Australian Journal of Human Communication Disorders

ISSN: 0310-6853 (Print) (Online) Journal homepage: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/iasl18

Reviews

Sally B. Brentnall, Judith M. Vincent, Peter Hallinan, Jennifer M. Oates,

Valerie Panayiotou, Elizabeth M. Bamford, Elizabeth J. Tegart, Quentin
Bailey, Janice N. Berkley Fincher & Margaret Gibson

To cite this article: Sally B. Brentnall, Judith M. Vincent, Peter Hallinan, Jennifer M. Oates,
Valerie Panayiotou, Elizabeth M. Bamford, Elizabeth J. Tegart, Quentin Bailey, Janice N. Berkley
Fincher & Margaret Gibson (1982) Reviews, Australian Journal of Human Communication
Disorders, 10:2, 41-48, DOI: 10.3109/asl2.1982.10.issue-2.06

To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.3109/asl2.1982.10.issue-2.06

Published online: 01 Oct 2014.

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REVIEWS
Language Development and Language
Disorders. Lois Bloom and Margaret
Lahey. New York: John Wiley & Sons.
1978. 689 pages including appendices
and bibliography. Aust. $17.60 paper,
$43.00 cloth. (Copy supplied by
Jacaranda Wiley Ltd.).
I am a practising Speech Pathology clinician
with a limited background of academic linguistics,
who has found this book informative and
stimulating to read.
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Lois Bloom and Margaret Lahey have put
together a wealth of discussion that attempts to
close the gap between knowing about language
development and doing something about children
with disordered language. The research evidence
they have amassed which refers constantly to
linguists in the field has come largelyfrom intensive
investigation of the normal language development
of five children, assuming, and I think rightly, that
the well documented evidence of a small group of
normal children will give more information and
hypotheses for assessment and remediation of
language disorders than a more superficial study of
a larger group.
The book is divided into six sections. A
descriptive definition of language is traced through
into development of normal language from infant
to adult patterns. Two sections then follow on the
development of deviant language, defining it and
outlining ways of identifyingand assessingchildren
with language disorders. The fourth and fifth
sections deal with goals of language learning and
look at ways of describing language disorders by
clinical syndromes and specific abilities categories.
The last section discusses ways of facilitating
language learning and the general considerations of
intervention. Throughout the text, language is
discussed within the paridigm of content, use and
form and the arguments are persuasivein favour of
naturalistic observation and remediation, swinging
away from the specific abilities approach.
Although the chapters describing language
development were excellent and well illustrated by
language samples of the children under
investigation, I found myself especially interested
in the section on assessment, in particular, a
critique of the Illinois Test of Psycholinguistic
Abilities (J.T.P.A.) which is so often part of a
battery of tests for children. The authors question
whether deficits in some of the specific abilities
tested in the I.T.P.A can be strengthened by
training and whether this training will somehow be
41
transferred to general improvement in language
learning. They make the observation that
remediation of specific (perceptual) abilities does
not seem to transfer to a general improvement in
use and knowledge of language and they believe
that there is no body of evidence to prove
otherwise.
The authors outline a plan for remediation that
involves modifying the child's total enviroment "in
a manner that will enhance the ability to induce
interactions between the content, use and form of
language" and they are clear and specific about
ways in which they believe this can be
accomplished.
The terminology used in the text is very carefully
defined and the various schools of linguistic
thought are explained clearly and concisely so that
I believe any student struggling to find his way
through the maze of linguistic research can see an
emerging pattern. The text abounds with many
references for further reading and cross references
to discussions within the book.
This is a valuable book for pediatric clinicians,
but I think Speech Pathology students in
,particular, will appreciate the intelligent and
Practical way it clarifies a prescription for
identificaticn, assessment and remediation of
language disordered children.
Sally B. Brentnall,
Camberwell Speech Therapy Clinic.
Education Department. Vic.
Readings in Language Development.
Lois Bloom (Ed.). New York: John
Wiley & Sons. 1978. 506 pages including
bibliography. Awt. $34.95 cloth. (Copy
supplied by Jacaranda Wiley Ltd.).
This book is a collection of twenty-eight
previously published papers on language
development. There are thirty-five contributors
and the papers presented cover an original
publication span from 1927 until 1976, with the
majority of articles first being published in the
19705.
The editor states that one of the reasons for
selecting the articles was to expand and
complement the text of Language Development
and Language Disorders (Bloom and Lahey, 1978).
As a result, the book is organized into seven parts
which follow the same plan as the first half of
Bloom and Lahey.
The editor introduces each part with brief
summaries of the articles included and a rationale
as to why they were chosen and how they relate to
the text in general. These summaries are excellent
and provide the structure for the text.
 42
Part I. Describing Children's Language. This
part consists of five papers. The first paper by
Leopold is a longitudinal case study of his
daughter's language development over a two year
period. In her paper, Smith investigated the type of
grammatical errors made by pre-schoolers when
learning language. The third paper by Berko
Gleason investigated the child's knowledge of
grammatical morphemes by using an experimental
task which involved the adding of word endings
onto nonsense words. Braine, in his paper,
attempted to put forward a grammatical model to
explain the development of two word utterances.
The final paper in this section deals with de Villiers'
and de Villiers' investigation into the order of
acquisition of thirteen grammatical morphemes.
These 'five papers present an interesting and
historical account of the changing methodologies
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and perspectives that have occurred in the
literature on child language development.
Part 2. Origins of Language Form, Content and
Use in Infancy. This section consists of three
articles which look at the infant's ability to perceive
and produce sounds. The first article deals with the
infant's ability to perceive speech sounds. The
second article by Delack describes the changing
vocalization patterns of infants to different
enviromental situations. In the final article by
Stern, Jaffee, Beebe and Bennett, the verbal and
non-verbal interaction between infants and their
mothers is explored.
Part 3. Development of Language
Content/Form: Early Vocabulary. There are three
articles in this section which follow the
development of vocabulary from various
theoretical viewpoints. In the first article,
Guillaume reported on the changing use of words
by his son during the second year of life. Sinclair's
article stresses the relationship of cognitive
development and language acquisition. In the final
article, Bloom describes the types of words children
use during the single word utterance period and the
changing way in which these words are used for
communication.
Part 4. Development of Language
Content/ Form: Structure, Variation, and
Complexity. There are four articles in this section.
The first two papers are concerned with the
relationship between semantics and syntax. Bloom,
Miller and Hood, in studying the acquisition of
action verbs, concluded that when acquiring
language children learnt both semantics and syntax
together. However, Bowerman. in investigating the
development of word combinations, found that
language learning was initially semantically based.
The last two articles look at individual variation in
the acquisition and use of various grammatical
forms. Bloom, Lightbown and Hood reported on
the individual differences shown by children in
their use of nouns and pronouns; whereas Brown
investigated the development of WH questions in
pre-schoolers.
Aust. J. of Human Comm. Dis. 10, 2. 1982
Part S. Development of Language
Use/Content/Form. This part consists of four
articles which are concerned with the way in which
children use language for communication. The.
modification to language usage which is brought
about by the child's interactions with the
environment is also investigated. Halliday
illustrates his theory of language development by
reporting on changes that he observed in his son's
development and usage of language. The second
paper by Smith shows that pre-school children use
different question types when talking to adults as
opposed to other children. Garvey's study
investigated the comprehension and production of
varying request forms. Warden, in the final paper
in this section, investigated the acquisition of the
indefinite article, noting that certain cognitive
structures such as decentralization had to be
present before the child could use the indefinite
article correctly.
Part 6. Developmental Interaction Between
Understanding and Speaking. This section consists
of three articles which are concerned with
comprehension and its relationship to production.
Chapman and Miller, in the first article, looked at
children's ability, firstly to comprehend the
relationship between subject, verb and object and,
secondly, to maintain this order in their
spontaneous speech. Shipley, Smith and Gleitman
investigated the ability of children at various stages
of language development to comprehend
commands which varied in their degree of
structural completeness. The final article by de
Villiers and de Villiers studied the ability of
children to judge whether a sentence was correct or
not when the order of words within a sentence was
reversed. These three articles clearly demonstrate
the interrelationship of comprehension and
production in early language development.
Part 7. Processes in Learning Language Form.
This section is comprised of six articles which
mainly cover non-linguistic factors which have
been shown to affect language acquisition. The first
article by Brown describes the linguistic processes
necessary for language development which
contrasts with the second article by McNamara
emphasizing the cognitive prerequisites that must
occur prior to language development. Siobin, in an
interesting paper, describes the type of strategies
children might use in trying to convert ideas into
language. Clark, in studying the acquisition of
relational terms, explains the interdependence of
linguistic and non-linguistic strategies. Bloom,
Hood and Lightbrown investigated the role played
by imitation in the development of two word
utterances. The final paper in this section
emphasizes the importance of the child's linguistic
environment. The interaction of the child with his
care giver results in the modification of the
linguistic environment, thus enabling the child to
make best use of the situation for developing
language.

In summary, this book contains an interesting
selection of papers related to normal language
development. The book is well organized and the
editor's summaries serve to relate, firstly, the
articles within each section and, secondly, the
sections to the text in general. Some of the articles
are dated, but the selection of papers allows for the
reader to follow the developmental trends in the
literature on normal language development that
have occurred over the past fifty years. This book is
excellent background reading for the Speech
Pathology student or for people interested in the
field of normal language development.
Judith M. Vincent
Camberwell Speech Therapy Clinic.
Education Department. Vic.
References
BLOOM, L. and LAHEY, M. Language
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Development and Language Disorders. New
York: John Wiley & Sons (1978).
Child Language Disorders. Dorothy M.
Aram and James E. Nation. St. Louis:
C. V. Mosby. 1982. 302 pages. Aust.
$25.50. (Copy from reviewer's personal
library).
I have always appreciated the special education
texts from this publisher as being clear,
straightforward, and of great value to the
classroom teacher. In the three years I used Bill
Gearheart's text, for instance, I never found a
single student prepared to sell it at course
conclusion. Aram and Nation's book may not be
quite so straightforward, simply because of the very
complexities of their topic, but it certainly qualifies
on the other counts. The opening chapter titled
"Real kids with real problems" is evidence of this
- and you need to remind yourself of the reality of
Stanley, Darelle, Ruth, Arnold, Billand Alan when
grappling later with "terminologic confusion" (p.
33) "nonspecific formulation - repetition deficit"
and "phonologic and phonetic findings in
developmental verbal apraxia" (p, 151) with a lot
more to come!
The text is divided into nine chapters, with a nice
balance between theoretical (chs. 2, 4-7) and
applied (chs. I, 3, 8-9) approaches. After the
effective and personalized introduction (ch. I), we
are given the history of the field (ch. 2) and the
many complex facets it offers (ch. 3). Chapte~ 4
deals with causation, and Chapter 5 With
disruptions in speech to language processing.
Further processing difficulties are tackled in turn,
viz., language-to-thought-to-language (a complex
ch. 6) and language-to-speech (ch. 7). Having given
us a solid background, the authors then move to
43
assessment (ch. 8) and finally, to management and
treatment (ch. 9).
Although not explicitly stated, the text appears
to be aimed primarily I at pre-service "speech-
language pathologists" (p. 254-255). As such, an
undoubted asset is the inclusion of frequent
extension suggestions in bold-face type that help to
both develop the advanced student on the one
hand, and to consolidate the knowledge of the
slower student on the other. I quote an example
taken from the end of the long chapter on
causation and child language disorders (p, 83):
As a clinical exercise, briefly describe the
language of the mother of a language-disordered
child to her child. Is this mother directing her
language to the child's level of comprehension?
Expression? Or neither? Do you think her language
helps or hinders her child's language development?
Why or why not?
There is a balance in such suggestions between
the theoretical and the applied.
The final two chapters will perhaps be of greatest
interest to the practitioner. On the assessment
issue, I found an extensive table titled "Tools for
assessing language and cognitive knowledge and
performance" most helpful, both for illustrating at
a glance the nature and range of a specific test, and
then for contrasting different instruments against
each other. The sheer number of instruments
available in the U.S.A. today is nearly
overwhelming, so comparative analysis like this
appear invaluable (pp. 188-207). The authors also
offer tables cataloguing assessment tools by site of
lesion (Table 8:1), tools for assessing auditory
operations (pp. 180-185), and the speech-sound
systems (pp. 209-211). When it comes to treatment,
the complexities of the field are recognised by
discussing a variety of approaches, though Kirk's
ITPA model tends to be dismissed in terms of the
more recent and theoretically productive
orientations of writers like Mclean and Snyder-
Mclean. The authors of this text state helpful
philosophical guidelines in selecting any treatment
approach (p. 249) as well as offering specific
guidelines for treating childhood apraxia (p. 248).
On the politics of treating children with language
disorders - who should have overall primary care
of the learning disabled child in particular, the
authors merely open Pandora's box, leaving us to
analyse the contents (p. 255, final para.).
Overall, a book of great interest for speech and
language pathologists, and of considerable interest
to related professions. It would need to be
complemented by a text on adult language
disorders, but that caveat apart, it can be
recommended as well worth the reading, even at
$251.
Peter Hallinan,
Department of Special Education
Mitchell College of Advanced Education. N.S. W.
 44
Introduction to Language Pathology.
David Crystal. Baltimore: University
Park Press. 1980. 214 pages. Aust.
$22.50. (Copy supplied by Ruth Walls
Books Pty. Ltd.)
Professor Crystal justifies the publication of yet
another introductory text in communication
disorders by stating that the 19705 have seen a
critical evaluation of the traditional categories and
practices of the speech pathology profession. His
text aims to reduce the subsequent confusion
experienced by beginning students of
communication disorders by providing a general
view of the field and an account of the components
of communicative pathology.
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Chapters one and two are intended to outline the
scope of the book and to define the subject area.
Although medical, behavioural, and developmental
models of language are discussed, and the
phonological, syntactic, and semantic features of
language briefly described, the reader is left
without a clear view of the underlying theoretical
basis for the remainder of the text. This results
from a lack of precision in definitions and
descriptions.
The third chapter presents a broad view of
communication based on information theory and
the "speech chain" concept described by Denes and
Pinson (1973). This section suffers less from the
shortcomings of chapters one and two as it
provides a clear model which allows the student to
understand possible areas of breakdown in the
normal communication process. Following
presentation of the general model which describes
the production, transmission, and reception of
language, each component is discussed in terms of
both structure and function.
The brain is discussed first, as an information
processing device controlling factors such as
attention, perception, and memory. The author
provides few clear facts for the reader here as the
majority of this section is devoted to a largely
irrelevant description of the major branches of
normal and abnormal psychology. The second
section of this chapter considers neurological
encoding through descriptions of the central and
peripheral nervous systems, language-related
cortical divisions, and causes of neurological
damage. Although Professor Crystal raises some
current issues concerning neurological functioning,
the short 2o-page coverage of this area is
dangerously simplistic: the structure of the
neurone, for example, is considered in detail yet the
role of subcortical structures in language
processing is accorded only a passing note.
The third section of this chapter outlines
anatomical-physiological encoding and is primarily
concerned with the structure and function of the
Aust. J. of Human Comm. Dis. 10, 2. 1982
respiratory, vocal. and articulatory mechanisms.
The author's treatment of this area is accurate but
inconsistent; it is not clear why he has provided
detailed data on some components of the encoding
system yet has oversimplified others. This section
also considers methods of segmental and prosodic
description. Some confusion is evident here as the
differentation between non-segmental vocal
features, segmental, and prosidic features is not
clear.
The fourth section of this chapter presents
acoustic analysis as an adjunct to descriptive
articulatory phonetics. The five pages devoted to
acoustics are insufficient to provide the reader with
more than a cursory outline. The fifth section
examines auditory reception through a description
of the anatomy and physiology of the ear. Data
presented here are accurate but not sufficiently
comprehensive to prevent misinterpretation. The
final section considers neurological transmission
and brain decoding. This is discussed only in terms
of auditory perception and provides the reader with
limited information.
Chapter four is concerned with the classification
and description of linguistic pathologies. It begins
with a succinctly presented discussion of the
validity of the traditional classification systems;
examples include the organic vs. functional and
reception vs. prod uction dichotomies. A traditional
framework categorising disorders as receptive,
central, or expressive is then adopted for the
remainder of the chapter.
In the receptive category, hearing impairment is
the only disorder considered. This section outlines
the use of medical and audiological procedures in
diagnosing conductive, sensori-neural and central
deafness and then discusses a small number of
rehabilitation issues. The oralist/manualist debate
is reviewed and the value of hearing aids is
described. Syntactic and semantic disorders which
may result from hearing impairment are also
briefly considered.
Professor Crystal's central category comprises
three areas: aphasia; agnosia, dyspraxia, and
dysarthria; and developmental language disorders.
Aphasia is described through behavioural terms
and clear examples of features such as paraphasias,
perseveration, anomia and agraphia. Regrettably,
the neurological bases of these features are not
discussed. Agnosias are also described in
behavioural terms and although no neurological
bases are presented, they are clearly differentiated
from aphasic characteristics. The discussion of
dyspraxia is less clear; an attempt to distinguish
dyspraxia and some phonological problems
exhibited in expressive aphasia is potentially
confusing for beginning students. The dysarthrias
are outlined accurately with some neurological
data included. Throughout the discussion of these
central disorders, the author cautions that divisions
are never clear cut and that further research is
required to produce more valid conclusions.

The section on developmental language
disorders in children begins with an interesting
discussion concerning the role of cognitive and
sensory processing disabilities in this pathology; an
issue of current debate in the speech pathology
profession. Following this discussion is an outline
of some of the behavioural features of language
pathology; the emphasis is on syntactic
components. Professor Crystal claims that there
has been little research in the area of semantics;
there is, however, more data available in this area
than he is willing to present (Clark and Clark,
1977).
The expressive category of language pathology
includes stuttering, voice, and articulation
disorders. Stuttering and articulation disorders are
outlined clearly with discussion of up-to-date
concepts and contentious issues. The distinction
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between phonetic and phonological disorders is
explained particularly well. Voice disorders are
classified as developmental, organic, and
psychological; this results in some confusion as a
number of disorders generally classified as
psychogenic are considered as organic problems in
this text.
Although some sections of this text are open to
misinterpretation because of lack of clarity and the
attempt to cover too broad an area in too few
pages, Professor Crystal's writing does stimulate a
critical evaluation of speech pathology practices.
Few other introductory texts fulfil this important
function.
Jennifer M. Oates
School 0/ Communication Disorders
Lincoln Institute 0/ Health Sciences, Vic.
References
CLARK, H.H. and CLARK, E.V. Psychologyand
Language. New York: Harcourt Brace
Jovanovich, Inc. (1977).
DENES. P.B. and PINSON, E.N. The Speech
Chain: The Physics and Biology of Spoken
Language. New York: Anchor Books (1973).
Easy to Make Aids for Your
Handicapped Child. Human Horizons
Series. Don Caston. London: Souvenir
Press. 1981. viii- 134 pages. Aust. $14.95
paperback. $19.95 bound. (Copy
supplied by Hutchinson Group
(Australia) Pty. ua;
As the title suggests, this book includes more
than fifty simple aids that could be made for
handicapped children with a range of physical
disabilities. There are aids to make mobility,
45
sitting, toileting and playing easier, as well as a
range of other aids and adaptions to existing
furniture that can be used in or out of doors. Not
all the aids would be relevant to the one child and it
would be hoped that the reader would quickly
realize this before starting to make any of the aids.
It is therefore essential that the parent should
consult the child's therapist before manufacturing
any of the aids and this is stressed throughout the
book. The book also includes a short section on
buying wood, tools, construction finishing.
This book is concise, easy to follow and the
layout is excellent. The instructions are perhaps a
little too concise and vague in places for the novice
craftsman that the book aims to cater for, however,
they are backed up by simple, clear drawings that
are usually easy to understand. There are also
photographs of most of the aids. which is helpful.
Also, because the aids could be made mostly from
off-cuts, and are designed so that they can be made
at home (on the kitchen table, if necessary), and
there are only eight essential tools needed, they are
very economical. There are also good points of
warning, for example, smoothing all edges and
using non toxic paint.
This book would be good to keep in mind to
recommend to motivated parents who are willing
to learn the skills needed to make and finish the
aids properly. It should not be used without the
guidance of a therapist to advise the parent on the
suitability of the aid or adaption for their child.
Valerie Panayiotou,
Speech Therapy Department,
Kew Children's Cottages. Vic.
Elizabeth M. Bamford,
School 0/ Occupational Therapy,
Lincoln Institute 0/ Health Sciences, Vic.
Neuropsychology and Neurolinguistics.
Selected Papers. Janua Linguarum
Series Maior 78. Egon Weigl. The
Hague: Mouton. 1981. xv+ 360 pages
including bibliography. Aust. $39.90.
(Copy supplied by Walter de Gruyter
and Co., Berlin).
At a time when literature about aphasia seems to
be mainly of American origin, it is a refreshing
change to see the work of a European author.
"Neuropsychology and Neurolinguistics -
Selected Papers" is a collection of articles written
by Professor Egon Weigl over a 20 year period.
Egon Weigl's work is well-known in Europe,
especially in German-speaking countries, and this
book now gives English speaking readers access to
many papers which have previously only appeared
in German.
 46
The book is divided into three sections:
Neuropsychology and Neurolinguistics;
Neuropsychological Methods; and Experimental
Studies on Neuropsychological Mechanisms of
Aphasic Disturbances of Speech Perception and
Prod uction. The first section provides a useful
summary of the material presented later in the
book and outlines Weigl's central concepts of the
Speech Functional System and the deblocking
phenomenon.
Weigl conceives of language behaviour as a
system of partially autonomous, but closely
interacting functions and the influence of the
Soviet school including Vygotsky and Luria is
evident. Aphasia, according to Weigl, "basically
consists in the 'blocking' of particular portions of a
system, but not the destruction of the system as a
whole" (p. 32). Weigl observed that by linking an
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intact with a disturbed function, it is possible to
"deblock" that function and that, in chain
deblocking, functions not directly deblocked are
positively affected. The rationale given for this
phenomenon is that the intact input has a
prestimulating effect on the language system,
setting all channels in a state of readiness. As a
disturbed function is deblocked it then has an
influence on the links which follow, intensifying the
effect of the actual deblocker. Neurophysiologi-
cally, the process of deblocking is "a summation
between a liminal and a subliminal stimulus"
(p.281).
Section Two, under the heading
"Neuropsychological Methods", covers a variety of
topics, including a discussion of the need for
internationally accepted test procedures and more
systematic test construction. Weigl's original
doctoral thesis which he completed in 1927 while
working with Gelb and Goldstein is also reprinted.
These procedures were later incorporated unaltered
into test batteries developed by Goldstein and
Scheerer.
The third part which comprises the bulk of the
book contains articles describing the development
and use of the deblocking method in investigations
of the relationship between different speech
functions and their components. Weigl first
conceived of deblocking as a transient
phenomenon, strictly limited to the stimulus
presented, but with effects across all modalities (in
some patients). He later observed that under
certain conditions in chain deblocking, the effect
produced is long lasting. The therapeutic
application of this technique is only touched on
and clinicians will regret the omission of a paper by
Weigl's wife and collaborator, Irina Weigl (1979),
detailing the use and modification of the
deblocking method in the treatment of a patient
with Broca's Aphasia. Weigl's work has important
implications for therapy. Because he considers
aphasia to be an interference with performance but
not a loss of linguistic competence, therapeutic
methods are directed towards "reactualizing"
Aust. J. of Human Comm. Dis. 10, 2. 1982
impaired functions and components, rather than
towards the remediation of the presumed disturbed
underlying mechanisms.
Some topics are included which are not often
dealt with in literature on aphasia. The transcoding
process, that is, the transposing of certain units of
one code system into the corresponding units of
another code system (e.g., between written and
spoken language), is discussed and one paper deals
specifically with the role of this process in patients
with agraphia to dictation. Weigl's research also led
him to look more closely at written language and
its relationship to spoken language, and the issue of
semantic memory and semantic fields.
Weigl is not concerned with the issues of
classification and localisation, although he
acknowledges their significance. As a result, there
are some inconsistencies in the terminology. labels
such as "mainly expressive aphasia" and "efferent
motoric aphasia" being used without reference to
any classificatory scheme. Readers accustomed to
the strict standards of Western European research
may also question aspects of the methodology.
Problems in translation and poor proof reading
abound, making for difficult reading at times.
Some references are also incorrectly cited, e.g.,
S. Penserj G. Peuser.
Some clinicians may feel that Weigl's work
contains many elements of their therapy
procedures. However, overall, Weigl offers a
systematic, analytic approach, based on
experimental findings. There is a wealth of
information contained in this book, and it should
be of interest to upper level undergraduate students
and clinicians working with brain damaged
individuals.
Elizabeth J. Tegart,
Speech Pathology Department,
"Coonac" Rehabilitation Centre. Vic.
References
WEIGL, I. Neuropsychologische und
Psycholinguistische Grundlagen e i n e s
Programms zur Rehabilitierurg aphasischer
Storung. In G. Peuser (Ed.) Studien zur
Sprachtherapie. Munchen: Wilhelm Fink Verlag
(1979).
Tinnitus. Ciba Foundation Symposium
85. London: Pitman Books Ltd. 1981.
325 pages including appendices. Stg.
22.50. (Copy supplied by the Ciba
Foundation. London).
This book represents the publication of a
Symposium on Tinnitus of many of the world's
leading investigators into this subject. Its individual
chapters consist of an introductory paper followed
by discussion. The style of the book is therefore

informal and it is easily readable. From this book it
would be possible to obtain an insight into the
current position of investigations of this subject. As
a single source it would be of value to anyone
wishing to acquaint "state of the art" knowledge.
Quentin Bailey.
Department of Otolaryngology.
The Royal Victorian Eye and Ear Hospital. Vic.
The Early Stroke Patient: Positioning
and Movement. Esme Dardier. London:
Bailliere Tindall. 1980. 116 Pages
including bibliography. Aust. $17.95.
(Copy supplied by Collier Macmillan).
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This book is written by a physiotherapist and
provides the reader with a systematic programme
of management for the physical rehabilitation of
the acute stroke patient. Although it is a book
aimed at physiotherapists and nursing staff, it is of
value to other members of the rehabilitation team
in understanding the concepts of physiotherapy
and the process of recovery in the stroke patient.
The author stresses the importance of correct
handling and positioning of the. patient by all
members of the paramedical and nursing staff, so
that abnormal muscle tone and patterns of
movement in these patients can be controlled.
In the early chapters a profile of the stroke
patient is presented; the signs and symptoms are
discussed in relation to level of consciousness,
hearing and understanding, speech and
communication, vision, motor function, body
image, orientation and intellectual function. This
brief review of the range of neurological deficits
and accompanying medical conditions which may
be associated with a stroke, is followed by the aims
of treatment and recovery patterns. The following
chapters, which account for the main part of the
text, are more specific to physiotherapy
management, examining reflex activity, bed
positioning, and movement and limb mobilization.
The final chapter sums up overall considerations of
the stroke patient's condition and attitude to
recovery. Co-operation among members of the
health care team is emphasized, as well as family
involvement in the patient's rehabilitation. The
treatment programme for mobilization of the
stroke patient is then summarized and prognosis
considered.
For physiotherapists this book provides a
general introduction to the management of patients
with neurological deficits. Although of limited
appeal to speech pathologists, it provides an
opportunity for students and clinicians to become
familiar with the methods of physiotherapeutic
treatment of C.V.A. and associated terminology.
The straightforward presentation of information
and excellent illustrations make it a useful
41
reference text for paramedical professionals other
than physiotherapists entering the neurological
field.
Janice N. Berkley Fincher.
Speech Therapy Department.
St. Vincent s Hospital. Vic.
Aphasia and Associated Disorders:
Taxonomy, Localization, and Recovery.
Andrew Kertesz. New York: Grune &
Stratton. 1979. xvi+ 350 pages. Aust.
$54.85 (Copy supplied by Harcourt
Brace Jovanovich Group (Australia)
Pty. Limited).
Andrew Kertesz has presented an easy to read
text on Aphasia and Associated Disorders, well set
out with clear illustrations, a glossary, indicators at
the beginning of each of the sixteen chapters, and
summaries at the end.
His claim, in the preface (p. xv), that the text is
"to summarize up-to-date knowledge in a form that
is not available elsewhere" is somewhat misleading.
Much of the content has been produced before in
various forms, in particular by Geschwind's
colleagues at the Boston Veterans Administration
Hospital (Goodglass and Kaplan, 1912; Benson,
1919), and continues to be published (Albert et aI,
1981). For example, Chapters I and 2, Aphasia
Oassifications and Aphasia Tests, have previously
been well documented (Goodglass and Kaplan,
1912; Eisenson, 1913) and present little that is new.
A critical evaluation of the tests would have been of
value. Perhaps one asset of the prolific nature of
the Boston authors is that constant repetition of
their system of classification is heading
aphasiologists towards more consistent use of
terminologies. The continued reference to Mohr's
(1916)explanation of Broca's Aphasia highlighting
the clear distinction between the persistent Broca's
Aphasia associated with the larger lesioned area of
the superior middle cerebral artery and the lesser
Broca's Area infarct is also welcome.
His second claim in the preface is that "new
data" will be presented "with a novel approach and
technique" (p. xv). Kertesz is referring to his
taxonomic approach to Aphasia classification,
which is certainly novel but also has been
previously presented (Kertesz &. Poole, 1914;
Kertesz and Phipps, 1911).
Chapter 3 describes the rationale for the Western
Aphasia Battery, Kertesz's (1980) shortened form
of an adapted Boston Diagnostic Aphasia
Examination (Goodglass and Kaplan, 1912) with
explanation of the major changes made to that test.
Noteworthy are the adaptations made to
assessment of spontaneous and conversational
 48
speech, areas on which the B.D.A.E. places
diagnostic emphasis.
The Aphasia Quotient is dealt with in chapter 4
and is largely based on the earlier study of Kertesz
and Poole (1974). The chapter is mostly statistical.
The "new data" referred to above is presented in
chapters 5, 6 and 7 and details numerical taxonomy
in relation to aphasic populations. This is a novel
way of classifying aphasics, one of the major
difficulties being which psycholinguistic signs to
include or exclude in each cluster.
Kertesz argues that the Western Aphasia Battery
utilizing the taxonomic approach to classification
must be a valuable research tool because of the
quantitative nature of its scoring system. It is not
the purpose of this review to argue the point.
The chapters 8, 9 and 10 on localization are
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useful reading but, once again, the information is
not new (Kertesz, Lesk, and McCabe 1977).
By necessity the sections on thalamic lesions,
cortical blood flow studies and evoked potentials
are described only briefly. Isotope localization and
cr scans in aphasia are covered in chapters 9
and 10.
Chapters II to 14 on Associated Disorders,
although typically Boston and seen elsewhere
(Benson, 1979; Albert et al, 1981), are lArgely
literature reviews with some useful description,
delineating the alexias, discussing agraphia,
acalculia and the Gerstmann Syndrome and a fairly
superficial covering of apraxia.
The remaining chapters IS and 16, are titled
Recovery and Treatment of Aphasia and Recovery
of Associated Disorders respectively, and present
for example, findings on recovery related to age,
spontaneous recovery, aphasia type, handedness.
Treatment is merely a summary of various
methods available to the speech therapist, such as
Melodic Intonation Therapy, stimulation-
facilitation, deblocking, the emphasis being on
American approaches.
In summary the book could be regarded as
disappointing on the grounds that there is very
little !lew material, and much of it being presented
in typical Boston Veterans Hospital style. Andrew
Kertesz's reliance on his previously published
journal articles is also disappointing. The book can
be seen largely as a vehicle for presenting his
taxonomic approach and the Western Aphasia
Battery once more.
Kertesz has argued that diagnosis using his
Battery is now possible through a quantitative
score and thus is a valuable research tool.
Fortunately, although he supports its use largely
for Cerebral Arterial Syndrome Aphasias, he
recognizes the difficulty of relying on this method
for neoplasm and trauma aetiologies.
Aust. J. of Human Comm. Dis. 10, 2. 1982
For the student the text is probably useful to
'dip' into as a superficial guide, in particular the
chapters on localization, the cursory summaries of
the aphasia tests and the chapters on the associated
disorders which compare favourably with similar
chapters by Benson (1979) and Albert et al (1981),
although that is not to say that they are
exceptional.
Chapters on treatment offer the speech therapist
nothing new: It is a pity that Kertesz's recognition
of the relevance to aphasia of recent linguistic
issues (p. xv) was not pursued,
If a book containing Kertesz's major journal
articles is required then this volume would suit the
purpose. The main feature distinguishing it from
comparable books by other Boston authors rests
on the inclusion of the Western Aphasia Battery
and numerical taxonomy. From the therapist's
point of view this may not be sufficient reason to
select this book over similar publications.
Margaret Gibson,
School of Communication Disorders.
Lincoln Institute of Health Sciences. Vic.
References
ALBERT, M.L., GOODGLASS, H., HELM,
N.A., RUBENS, A.B. and ALEXANDER, M.P.
Disorders of Human Communication. 2. Clinical
Aspects of Dysphasia. Wien: Springer Verlag
(1981).
BENSON, D.F. Aphasia, Alexia, and Agraphia.
New York: Churchill Livingstone (1979).
EISENSON, J. Adult Aphasia: Assessment and
Treatment. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey:
Prentice-Hall (1973).
GOODGLASS, H. and KAPLAN, E. The
Assessment of Aphasia and Related Disorders,
Philadelphia: Lea and Febiger (1972).
KERTESZ, A. The Western Aphasia Battery.
University of Western On!Brio (1980).
KERTESZ, A., LESK, D., and McCABE, P.
Isotope localization of infarcts in aphasia.
Archives of Neurology, 34, 590-601 (1977).
KERTESZ, A. and PHIPPS, J. Numerical
taxonomy of aphasia. Brain and Language, 4,
1-10 (1977).
KERTESZ, A. and POOLE, E. The aphasia
quotient: The taxonomic approach to
measurement of aphasic disability. The
Canadian Journal of Neurological Sciences, I,
7-16 (1974).
MOHR, J.P. Broca's area and Broca's aphasia. In
Whitaker, H. and Whitaker, H.A. (Eds.) Studies
in Neurolinguistics. Volume I. New York:
Academic Pres (1976).