The Impact of Acquired Neurological Dysarthria on the Speaker’s Self-Concept

Abstract

The relationship between communication disorders and negative self-concept has been discussed in relation to aphasia, spasmodic dysphonia as well as disorders of fluency. It is unknown whether people with acquired neurological dysarthria also experience changes to self-concept and identity following the onset of this communication disorder. This paper reports the results of a study investigating the impact of acquired dysarthria on the speaker’s self-concept. A semantic differential scale was used to examine changes to self-concept in 31 people with acquired dysarthria. This scale was re-administered after a six-month period to examine whether changes had occurred in self-concept over time. The results indicate that dysarthria generally has a negative impact on the speaker’s self-concept and that this impact does not change over time. The implications of these findings for clinical practice are discussed.