Analysis of normal discourse patterns

Twenty-five normal young adult college students provided speaking and writing samples using two elicitation procedures: picture description and personal narrative. Patterns of productivity, efficiency, and coherence were investigated while considering the demands imposed by mode of expression, task elicitation, cognitive distance, and verbal working memory. Samples were divided into top (S1) and bottom (S2) halves. Within group (S1/S2) and between group (pictured activity description/personal narrative) comparisons were made for oral vs. written samples, and performance measures were correlated with verbal working memory scores. Results indicated that the productivity measure was influenced by the type of elicitation task and was not related to verbal working memory scores. Efficiency was influenced by mode of expression and demonstrated a low correlation with verbal working memory scores. Coherence ratings were not influenced by type of elicitation task, mode of expression, or length of sample, and were not related to verbal working memory scores. Results are discussed in terms of the clinical utility of these discourse measures.