Semantic feature analysis for word retrieval failures in aphasic discourse production

Semantic feature analysis was applied to object and action word retrieval failures appearing in the discourse of two participants with anomic aphasia. The approach was motivated by the continuing need to identify lexical treatments that generalize well to the discourse production of individuals with aphasia. The results revealed modest decreases in the numbers of word finding behaviors in discourse following treatment. Verbal productivity and correct information units in discourse, as measured by correct information unit analyses, also improved. Evidence was also found that targeting word finding behaviors in connected speech generalizes to naming of untrained object and action pictures