Introduction to Communication Sciences and Disorders: The Scientific Basis of Clinical Practice

Introduction to Communication Sciences and Disorders: The Scientific Basis of Clinical Practice is designed for undergraduate students who are taking a first course in the discipline of Communication Sciences and Disorders (CSD). The textbook presents students with the range of communication impairments in society, the consequences of those impairments for the persons who have them as well as for their family members, and the treatments that are available to lessen or remediate the effects of the disorders.

The text is organized into three sections on Language, Speech, and Hearing. Each chapter is concise and written to convey the core information for each topic. The material is presented in a way that maintains the interest of the student through expository clarity and brevity in a course that treats so many different facets of a complex discipline. The textbook also serves the needs of the instructor by organizing the material in a teachable way.

Introduction to Communication Sciences and Disorders emphasizes the scientific basis of the field by presenting specific clinical examples to demonstrate the translation of laboratory science to clinical aspects of speech, language, and hearing disorders. Students will leave the course a good deal more knowledgeable and sensitive about what it means to be communicatively impaired in contemporary society.

Key Features

• Consistency of presentation across chapters as well as clearly-stated relationships between information in different chapters
• Features beautiful original, full-color illustrations designed to be instructive learning tools
• Each chapter begins with an introduction and ends with a summary to present and review key concepts
• Modern and up-to-date treatment options written for the needs of the field of communication sciences and disorders
• Covers the core essentials of the subject concisely and to the point
• Structured to aid the instructor with sections easily assimilated into extant lectures
• A PluralPlus companion website with ancillary resources for instructors and students

NOTE: This book comes with supplementary content on a PluralPlus companion website. If you purchase or rent a used copy of the printed book, the code to access the website printed inside the book may have been previously redeemed/used or be incorrect and you will not be able to use it. To guarantee access to the website, it is recommended you purchase a new copy of this book.

Gary Weismer, PhD, is Oros-Bascom Professor Emeritus in the Department of Communication Sciences & Disorders, University of Wisconsin-Madison. He received his bachelor's and master's degrees from the Pennsylvania State University and his doctorate from University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1975. Dr. Weismer's research publications concern speech production in healthy talkers, as well as speech production and intelligibility phenomena in persons with motor speech disorders. Dr. Weismer served twice as Associate Editor for the Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research (formerly the Journal of Speech and Hearing Research), as Associate Editor at Folia Phoniatrica et Logopaedica (FPL) from 2004 to 2011, and as Editor-in-Chief at FPL from 2011 to 2016. During his 35 years at University of Wisconsin-Madison, Dr. Weismer won several teaching awards, including for mentoring efforts in the University of Wisconsin-Madison Honors program. Dr. Weismer mentored 16 doctoral students during his career, many of whom are currently scientific leaders and university administrators. He is a past member of the Executive Board of the International Association of Logopedics and Phoniatrics, a fellow of the Acoustical Society of America, and past chair of his department. His research was supported by National Institutes of Health for more than 25 years.

David K. Brown, PhD, has been Professor in the School of Audiology at Pacific University since it enrolled its first students in 2012. He is also the Director of the Audiology Simulation Lab (SIMLab) at Pacific. Previously, he was Director of Audiological Research for Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center and Assistant Professor in the Departments of Otolaryngology and Communication Sciences and Disorders, where he is still an adjunct professor. For over 30 years, he has been a licensed and certified audiologist specializing in pediatrics. He teaches in the areas of acoustics, anatomy and physiology, cochlear implants, evoked potentials, otoacoustic emissions, pediatrics, and research fundamentals.