Assignment: Aphasias

Aphasias are language disorders that result from damage to the language areas of the brain and affect a person’s ability to communicate. While psychologists and clinicians recognize several different types of aphasia, the most common and best understood are described as fluent aphasia (Wernicke’s aphasia) and non-fluent aphasia (Broca’s aphasia). Aphasias result from damage to specific parts of the left hemisphere (however, for a minority, it’s the right hemisphere) of the brain that are involved with comprehending and producing language.

The network of brain regions involved in language is found in the left hemisphere of the brain in the majority of people (96% of right-handed individuals and 70% of left-handed individuals). In any communication behavior, linguistic information comes into the brain, is comprehended, and a response is generated. All of these behaviors depend on the electrical and chemical messages that we learned about last week, but we will focus on the larger picture this week and learn about the brain regions involved and how they are connected with each other.

In this Assignment, you will describe the pathway that visual and auditory language information follows from first being perceived to being comprehended and being produced. You will then find a recent peer-reviewed article from the Walden library (published within the past 5 years) about either Broca or Wernicke’s aphasia, depending on your last name. Using the information from our textbook and from your article, you will describe the causes and the symptoms of your assigned aphasia and describe how having this condition would affect your personal and professional life. You will then summarize the research article you identified in enough detail that your reader will understand what was done in the study and what the results of the study were (similar to the articles you found in BioPsychology.com in the first week). In your summary, talk about what the researchers did and how this research extends our understanding of this aphasia beyond what was described in the textbook. If the article was about recovery of function or a therapy, describe the therapy and how it might impact the quality of life for people with aphasia.

To prepare for this Assignment:

• Review Chapter 9 of your textbook, focusing on language and aphasia.
• Review this week’s Learning Resources about aphasia.
• Choose ONE of the articles listed below and then download the full PDF from the Walden Library (the articles have been pre-selected for you and cover topics such as neuroanatomy, neurophysiology, recovery of function, or novel treatments associated with Broca’s and/or Wernicke’s aphasia). You may choose your own article; however, it must be approved by your instructor by Thursday before the assignment is due.

“The Effect of Speech Repetition Rate on Neural Activation in Healthy Adults: Implications for Treatment of Aphasia and Other Fluency Disorders”

OR

“Effect of choir activity in the rehabilitation of aphasia: a blind, randomised, controlled pilot Study”

OR

“Efficacy of intensive aphasia therapy in patients with chronic stroke: a randomised controlled trial”

OR

“Effect of Verb Network Strengthening Treatment (VNeST) in Persons With Aphasia: Extension and Replication of Previous Findings”

The Assignment (2 1/2 pages):

• Suppose you just need to repeat out loud a sentence you just read or heard. Starting with written or heard information in the primary visual or primary auditory cortex, describe how that information is transferred to the parts of the language network that comprehend language. Next, describe how this information is transmitted to the parts of the brain that produce language.
• Second, consider what happens when damage affects our ability to communicate. Briefly compare and contrast Broca and Wernicke’s aphasias in terms of the location of the damage and the effects on language and communication.
• Finally, summarize your chosen article about either Broca or Wernicke’s aphasia, based on your last name. In your summary, discuss what the researchers did and how this research extends our understanding of this aphasia beyond what was described in the textbook. If the article was about recovery of function or a therapy, describe the therapy and how it might impact the quality of life for people with aphasia.

Support your Assignment with specific references to all resources used in its preparation. You should include in-text citations in the body of your Assignment as well as complete references in APA format at the end of your Assignment.