A Cognitive Neuropsychological Approach to Assessment and Intervention in Aphasia: A Clinician's Guide

This book provides both a theoretical and practical reference to cognitive neuropsychological approaches to speech and language therapists working with people with aphasia. Having evolved from the activity of a group of clinicians working with people with aphasia, it is a highly practical guide that aims to interpret the theoretical literature as it relates to aphasia and link it directly to available assessment tools and therapy techniques.

The opening section of the book provides an overview of the theory underpinning the approach and how it can be applied to the assessment and interpretation of language-processing impairments. The second section offers a working explanation of different components of language processing, outlining the deficits that may arise from impairment to each component. In addition, the clinician is guided to available assessments to test out clinical hypotheses and offered interpretations of performance patterns. The final section provides a comprehensive overview of the therapy literature with systematic summaries of the therapies undertaken and a synthesis of the findings to date.

This book has been written by clinicians with hands-on experience. It will be an invaluable resource for clinicians and students of speech and language therapy and related disciplines.

This is an excellent and much needed book. Understanding the nature of a person with aphasia's impairment is an important component of the clinical management of aphasia. It is essential that the nature of impairment is interpreted within a theoretical framework and yet until now there has been no accessible literature to assist in this process - this volume fills the void. It provides the vital link between theory, research and practice, for both assessment and treatment. It will be essential reading for students and support evidence based clinical practice. - Lyndsey Nickels, Australian Research Council-QEII Research Fellow, Macquarie Centre for Cognitive Science (MACCS), Macquarie University, Sydney

All things considered, this is an excellent book. it makes cognitive neuropsychological studies more accessible and easier to understand, especially for clinicians and graduate students. It provides an excellent teaching resource.... This is not simply a collection of therapy studies. The authors have given the studies a context, and rooted them in a principled and learnable approach to treating the problem of aphasia. - Charlotte C. Mitchum, University of Maryland, in Aphasiology