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Updated: May 15, 2026

Transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) of Wernicke's and Broca's Areas in Studies of Language Learning and Word Acquisition

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Published on: July 13, 2019

Aphasia and topic initiation in conversation: a case study.

Scott E Barnes¹, Christopher N Candlin, Alison Ferguson

¹Department of Linguistics, Macquarie University, North Ryde, NSW, Australia.

International Journal of Language & Communication Disorders

|January 16, 2013

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

People with aphasia often struggle with initiating conversation topics. Using "and"-prefacing can help smooth these transitions, improving communication in daily life.

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Area of Science:

Linguistics
Speech-Language Pathology
Conversation Analysis

Background:

Aphasiologists often treat linguistic impairment separately from daily communicative activities.
Linking language use to routine activities can expand relevant linguistic forms for people with aphasia.
Initiating topics in conversation is a known difficulty for people with aphasia, yet under-researched.

Observation:

This study employed Conversation Analysis to examine topic initiation by a person with chronic aphasia.
Video recordings of conversations were transcribed using conversation analytic conventions.
Topic initiations were identified and analyzed within the collected conversational data.

Findings:

Topic initiations frequently resulted in conversational difficulties for the participant.
The individual consistently used "and"-prefaced turns to initiate topics.
"And"-prefacing effectively smoothed conversational discontinuities during topic initiation.

Implications:

Findings align with previous research on the challenges of topic initiation for individuals with aphasia.
"And"-prefacing and similar turn prefaces may enhance communication for people with aphasia.
Further research should explore the use of turn prefacing by other individuals with aphasia and its evolution over time.