The case for cognitive neuropsychological remediation

Abstract

Developments in the field of cognitive neuropsychology have recently begun to have an impact on therapeutic approaches to aphasia. Increasingly, clinicians have started adopting theoretical models of normal cognitive processing for the assessment and rehabilitation of individuals with acquired language deficits. This study describes and evaluates a single case, tested and treated within this framework. The subject, a surface dysgraphic, was assessed in detail pre-therapy and a deficit in lexical processing was diagnosed. Treatment designed to stimulate the lexical route of writing was undertaken and post-therapy evaluation was conducted. The results revealed a significant improvement in the writing of both regular and irregular treated words with generalisation to certain untreated words. Such improvement was shown to be a direct consequence of the intervention procedure. Therapeutic findings strengthen the basis of cognitive processing models which, in turn, provide a streamlined clinical framework for the practitioner.