title: Comprehension of indirect requests by adults with severe traumatic brain injury: contributions of gestural and verbal information.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The researchers sought to determine the extent to which individuals with and without traumatic brain injury (TBI) integrate gestural and verbal information when interpreting indirect requests.
  
  
  METHODS
  Eighteen adults with cognitive-communication impairments secondary to severe TBI and 18 neurologically-intact adults viewed video vignettes depicting actors conversing in everyday contexts and concluding with indirect requests. Indirect requests were presented in three conditions: verbal information only (VO), gestural information only (GO) and combined verbal and gestural information (VG). Following each vignette, participants answered prediction and interpretation probes.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Statistical analysis revealed comparable performance patterns across participant groups, with significantly better performance in the VG condition than either the VO or GO conditions; however, neurologically-intact participants performed significantly better than participants with TBI in all conditions. Further analysis involved categorization of incorrect responses to determine the basis for participant errors.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Overall, results suggest that individuals with brain injury benefit from a combination of gestural and verbal information when interpreting indirect requests; however, interpretations by individuals with brain injury are less accurate than interpretations made by neurologically-intact individuals. Incorrect responses tend to be abstract rather than literal and inaccurate with regard to a speaker's intended meaning.
authors.affiliation: Department of Speech Pathology and Audiology, University of South Alabama, Mobile, AL 36688-0002, USA. kellievans@usouthal.edu
authors.forename: Kelli
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Evans
authors.forename: Karen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hux
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001930:Brain Injuries / Q000503:physiopathology* / Q000523:psychology; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D003142:Communication; D032882:Comprehension / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D005868:Gestures; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008297:Male; D008606:Mental Processes / Q000502:physiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D013067:Speech Perception / Q000502:physiology*