A thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of - Queen Margaret University

aliens were more difficult to recall and the skills relatively easier. This could not
be a reflection on the ‘newness’ of the word forms as they were the same ones
that were used in the previous two preliminary studies. However, there were a
number of differences between this study and the other two, namely, the number
of stimuli was increased in number from ten names and ten skills to 20 of each;
independent learning time was increased with an option of working with their
peers which may have provided additional distractions when learning. As with
preliminary studies one and two there was a wide range of learning ability to
recall the vocabulary. Participants were able to demonstrate a greater amount of
learning when given more cues to aid recall as reflected in the multiple-choice
task scores (see Table 3.7).
3.6 CONTRIBUTION OF PRELIMINARY STUDIES’ FINDINGS TO MAIN
INVESTIGATION
As the main investigation (Chapter 5) aimed to ascertain if people with aphasia
could learn new word forms and meanings, it was imperative that the
methodology of the study facilitated the maximum demonstration of any
learning. These preliminary studies aimed to discover the optimum training
method to facilitate this learning and assist in the demonstration of this learning
through appropriate assessments. The contribution of the preliminary studies to
the main investigation method will now be discussed.
3.6.1 Stimuli properties
3.6.1.1 Uniqueness of stimuli
The stimuli (images, word forms and novel associative skills) were original
designs of the researcher and considered novel. In order to ensure that the
learning and recall of the stimuli was not contaminated by information already
known to the researcher a number of steps were taken. Firstly, prior to the
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