Boston Diagnostic Aphasia Examination (BDAE)
(Goodglass & Kaplan, 2001)
What does it assess?
- Designed to evaluate a broad range of language impairments that often arise as a consequence of organic brain dysfunction.
- Evaluates various perceptual modalities (e.g., auditory, visual, and gestural), processing functions (e.g., comprehension, analysis, problem-solving), and response modalities (e.g., writing, articulation, and manipulation).
- diagnosis of presence and type of aphasic syndrome that leads to inferences concerning cerebral localization and underlying linguistic processes that may have been damaged and the strategies used to compensate for them.
- measurement of performance over a wide range, for both initial determination and detection of change over time;
- comprehensive assessment of the patient’s assets and liabilities in all language areas as a guide to therapy.
Who is it suitable for?
- Designed for the assessment of aphasia for inpatient or outpatient populations.
- Can be used with adults with other forms of acquired disabilities.
Who is it not suitable for?
- Adults with developmental disabilities.
How is it administered?
- Speech pathologist, neuropsychologist or neurologist administers the test according to instructions.
How is it scored/ interpreted?
- Speech pathologist records response.
- Scores are converted to percentile scores for all subtests, including severity rating, fluency, auditory comprehension, naming, oral reading, repetition, paraphasia, automatic speech, reading comprehension, writing, music, and spatial and computational.
What is its availability?
How does it contribute to a communication assessment for someone with behaviours of concern?
- Contributes to development of a comprehensive communication profile.
- Indication of the level of comprehension and reading ability will inform the type of behaviour supports that can be used.
References:
Goodglass, H. & Kaplan, E. (2001). Boston Diagnostic Aphasia Examination. Austin Texas: Pro-Ed.
