Contribution of Phonology and Semantics to Verb Inflection Deficit in Post-Stroke Aphasia

EasyChair Preprint 6345

Abstract

Individuals with post-stroke aphasia often experience difficulties in processing phonology (word sound) and semantics (word meaning). These deficits frequently co-occur with impaired grammar and verb inflections. These skills are interdependent, as regular inflection in English depends on phonological transformations (e.g., press→pressed), whereas irregular grammar relies more on contributions of semantic relationships between words. In the current study participants with post-stroke aphasia performed tasks that assess phonological skills, semantic knowledge, and verb inflection to better understand how deficits in the phonology and semantics of language contribute to verb inflection impairment. The regression analyses revealed that after accounting for production performance, phonological scores were a significant predictor of regular past tense inflection (e.g., pressed) and weak-irregular verbs (e.g., slept). Semantic composite scores were a significant predictor for all irregulars and strong-irregular verbs (e.g., sang). For regularized pseudo-words (e.g., flinked), phonology emerged as a significant predictor of performance. The results indicate that past tense inflection ability for real verbs and pseudo-words can be predicted from the underlying phonological and semantic impairments. Although phonological skills are crucial for both regular and irregular verb inflection, semantic impairment impacts inflection of strong-irregular verbs to a greater degree.

Keyphrases: Stroke, aphasia, past-tense inflection, phonology, semantics

@booklet{EasyChair:6345,
  author    = {Aneta Kielar},
  title     = {Contribution of Phonology and Semantics to Verb Inflection Deficit in Post-Stroke Aphasia},
  howpublished = {EasyChair Preprint 6345},
  year      = {EasyChair, 2021}}