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Semin Speech Lang 2004; 25(4): 295-307
DOI: 10.1055/s-2004-837243
Copyright © 2004 by Thieme Medical Publishers, Inc., 333 Seventh Avenue, New York, NY 10001, USA.

Perseveration and Other Repetitive Verbal Behaviors: Functional Dissociations

Sarah S. Christman1 , 2 , Frank R. Boutsen2 , Hugh W. Buckingham3
  • 1Associate Professor, College of Allied Health, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
  • 2Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, College of Allied Health, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
  • 3Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, College of Arts and Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
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Publication History

Publication Date:
15 December 2004 (online)

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ABSTRACT

This article will review types of perseveration from a neurolinguistic perspective. During the course of the article, continuous, stuck-in-set, and recurrent perseveration will be placed in contradistinction to several other types of repetitive behaviors commonly associated with neurogenic communication disorders. These include echolalia in mixed transcortical aphasia; conduite d’approche and conduite d’ecart in fluent aphasias; lexical and nonlexical automatisms in nonfluent aphasias; palilalia in neuromotor disorders, such as Parkinson's disease (PD); and sound, syllable, word, and phrase repetitions in neurogenic stuttering. When differentiating these phenomena from perseveration, it is helpful to consider the salient factors that condition observed behaviors in individual patients, such as overall speech fluency, inventory of available utterances, nature of eliciting tasks, and propositionality of responses. Information such as communication disorder diagnosis, underlying etiology, and known sites of lesion from each patient's total clinical profile may also assist with differentiation.

KEYWORDS

Aphasia - echolalia - lexical automatisms - nonlexical automatisms - conduite d’approche - conduite d’ecart - palilalia - neurogenic stuttering

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Sarah S ChristmanPh.D. 

P.O. Box 26901, Oklahoma City

OK 73190.

Email: sarah-christman@ouhsc.edu

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