| The basis for this investigation was the lack of generalization of gestures, and other treatment approaches, in aphasia. Given the high rate of other apraxias in aphasia, a potential factor for their poor rate of carry over may be the presence of Ideational Apraxia (IA). As there is a lack of specific information regarding IA and disagreement as to its existence, it was the intention of this investigation to more completely describe the nature of IA and to attempt to form a set of assessment tasks for testing for the presence of IA in patients with aphasia and other neurological deficits. Information gained from the literature was compiled to create a questionnaire of IA that was sent, via mail and email, to eight hundred potential participants randomly selected from the fields of speech-language pathology, neuropsychology, behavioral neurology, and occupational therapy. According to the 43 participants who responded, IA was defined as the inability to initiate the idea behind a complex task automatically or on command. In distinguishing IA from other forms of apraxia, conceptualization of a task seemed to be a key. Further, tasks used in the assessment of the disorder should be familiar to the patient and consist of complex movement. |
