engleski

Challenges in the adaptation of CAT Test: Croatian experience

It is well-known that aphasia is an impairment of language caused by stroke, affecting the production or comprehension of speech and the ability to read or write. It is characterised by extensive variation in degree and type of language impairment that has a various impact on quality of life. In order to define the scope of language impairment, speech and language pathologists (SLP) need standardised language tests. Croatian SLPs, as in many other small languages, are faced with a lack of standardised assessment tools. This was one of the main motivators to join the COST Action IS 1208: "Collaboration of Aphasia Trialists" and, within the working group Language Assessment and in synergy with other European researchers and clinicians, to start with adaptation of The Comprehensive Aphasia Test (CAT) (Swinburn, Porter and Howard, 2005). The CAT is currently being adapted into 15 European languages and, following the adaptation, each language version of the CAT will be standardised and normed based on a common set of instructions. The unique adaptation methodology will enable cross-linguistic studies in order to define and distinguish language-universals and language- specificities in the area of aphasiology. The CAT consists of three parts: a cognitive part, a language battery and a disability questionnaire. This paper will be focused on some of the challenges in the adaptation of the language battery only. First challenge was gathering data on variables such as frequency and imageability due to a lack of linguistic database. This kind of linguistic database would enable fast and easy access to the variables relevant for language processing and acquisition. Second challenge was mostly related to the tasks including words that had to be presented by the use of pictures. The target words in one language, namely Croatian, were not always simple to match in the other language, in particular, with the words in the original version of the test. For example, spoon and pineapple are marked as having low frequency and low imageability in English, which is not the case in Croatian. Those words needed to be replaced in the target language. Moreover, most of the low imageable words are not that simple to draw. Third challenge was combining of different variables such as number of syllables or number of distinctive features in the word structure. Considering all the above, significant differences among languages in their structure, meaning and usage, it is reasonable to conclude that adaptation of language test is a complex and demanding task. Its quality will impact seriously further clinic work as well as the adapted test use in research. According to our experience it is important to emphasise that it is possible to meet all the criteria and to produce a test that will enable further data comparisons.

Aphasia ; CAT Test ; Adaptation ; Language battery

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