Speech Pathology Research

Research themes

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• Communication Disability, Rights, and Participation

  This theme investigates communication as a human right, focusing on access, safety, participation, and dignity for people with communication disability across healthcare, disability, and community contexts.

  Key research topics:

  • Communication access and safety in hospitals and mental health settings
  • Accessible information, health literacy, and digital inclusion
  • Prevention‑oriented practice
  • Communication rights and supported decision‑making
  • Use of AAC, social media, and digital platforms to enable participation

  Key research questions

  • How can communication access be embedded systemically in health and disability services?
  • What communication barriers place people with communication disability at risk, and how can they be reduced?
  • How can communication rights be operationalised in everyday practice and policy?
  • How can implementation frameworks be adapted to ensure meaningful participation of consumers and peer workers in service delivery and evaluation?
  • How can young people, and people with communication disability, be supported to manage their mental health?

  Contributing researchers

  • Professor Emma Power
  • Dr Lucy Bryant
  • Dr Julia Dray
  • Courtney Reddacliff
  • A/Prof Amy Freeman-Sanderson
  • Adjunct Professor Bronwyn Hemsley

• Language, Discourse, and Neurogenic Communication

  This theme focuses on how people process, construct, and use language following acquired brain injury, stroke, and progressive neurological conditions, with emphasis on functional communication and participation.

  Key research topics:

  • Spoken discourse analysis in aphasia
  • Cognitive‑linguistic mechanisms underlying communication impairment
  • Functional outcome measurement beyond impairment‑level tests
  • Communication partner training and everyday interaction

  Key research questions

  • How can discourse and real‑world communication be validly assessed in clinical practice?
  • How do language impairments affect participation, identity, and relationships?
  • How can rehabilitation target everyday communication, not just test performance?

  Contributing researchers

  • Professor Emma Power
  • Dr Lucy Bryant
  • Adjunct Professor Bronwyn Hemsley

• Multilingual, Culturally Responsive, and Inclusive Speech Pathology

  This theme addresses speech pathology practice in linguistically and culturally diverse contexts, ensuring that assessment and intervention are valid, equitable, and evidence‑based for multilingual populations.      

  Key research topics:

  • Multilingual speech and language development
  • Differential diagnosis of pediatric communication disorders in multilingual contexts
  • Effectiveness and efficacy of speech sound interventions for multilingual children
  • Culturally responsive management and clinical decision‑making

  Key research questions

  • How do multilingual children develop speech and language in all their languages and how do their development trajectories differ from monolingual norms across specific domains?
  • How does language dominance vary across and affect performance on speech and linguistic domains?
  • How do core features of Childhood Apraxia of Speech (CAS) manifest across a multilingual child’s languages with differing phonological systems?
  • To what extent, and how, do gains from CAS intervention generalise across a multilingual child’s languages?

  Contributing researchers

  • Dr Denise Ng

• Technology‑Enabled Communication and Digital Health Innovation

  This theme examines how emerging technologies can be ethically and effectively used to support communication, rehabilitation, learning, and participation for people with communication disability.

  Key research topics:

  • Virtual and augmented reality for communication rehabilitation
  • AI‑supported and digital communication tools
  • Co‑design of technology with people with lived experience
  • Technology use in education and workforce capability building
  • Ethical engagement with digital and AI‑mediated systems

  Key research questions

  • How can immersive technologies support language learning and rehabilitation?
  • What are the risks, benefits, and ethical considerations of digital communication tools?
  • How can technology be implemented sustainably in real‑world services?

  Contributing researchers

  • Dr Lucy Bryant
  • Dr Cath Gregory
  • Professor Emma Power
  • Dr Julia Dray
  • Adjunct Professor Bronwyn Hemsley

• Communication, Voice, and Swallowing in Acute and Critical Care

  This theme focuses on speech pathology in acute hospital and intensive care settings, addressing communication, voice, and swallowing in medically complex and high‑risk contexts.

  Key research topics:

  • Communication and swallowing in ICU and acute care
  • Voice restoration following intubation and tracheostomy
  • Patient experience, autonomy, and quality of life
  • Interprofessional models and clinical guideline development

  Key research questions

  • How can communication be supported for critically ill patients who cannot speak?
  • What is the impact of early speech pathology intervention in ICU?
  • How can communication and swallowing be embedded into critical care systems?
  • How can communication and swallowing outcomes be optimised for individuals with critical illness?

  Contributing researchers

  • Associate Professor Amy Freeman-Sanderson

• Voice, Identity, and Functional Communication Disorders

  This theme investigates communication and voice as central to identity, wellbeing, and self‑expression, particularly in emerging and under‑researched clinical populations.

  Key research topics:

  • Functional Neurological Disorders affecting communication and voice
  • Gender‑affirming voice and communication practice
  • Ethical, affirming, and evidence‑based intervention
  • Student and workforce preparedness for complex practice

  Key research questions

  • How can functional communication and voice disorders be accurately diagnosed and managed?
  • What constitutes best practice in gender‑affirming voice work?
  • How can clinicians be prepared for identity‑affirming practice?

  Contributing researchers

  • Dr Cath Gregory
  • Dr Lucy Bryant