Ruth Lesser – författare

Part of the "Language in Social Life" series, this text examines linguistics and aphasia and the psycholinguistic and pragmatic aspects of intervention. Amongst areas covered are the clinical background to aphasia, functional communication strategies and control processes in sentence production.

Linguistics and Aphasia is a major study of recent developments in applying psycholinguistics and pragmatics to the study of acquired language disorders (aphasia) and their remediation. Psycholinguistic analyses of aphasia interpret disorders in terms of damaged modules and processes within what was once a normal language system. These analyses have progressed to the point that they now routinely provide a model-based rationalefor planning patient therapy. Through a series of case studies, the authors show how the psycholinguistic analysis of aphasia can be assessed for its effectiveness in clinical practice.Pragmatic approaches to the study of aphasia are of more recent origin. Ruth Lesser and Lesley Milroy evaluate their considerable significance to the study of aphasia and their relevance to practical issues of diagnosis and treatment. Controversial analysis, in particular, offers a fruitful and productive framework within which to assess the functional adequacy of the language used by aphasic speakers in everyday contexts.

Cognitive neuropsychology is already radically influencing the clinical practice of aphasia assessment and therapy. It has made it possible to analyse individuals' language disorders through a psycholinguistic model and to quantify and evaluate the effects of intervention. The complementary methods of conversation analysis are also being introduced into assessment, with the potential for bringing a further structured approach to intervention.