Bursary competition 2009

SM15 Clinical Phonetics: voice disorders, stuttering, cluttering and motor control

Proposals are invited in the area of Clinical Phonetics, with a focus on voice problems or speech production, particularly in stuttering, cluttering and motor control. Suggested areas of research are outlined below. Applicants should indicate their preferred area of specialism and quote the code SM15 on the application form.

Voice problems in professional voice users (e.g. teachers, lecturers, call centre workers) have serious consequences for the individuals concerned and for the economy, and there is an urgent need for further research in this area. We are especially interested in the effects of vocal load, stress and personality type on vocal parameters and vocal health. Projects might involve a longitudinal study of an occupational group with high levels of voice use, and would allow the researcher to explore how factors such as vocal load, stress and personality type relate to acoustic characteristics of the voice, voice self-assessment, and expert assessments of vocal health. Information about typical and atypical patterns of voice fluctuation, together with a clearer understanding of the vocal indicators of stress, could lead to development of new approaches to the prevention and detection of voice disorder.

Speech production: physical constraints such as arthritis and muscular weakness may affect both voice quality and nonverbal communication, with significant negative consequences for social interaction. Access to sophisticated speech and movement analysis techniques and collaboration with other healthcare research teams would allow a student working in this area to address some or all of the following aims:

• to identify more clearly the ways in which verbal and non-verbal communication change during the normal aging process;
• to identify correlations between these changes and specific age-related changes in mobility;
• to explore the impact of these changes on social interaction; and
• to develop evidence-based guidelines for relevant professionals, carers, etc, in order to increase understanding and minimise negative “quality of life” effects.

For further information on either of the above contact Dr Janet Beck or Dr Felix Schaeffler

Stuttering, cluttering and motor control: proposals are invited in any of the following areas:

• Articulation in stuttered or cluttered speech (with a focus on tongue movement)
• Psycholinguistic models of speech production, related to stuttering or cluttering.
• Parent Child Interaction Therapy for stuttering.
• Variable typologies of stuttering in preschool children.

For further information contact Dr Robin Lickley or Dr Sara Wood

For more about Speech Sciences research at QMU see SSRC
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