Adaptation and validation of the main concept analysis of spoken discourse by native Japanese adults

ABSTRACT

Many people with aphasia demonstrate problems of oral production at the discourse level. The Main Concept Analysis (MCA) for oral discourse production is a published evidence-based battery for quantifying the degree of presence, accuracy, completeness, and efficiency of targeted main concepts in oral discourse. In Japan, such a standardized tool specialized for assessing spoken discourse is currently lacking. The purpose of this study was to adapt the Japanese version of MCA for oral discourse production (the Japanese-MCA) and examine its validity and reliability. Stage 1 of the study involved the establishment of linguistically-specific main concepts (MCs) of the Japanese-MCA. Ten speech-language-hearing therapists and 60 healthy participants who were native monolingual Japanese speakers were recruited to determine MCs. Stage 2 examined the criterion validity and reliability of the Japanese-MCA. Language samples of 20 participants with aphasia, as verified by Standard Language Test of Aphasia (SLTA), and 20 healthy older participants were used. Results of Stage 1 of the study yielded normative data with a set of target MCs that were geographically and linguistically specific for use in Japan. The results also revealed the comparability of the Japanese-MCA and previously reported versions of other languages. Stage 2 findings indicated not only a high correlation of criterion validity, but also good reliability of the test. With established norms and specific scoring criteria of the Japanese-MCA, it is believed that this new tool will become a useful addition to clinical management and research of aphasia in Japan.

KEYWORDS:

• Main concept analysis
• aphasia
• discourse
• Japanese adults

Disclosure statement

The authors report no conflict of interest.

Notes

¹ The SLTA covers five areas, including listening, speaking, reading, writing, and arithmetic, and consists of 26 subtests. Adopting the multi-level evaluation in the PICA, SLTA employs a six-level rating system for each subtest. A score of 6 or 5 represents correct responses, and a score between 4 and 1 indicates incorrect responses. SLTA scoring also considers the provision of external cues, PWA’s reaction time, and the quality of the responses in addition to accuracy.

² Each picture set contains four detached single black-and-white line drawings with dimensions of 15 cm × 21 cm. The first two sets contain only one character; the other two sets, three characters. Additional characters are included in picture sets 3 and 4 to elicit more main concepts. Description is elicited in a sequential manner. Picture set 1: ‘Cooking in a kitchen’, which depicts an old lady cutting carrots in the kitchen. The old lady cuts her finger while cutting the carrots, proceeds to get a first-aid kit, and places a bandage on her wound. Picture set 2: ‘Waking up late for work’, which shows a man looking at an alarm clock on his bed. In the next picture, the same man is brushing his teeth and combing his hair at the same time before getting dressed. The man notices that he is wearing a pair of socks that do not match. Picture set 3: ‘Buying an ice cream’, which shows a mother buying ice cream with her daughter at an ice cream store. In the next picture, the mother pays the salesman for the ice cream, and the salesman begins preparing the ice cream. The salesman gives the ice cream to the girl; thereafter, the girls drops the ice cream on the floor and cries. The salesman sees what happened and gives the girl a new ice cream. Picture set 4: ‘Helping an old man’, which depicts an old man carrying a grocery bag. A father and his son are walking in a direction opposite to the older man. The following picture reveals that oranges are falling from the old man’s grocery bag. The son sees what happened and helps in picking up the oranges. The older man thanks the boy for his help.

³ Some Japanese dialects (such as the dialects of Kyushu-ben, which are used in the southern and westernmost islands of Japan) can be unintelligible to speakers of standard Japanese. Although most Japanese dialects share the majority of standard Japanese vocabulary, some semantically distinctive and exclusive items exist in certain Japanese dialects. Further studies to establish dialectically specific scoring criteria (i.e. acceptable and/or accurate lexical items), which can facilitate future clinical application of the tool in other areas in Japan, are warranted.