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The Adaptation of an Aphasia Tool for Maltese - English Bilingual Adults
Poster Session A - Sandbox Series, Thursday, October 24, 10:00 - 11:30 am, Great Hall 3 and 4
This poster is part of the Sandbox Series.
Lorraine Vassallo1, Dr Ritienne Grima1, Dr Claude Julien Bajada1, Dr Alexia Rohde2; 1University of Malta, 2Department of Health, Queensland Health, Australia
Introduction: In bilingual persons with aphasia post stroke (BPwA), recovery of the two languages can vary discordantly, necessitating comprehensive testing in both languages (Paradis, 2014) with a linguistically and culturally equivalent instrument. The lack of standardized, normed and comparable aphasia assessment tools in Maltese and English, limits the assessment of the Maltese - English bilingual adult with post-stroke aphasia. Failure to assess one of the languages hinders accurate evaluation of linguistic competency, and consequently optimal treatment and rehabilitation. The study aims to linguistically and culturally translate and adapt an aphasia assessment tool for Maltese - English bilinguals. A psychometrically robust Maltese - English Aphasia Assessment (MEAA), normed on the Maltese population, will lead to enhanced accuracy in the differential diagnosis of language impairment in Maltese - English bilingual adults. Methods: The study is divided into three phases: (1) translation and adaptation of the Brisbane Evidence-Based Language Test (Rohde et al, 2020) into Maltese (completed); (2) the pilot [Step 1a, N = 15; Step 1b, N = 35] (completed) and normative study [N=100] (currently ongoing); (3) the main study [N =100] during which MEAA will be administered to bilingual persons with stroke (BPwS), with and without aphasia (commencing late 2024). A demographic and language background questionnaire (DLBQ) will determine language history. Performance in both Maltese and English is assessed on MEAA’s 49 tasks (5 subtests). Data: Piloting steps 1a and 1b contributed to face and contact validity respectively. Normative data will establish norms for healthy bilinguals on the MEAA while continuing to determine the extent of linguistic equivalence between both language versions. Comparative analysis will progress in phase 3: a group of BPwS and a cohort of BPwA. Results: Preliminary analysis of the MEAA normative data [N=30] provides baseline distribution performance of neurotypical Maltese - English adults. Results to date reflect the Maltese bilingual scenario: perceptual (English M = 14.87, SD = 0.35/ Maltese M = 14.77, SD = 0.57), auditory comprehension (English M = 33.03, SD = 2.09/ Maltese M = 33.87, SD = 1.93), verbal expression (English M = 79.53, SD = 9.54/ Maltese M = 76.37, SD = 8.80), reading (English M = 36.60, SD = 4.11/ Maltese M = 37.03, SD 3.22), and writing (English M = 27.80, SD = 1.16/ Maltese M = 26.73, SD = 2.29). Conclusion/Summary: An accurate evaluation of the Maltese bilingual’s linguistic abilities entails testing both Maltese and English with an equivalent assessment tool. We intend to investigate correlations between the language background (per DLBQ numeric scores) and the MEAA performance. Overall, we anticipate strong internal consistency and validity among the MEAA tasks. Comparative analysis of post-stroke performance across the subtests in both language versions will provide insight into the severity level of impairment, effectively detecting aphasia. The multidisciplinary creation of MEAA will supplement cross cultural and cross linguistic adaptation models of aphasia assessment, contributing to comparable tools across world languages, and potentially broadening further research in the context of other aetiologies of neurodegenerative disease.
Topic Areas: Disorders: Acquired, Multilingualism