Do the effects of adventitious deafness include disordered speech?
The popular clinical prediction is that adventitious deafness will result in deterioration of speech sound production; consequently, a recommendation of speech conservation training is thought to be warranted in these cases. This prediction usually follows from a theory that counts feedback (particularly auditory feedback) as important in the maintenance of normal speech. The results of this study, designed to examine the speech of five adventitiously deafened adults matched with a group of normal controls, do not support the prediction of speech deterioration. Even so, judges were able to differentiate deafened from normally hearing speakers. Some possibilities are considered that could account for the identity of the deafened speakers in the absence of clinically significant speech disorder, and clinicians are encouraged to reevaluate their assumptions concerning this population.
