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Soldiers Marching Down the Garden Path: Comprehension of Complex Language in Veterans with MTBI

Mintz, Hallie Elise (2010) Soldiers Marching Down the Garden Path: Comprehension of Complex Language in Veterans with MTBI. Undergraduate Thesis, University of Pittsburgh. (Unpublished)

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Abstract

This investigation examined the comprehension of complex language in Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) soldiers, who have been diagnosed with a mild traumatic brain injury upon return from deployment. This experiment used the sentence structure known as a garden path sentence, where the ambiguity of the sentence leads the mind down the path to the wrong interpretation, to test the language comprehension skills of veterans diagnosed with mTBI and controls. Accuracy and reaction time were measured by answering comprehension questions about both garden path sentences and non-garden path sentences. Results demonstrated that the subjects with mTBI had difficulty with complex language which did not contain strong pragmatic cues, but that reaction times were not significantly different compared to the control subjects.

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Details

Item Type: University of Pittsburgh ETD
Status: Unpublished
Creators/Authors:
CreatorsEmailPitt UsernameORCID
Mintz, Hallie Elisehem18@pitt.eduHEM18
ETD Committee:
TitleMemberEmail AddressPitt UsernameORCID
Committee ChairDickey, Michael Walshmdickey@pitt.eduMDICKEY
Committee MemberChristianson, Kielkiel@illinois.edu
Committee MemberDoyle, Patrickpdoyle@pitt.eduPDOYLE
Committee MemberHula, WilliamWilliam.Hula@va.gov
Date: 18 May 2010
Date Type: Completion
Defense Date: 9 March 2010
Approval Date: 18 May 2010
Submission Date: 27 April 2010
Access Restriction: No restriction; Release the ETD for access worldwide immediately.
Institution: University of Pittsburgh
Schools and Programs: Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences > Communication Science and Disorders
David C. Frederick Honors College
Degree: BPhil - Bachelor of Philosophy
Thesis Type: Undergraduate Thesis
Refereed: Yes
Uncontrolled Keywords: Comprehension of complex language; Garden Path Sentences; Mild Traumatic Brain Injury; OEF/OIF Veterans
Other ID: http://etd.library.pitt.edu/ETD/available/etd-04272010-232012/, etd-04272010-232012
Date Deposited: 10 Nov 2011 19:42
Last Modified: 15 Nov 2016 13:42
URI: http://d-scholarship.pitt.edu/id/eprint/7697

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