4 Communication Disorders Speech-Language Pathologists Evaluate and Treat

Perhaps you’ve watched a young child or older adult with a communication disorder struggling to understand you or to express their needs, thoughts, or feelings. If so, you’ve glimpsed how frustrating communication challenges can be. Communication disorders come in many different forms and can affect people of all ages. Thankfully, speech-language pathologists provide evidence-based assessment and treatment to help individuals improve communication and swallowing skills.

What Is a Speech-Language Pathologist?

Speech-language pathologists are licensed healthcare professionals who assess, diagnose, and treat disorders of speech, language, cognition, voice, fluency, and swallowing across the lifespan.

A speech-language pathologist, referred to as an SLP, typically works in educational, healthcare, and community-based settings. SLPs provide individualized, family-centered, and group-based services, often as part of interprofessional teams.

SLPs evaluate individuals with speech, language, voice, fluency, cognitive-communication, or swallowing differences and develop evidence-based intervention plans to support functional communication outcomes, not simply isolated skill improvement.

Conditions SLPs Evaluate and Treat

The broad term “communication disorders” encompasses numerous conditions that affect communication and swallowing across the lifespan. These disorders may be developmental, associated with another condition, or acquired due to illness or injury.

Below are four major categories of communication disorders commonly addressed by speech-language pathologists.

1. Developmental Language Disorder (DLD)

A language disorder is a condition that interferes with a person’s ability to understand and/or use spoken or written language.

While both children and adults can experience language disorders, developmental language disorder (DLD) is a neurodevelopmental condition that emerges in early childhood and is not explained by another biomedical condition.

DLD affects approximately 1 in 14 children, making it one of the most common developmental disorders. It often has a genetic basis and can persist into adolescence and adulthood.

Early signs may include:

• Delayed vocabulary development
• Difficulty understanding spoken language
• Challenges with grammar and sentence structure

Over time, individuals may also experience:

• Difficulties with reading, writing, and spelling
• Challenges organizing complex language
• Difficulty understanding nonliteral or abstract language

When concerns arise, an SLP conducts a comprehensive language assessment, which may include:

• Case history
• Standardized and dynamic language measures
• Discourse and narrative analysis
• Consideration of literacy and academic demands

Intervention focuses on functional language use, academic participation, and social communication rather than “fixing” language differences.

2. Speech Sound Disorders

Speech sound disorders involve difficulties producing speech sounds that affect speech intelligibility.

Types of speech sound disorders include:

• Articulation disorders: difficulty producing specific speech sounds
• Phonological disorders: difficulty using age-appropriate sound patterns
• Childhood apraxia of speech: a motor speech disorder affecting speech planning and coordination
• Dysarthria: a motor speech disorder in which the muscles that control speech production are impaired.

Speech sound disorders are among the most treated pediatric communication disorders.

SLPs conduct perceptual, linguistic, and motor-based assessments and often evaluate language skills concurrently due to high rates of co-occurrence.

Intervention emphasizes evidence-based approaches that support intelligibility, efficiency, and functional communication—not rote sound practice alone.

3. Pragmatic Language Disorders

Pragmatic language disorders may occur as primary conditions or as components of other diagnoses, including autism spectrum disorder (ASD), genetic syndromes, hearing loss, and neurological conditions.

Children with pragmatic language disorders may experience challenges with:

• Using language for a variety of purposes
• Understanding the social use of language in context
• Narrative and discourse skills

Autism spectrum disorder is one population frequently served by speech-language pathologists, but communication differences related to ASD are understood within a broader framework of language development and functional communication.

Speech-language pathologists:

• Assess communication strengths and needs across modalities
• Support spoken language, augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), and visual supports
• Address social communication and pragmatic language
• Collaborate with families and interprofessional teams

Intervention is individualized, strengths-based, and participation-focused, emphasizing communication access rather than normalization of behavior.

4. Aphasia

Aphasia is an acquired language disorder resulting from damage to language-dominant areas of the brain, most commonly due to stroke, but also traumatic brain injury, tumors, or neurodegenerative disease.

Aphasia may affect:

• Speaking
• Listening/Understanding
• Reading
• Writing

While aphasia is sometimes classified using descriptive subtypes, contemporary practice emphasizes functional communication and participation-based outcomes.

Speech-language pathologists provide intervention that may include:

• Restorative language therapy
• Compensatory strategies
• AAC supports
• Communication partner training
• Family education and counseling

Recovery is variable, and access to skilled speech-language therapy is a key factor in long-term outcomes.

It’s a Strong Time to Enter the Speech-Language Pathology Profession

Speech-language pathologists play a critical role in education, healthcare, and community-based services.

There is a growing national need for SLPs, particularly in:

• Schools
• Early intervention
• Medical and rehabilitation settings
• Rural and underserved communities

Labor projections indicate employment growth well above the national average, reflecting increased recognition of communication and swallowing disorders and expanded service needs.

Earn Your Online MSSLP at St. Bonaventure and Set Yourself Up for Success

The pathway to becoming an SLP begins with a master’s degree in speech-language pathology.

The Online M.S. in Speech-Language Pathology (MSSLP) from St. Bonaventure University offers flexibility for your schedule, with 100% online coursework including a mix of live and asynchronous classes. In this program, you’ll find:

• Academic and clinical training aligned with licensure requirements to prepare you for SLP certification.
• Integrated clinical placement support for your local area.
• Training that prepares you to provide culturally responsive care for pediatric and adult clients.

Find out more about how earning your Online M.S. in Speech-Language Pathology from St. Bonaventure University can set you up for career success