1-hour session as a familiar conversation partner.
Principal Investigator:
Jacquie Kurland
Contact Email:
jacquie@umass.edu
Condition
Stroke
Observational or Treatment:
Observational
Type of Treatment:
n/a
Duration of Study:
Participants will engage in four approximately one-hour sessions that usually take place over a period of two weeks. Some participants may opt for a fifth one-hour session of story retelling that will extend the study another week.
Study Start Date:
July 1, 2022
Study End Date:
June 30, 2024
Costs or Reimbursement:
Participants will be compensated for their time with one $25 Amazon gift card per session. Most participants will be compensated $100 for 4 sessions, but some will be compensated $125 for 5 sessions. The familiar conversation partner will be compensated with one $25 Amazon gift card for participating in one 1-hour session.
IRB Approval #
3129
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