130-137
Effect of Oral Placement and Expressive Therapies on Speech Intelligibility of Adolescents with Articulation Disorder
Authors: Temitope Adebisi Amodu, Ayodele Osisanya, Oluseyi Akintunde Dada, Janet Sunday Petters, Margaret Okwuonu Uzor, Francis Kibai Sarimiye, Andrew Oghenerukevwe Orovwigho, Uzoamaka Nneka Mbaekwe, Victoria Enefiok Etim, Maria Enemeba Ngwu, Ololade Olayinka Nnamani, Samuel Orim Orim
Number of views: 80
Intelligible speech is vital to every adolescent's life, but this skill can be confounded with the presence of
articulation disorder. Meanwhile, studies have been conducted using different therapies to improve speech intelligibility.
This study investigated the effect of oral placement and expressive therapies on speech intelligibility among adolescents
with articulation disorders.
The study adopted a pretest-posttest, control group, quasi-experimental research design with a 3x2x2 factorial matrix.
Three special centers were randomly selected, and purposive sampling was used in selecting 60 adolescents having
articulation disorders comprising 34 males and 26 females. These adolescents were randomly assigned to Experimental
Group 1 (n= 22), Experimental Group 2 (n= 21), and Control (n= 17). Speech Intelligibility Assessment Scale (r=0.92)
was the instrument used for the study. Participants in the experimental groups were exposed to the oral placement and
expressive therapeutic treatments, while those in the control groups were sensitized to a placebo. Three hypotheses
were tested at a 0.05 level of significance, while data were analyzed using Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA), mean
scores, and Bonferroni Post Hoc Test.
Findings revealed that there was a significant main effect of treatments F(2,56) = 112.52; p <0.05 (oral placement therapy,
expressive therapy, and control group with placebo), and also a significant interaction effect of treatments, gender, and
age F(2, 47) = 7.37; p <0.05 on speech intelligibility of adolescents with articulation disorders despite the presence of
placebo. Oral placement and expressive therapies were effective in managing the speech intelligibility of adolescents
with articulation disorders.
Therefore, speech therapists should adopt these therapeutic interventions in rehabilitating adolescents with articulation
disorders.