Speech Reconfirmation on Global Aphasia’s Language Sufferer: How Understandable?  (Psycho-Pragmatic Study)

Nugroho Ponco Santoso^a*, Andayani^b, and Budhi Setiawan^c

^a,b,cIndonesian Language for Education Department, Sebelas Maret University, Surakarta, Indonesia

^{Nugroho.poncos@gmail.com*}

Speech Reconfirmation on Global Aphasia Language: How Understandable? (Psycho-Pragmatic Study)

Background. Aphasia is one of language disorder caused by brain injury.  The disorder conduct impairment on language ability that can be language comprehension or production.  Especially Global Aphasia is an aphasia that made both language comprehension and production ability impaired, even disappear. The language impairment made communication process to Individual with aphasia became more difficult.  For instance, when normal speaker asks something that need confirmation to individual with aphasia, it needs time and reprocess in order to make individual with aphasia can confirm the question.  This study aimed to describe speech reconfirmation between individual with global aphasia and normal speaker using psycho-pragmatic study.  According to the purpose of the study here is the research question: what is the form of speech reconfirmation on individual with global aphasia? How much understand an individual with global aphasia and normal speaker comprehend their implicature?  This research is important to discuss in order to make the language of aphasia sufferer much more understandable.

Methods. This study is a qualitative research using case study approach.  the subject is an individual with global aphasia caused by stroke attach.  The subject is receiving language rehabilitation both from hospital therapist and family on a year period.  Data were collected through observation and in depth interview.  In depth interview was taken with family, therapist, and subject neighbor.  Data were analyzed by describing speech reconfirmation form that done by subject and normal speaker combined with in-depth interview and observation result.

Result. The result of this study showed that individual with global aphasia tends to repeat communication.  It is necessary to repeat speech to the individual with global aphasia in order to make fully understand the information conveyed by a normal speaker. Besides, the speech confirmation of individual with global aphasia still has ambiguous meaning.  For instance, when an individual with global aphasia want to confirm ‘yes’ answer to the normal speaker question, she shook her head instead of nodded that normally it is used for ‘no’ answer.  The reconfirmation showed by the individual with global aphasia tended to understandable to close family.  Even though the close family can understand what the meaning is, it was affected by many factors such as interaction time, experience, etc. Therefore, another speaker who has no experience to communicate with the subject will hard interprets the meaning of subject speech.  Confirmation from the subject are also formed  in short speech accompanied by certain mimic.  Besides mimic, intonation is also affect the meaning of confirmation conveyed by the individual with global aphasia.

Conclusion. The investigated individual with global aphasia have language impairment i.e language comprehension and production.  The language impairment causing the form of confirmation conveyed by the subject tended to have a meaning that hard to understand to partner speaker.  The gesture performed by the subject is also cannot describe the meaning of the individual with global utterance.  In addition, the mimic and intonation from the subject greatly affect the partner speaker in order to comprehend the meaning of  the subject speech.  The comprehend ability from partner speaker to understand the individual with global aphasia utterance depends on many factors such as interaction time, experience, blood relationship, and etc.

Contribution to the society. It is hoped that this research has a positive impact on the individual with global aphasia, and for people who look after with them in order to make an aphasia sufferer's condition much more understandable.

Keyword: Gesture, global aphasia, mimic, reconfirmation, speech

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