INTERACTIONS BETWEEN RECOVERY IN APHASIA, EMOTIONAL AND PSYCHOSOCIAL FACTORS IN SUBJECTS WITH APHASIA, THEIR SIGNIFICANT OTHERS AND SPEECH PATHOLOGISTS

Associations between clinical and functional aphasia recovery and perc eptions of emotional and psychosocial adjustment accompanying aphasia were examined in five subjects at 3 and 9 months post-onset of stroke using a range of objective and subjective measures. The subjective wel l-being and optimism of significant others of aphasic patients was als o examined, and speech pathologists completed measures of optimism. Un ique patterns of individual emotional and psychosocial adjustment were found over time in patients and their significant others, even in pat ients with similar aphasia type and severity. Individual variability i n emotional and psychosocial adjustment and their impact on recovery f rom aphasia are discussed.