Abstract
Functional communication in a typical conversation involves complex adjustments by conversation
partners (interlocutors) at multiple levels of language structure. Current accounts of this center on typical
interlocutors and do not provide an adequate framework for understanding how functional communication
emerges in interactions involving those with communication disorders. The current proposal aims to expand
existing accounts through the systematic study of communicative interaction involving persons with ALS (PALS).
ALS is a degenerative neurological condition that negatively affects verbal communication. This decline in verbal
ability significantly diminishes quality of life of PALS and their family. Current interventions to enhance verbal
communication focus mainly on improving a speaker’s productions, but this approach is less effective in
degenerative conditions such as ALS in which speakers’ abilities continue to decline in spite of intervention.
In the current proposal, we aim to (a) extend current theoretical accounts to involve those with communication
disorders by studying PALS and (b) explore the feasibility of clinical interventions that leverage interactions to
support verbal communication in degenerative diseases like ALS. We will do so through a set of three concordant,
independent aims. In Aim 1, we will study highly structured interactions involving PALS and unfamiliar
interlocutors that will focus on the phonetic level. In Aim 2, we will study more naturalistic interactions to study
the flexibility PALS have at other levels of language structure (e.g., syntax and pragmatics). In Aim 3, we will
incorporate caregivers into structured interactions with PALS and assess the clinical feasibility of interventions
based on interactions. Upon the successful completion of this project, we will obtain an improved understanding
of communicative interactions involving interlocutors with communication disorders. Specifically, our findings will
elucidate patterns of change that support communication success for PALS and their interlocutors. These
findings will also provide an evidence base for novel interventions to support verbal communication for people
with degenerative conditions.
