COMMUNICATION DISORDERS Kristen Meyers

COMMUNICATION DISORDER
A communication disorder is an impairment to receive, send, process, and comprehend
concepts or verbal, nonverbal and graphic symbol systems.
A communication disorder may be evident in the processes of hearing, language,
and/or speech.
A communication disorder may range in severity from mild to profound. It may be
developmental or acquired. Individuals may demonstrate one or any combination of
communication disorders.
A communication disorder may result in a primary disability or it may be secondary
to other disabilities.
LANGUAGE DISORDER
A language disorder is impaired comprehension and/or use of spoken, written
and/or other symbol systems. Individuals with language disorders may have problems
in sentence processing and retrieving information from short or long term memory.
Difficultly understanding what other people are saying.
Hard time following spoken directions.
Trouble organizing thoughts.
EXAMPLES
Central Auditory Processing Disorder
Aphasia
Apraxia
Dysarthria
FACTORS THAT CONTRIBUTE TO LANGUAGE
DISORDERS IN CHILDREN
Cognitive limitations or mental retardation
Environmental stress
Hearing Impairments
Emotional or behavioral disorders
Injury, accidents and trauma during the childhood years
TREATMENTS
Language disorder is most effectively treated with speech and language therapy.
Since the disorder often results in emotional or behavioral problems such as
depression or social anxiety, psychotherapy such as cognitive behavioral therapy is
also often used.
STIGMAS
Parents don’t care
Can’t speak, or don’t want to talk
The shy kid, no personality
FACTS
By the first grade, roughly 5% of children have noticeable speech disorders.
Research has found that 20 to 40 percent of children with a family history of speech
and language impairment have the condition themselves, compared with about 4
percent of those with no family history of SLI.
6–8 million Americans have some form of language impairment.
WORKS CITED
https://www.asha.org
https://www.understood.org/en