Language modality performance patterns in aphasia

The purpose of this study was to investigate and describe the performance of 20 aphasic subjects across the four language modalities of auditory comprehension, verbal expression, reading, and writing. Subtests from the Boston Diagnostic Aphasia Examination and the Porch Index of Communicative Ability were administered to each subject. Results indicated that aphasia differentially affects performance in the four language modalities investigated. In this study, aphasic subjects as a group demonstrated variability in the degree of difficulty experienced in auditory comprehension, verbal expression, reading, and writing for both single words and short connected units. Furthermore, there was a consistent pattern of performance differences across modalities regardless of the length of the stimulus. This modality performance pattern is presented and plausible explanations are discussed.