Cueing Hierarchies and Word Retrieval: A Therapy Program

Background: Lexical retrieval impairments are pervasive among persons with aphasia, and a great deal of effort has been expended to develop effective treatments for these impairments. This study introduced the cueing hierarchy approach to treating impaired lexical retrieval. Aims: The purpose of this study was to develop a new treatment approach in which cues of increasing stimulus power were presented sequentially, contingent upon participant responses and to provide preliminary evidence regarding the effectiveness of the cueing hierarchy approach. Methods & Procedures: Five single‐subject experiments were conducted in which persons with a significant lexical retrieval impairment participated in a treatment regimen involving the systematic use of a cueing hierarchy comprised of both semantic and phonological cues. Participants' performances were measured on both trained and untrained stimuli. Outcomes & Results: Four of the five participants achieved improved naming performance on trained stimuli and thr...