Perceptions of communication abilities for persons with traumatic brain injury: Validity of the La Trobe Communication Questionnaire

2013

Brain Injury

Primary objective: To explore the use of direct video-based review for administration of the LaTrobe Communication Questionnaire (LCQ), and explore use of the LCQ as a tool for identifying and prioritizing targets for partner-based intervention.Research design: Between-groups design comparing self-vs partner ratings of social communication behaviours in conversation and qualitative analysis of response patterns and participant feedback. Methods and procedures: Eight adults with moderate-to-severe TBI and their partners engaged in 20-minute videotaped conversations, elicited using a topic-starter task. Each participant with TBI and his or her partner then completed the LCQ while viewing the dyad's videotaped conversation. Self-and partner ratings of the person with TBI were compared to each other and to published LCQ data. Main outcomes and results: Based on direct review of their videotaped conversations, six of eight individuals with TBI rated themselves as having more frequent problem behaviours than did their partners. Overall agreement between individuals with TBI and their partners was 0.70. Conclusions: The present study suggests that direct review of videotaped conversations might avoid some of the limitations associated with recall of previous events, which can be biased toward negative events and confounded by memory impairments in individuals with TBI. Participants stated that the video segment reflected their typical interactions and, thus, behaviours observed in this context could serve as a starting point for intervention planning. IntroductionSustainable social integration for persons with traumatic brain injury (TBI) depends in part upon the success of their interactions with their close partners [1,2]. Persons with TBI often demonstrate social communication problems, however, which may strain everyday relationships and potentially endanger the longevity of these relationships [3-10]. These problems include tangential comments, verbosity, perseveration, interruptions and lost train of thought [11,12], all of which can add to the listener's burden in conversation [1, 2] and discourage social interactions. Providing partners with knowledge and skills that foster more successful communication interactions can reduce partner burden and strain on relationships. Partner-based intervention also is consistent with the current models of health outcomes [13] and models for TBI intervention [14][15][16], in which communication partners are considered to be essential stakeholders in intervention for the person with TBI and the clinician's role shifts from expert 'fixer' to co-facilitator of change.

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 70%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Video-based administration of the La Trobe Communication Questionnaire for adults with traumatic brain injury and their communication partners

Hoepner

2013

Brain Injury

“…The general assumption has been that these problems reflect some combination of impairments in executive functions (EFs) and working memory (Godfrey and Shum 2000; Wood and Rutterford 2006; Struchen, Pappadis et al 2008). There is growing recognition, however, that individuals with TBI with may have specific impairments in the ability to process social information, i.e., in social cognition (Turkstra, McDonald et al 2001; Martin and McDonald 2003; Bibby and McDonald 2005).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of social cognitive demand on Theory of Mind in conversations of adults with traumatic brain injury

Byom

Intl J Lang & Comm Disor

2012

Background A requisite skill for successful conversation is the ability to adjust one’s language according to contextual factors. Aims This study examined one aspect of language use in context – the use of mental state terms, i.e. words that communicate thoughts, beliefs, or feelings– in conversations between adult males with and without traumatic brain injury (TBI) and familiar partners. Methods and Procedures Participants were 5 males in the chronic stage of recovery following severe TBI and 5 male peers matched for age, conversing with friends. Conversational context was manipulated using conversation starters that were designed to induce differing levels of self-disclosure or intimacy, with the expectation that mental state term use would increase when participants talked about more intimate topics. Outcomes and Results Participants in both groups used more mental state terms in more intimate conversations, however adults with TBI did not increase their mental state term use to the same extent as matched peers. Adults with TBI also used a significantly different pattern of mental state term types across intimacy levels as compared to peers. Conclusions and Implications These quantitative and qualitative differences may contribute to social conversation problems of adults with TBI.

“…Non-verbal behaviours typically are not included in these studies and when they are the focus typically is on microscopic analysis of discrete non-verbal behaviours like eye gaze or body posture [36, 37] and these have not differed systematically between groups. Also, studies of social communication outcome after TBI [2, 38, 39] reveal significant variability that is not accounted for by pragmatic language use, and group differences in social outcomes are seen even when adults with TBI are indistinguishable from uninjured peers on traditional narrative measures [40]. This suggests that other factors might influence social communication outcomes after TBI.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Selling the story: Narratives and charisma in adults with TBI

Jones

2011

Brain Injury

Objective To examine storytelling performance behaviours in adults with traumatic brain injury (TBI) and relate these behaviours to perceived charisma and desirability as a conversation partner. Design and methods Seven adult males with traumatic brain injury (TBI) told their accident narratives to a male confederate. Ten male undergraduate students rated 1-minute video clips from the beginning of each narrative using the Charismatic Leadership Communication Scale (CLCS). Raters also indicated whether or not they would like to engage in conversation with each participant. Results Of the performative behaviours analysed, gestures alone significantly influenced CLCS ratings and reported likelihood of engaging in future conversation with the participant. Post-hoc analysis revealed that speech rate was significantly correlated with all of the preceding measures. There was a significant correlation between self- and other-ratings of charisma. Conclusions The findings suggest that aspects of non-verbal performance, namely gesture use and speech rate, influence how charismatic an individual is perceived to be and how likely someone is to engage in conversation with that person. Variability in these performance behaviours may contribute to the variation in social outcomes seen in the TBI population.