How to Communicate With a Speech Impaired Person? A Case Study of a Subject With Mosaic Patau Syndrome

Abstract

The current article is seeking an answer to the question how to communicate with a specific person with a partial loss of the ability to speak so that all participants of the communicative situation would understand each other. The subject of the study is a female who was born in 1990. Her speech impairment is caused by the mosaic form of Patau syndrome or trisomy of chromosome 13, and developmental verbal dyspraxia. Research material of the article consists of three communication situations recorded in a journal of participant observation; two situations involved a mother and a daughter (the subject of the study), who were joined by a third party in the third situation. The findings reveal that the subject uses in communication motional communication modalities and vocalizations, as well as combinations of these communicative means, manipulation with an object proved to be most effective. Collaboration of the communicators and consideration of shared knowledge play an important part. The subject guides her interlocutor to verbalize the meanings which she is unable to express orally herself. The findings of this study have practical implications for communication with other people with partial or total loss of the ability to speak.