title: Perceptions of communicative competence after traumatic brain injury: implications for ecologically-driven intervention targets.
abstract: The present study investigated the relationship between non-verbal behaviours and perceptions of the communication abilities of an individual with anomia secondary to traumatic brain injury (TBI). Thirty-four university students studying Communication Sciences and Disorders were randomly assigned to watch or listen to six short clips of an individual with TBI engaged in conversation. Participants rated the individual on communication parameters from a modified version of the Pragmatic Protocol and four other dependent measures of communicative competence. A significant positive correlation was identified between perceptions of gestures and ratings of overall communicative competence, and between perceptions of hand and arm movements and ratings of overall communicative competence. Participant raters who viewed the individual's movements as inappropriate also rated her overall communication abilities less favourably. This finding highlights individuality in perception of communication competence and the importance of assessing communication partners' perceptions in a client's environment to determine socially relevant treatment goals.
authors.affiliation: University of Vermont, Department of Communication Sciences, Burlington, Vermont 05405, USA. michael.cannizzaro@uvm.edu
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cannizzaro
authors.forename: Elizabeth M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Allen
authors.forename: Patricia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Prelock
mesh_terms: D000161:Acoustic Stimulation; D000849:Anomia / Q000209:etiology / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D001930:Brain Injuries / Q000150:complications / Q000523:psychology / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D003142:Communication; D005260:Female; D005868:Gestures; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D012931:Social Environment; D013067:Speech Perception; D014705:Verbal Behavior; D014741:Video Recording; D014796:Visual Perception; D055815:Young Adult