Adaptive computer practice to improve word-finding in aphasia
Official title: Integrating complementary learning principles in aphasia rehabilitation via adaptive modeling
Funded at University of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh · NIH-11260184 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project uses computer programs that change practice difficulty to help people with aphasia find words more easily and keep those gains over time.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Pittsburgh, United States) |
| Project start | February 15, 2022 |
| Project end | January 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $182,864 |
| NIH project number | 5R01DC019325-05 |
| Project ID | NIH-11260184 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are adults with aphasia after stroke or other acquired brain injury who have word-finding (anomia) difficulties and can participate in computer-based therapy and clinic visits.
✕Less likely to help
People without significant word-finding problems, those with severe global language impairment who cannot use the computer tasks, or those with rapidly progressive neurodegenerative aphasias may not benefit from this program.
What this research studies
You would use a computer-based naming program that automatically adjusts how hard tasks are so you are challenged but not overwhelmed. The team will run two parallel clinical trials comparing different adaptive models that blend common therapy ideas like errorless versus effortful practice and massed versus spaced practice. The goal is to keep a “desirable difficulty” during practice so learned words stick and carry over into everyday speaking. Treatment will include repeated naming practice with the program tailoring trials to your performance and periodic in-person assessments.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this approach could give people with aphasia longer-lasting improvements in word-finding that transfer to natural conversation.
How similar studies have gone: Prior work supports spaced practice and retrieval-based naming therapy for aphasia, but using adaptive model-based algorithms to continuously balance learning strategies is a novel application.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Evans, William Streicher — University of Pittsburgh at Pittsburgh
- Study coordinator: Evans, William Streicher
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
-
Communication Bridge: Improving language therapy for people with primary progressive aphasia
A proven language-therapy program called Communication Bridge helps people with primary progressive aphasia improve and maintain how they communicate with others.
-
Neural signals linked to recovery from aphasia after stroke
This grant follows people who recently had a stroke and aphasia to understand why some recover language abilities better than others.
-
Bilingualism and language resilience in Hispanic people with primary progressive aphasia
Researchers compare different bilingual experiences to see how they relate to language decline and thinking skills in Hispanic adults with primary progressive aphasia.
-
Functional reorganization of language and general brain networks in aphasia
This project studies how language areas and general brain networks work together to help people recover language after a stroke, by looking at brain activity and responses to language tasks.
-
eSANA: revealing and improving AAC use after stroke for aphasia
A project to explore how people with aphasia after a stroke can best use augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) during early rehabilitation.
-
Cortical Organization of Syntax in Aphasia
A patient-facing study to understand how brain injury affects sentence structure and help people with aphasia communicate more clearly.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.