Researching communication disorders involves a range of disciplines including speech-language pathology, linguistics and psychology. This book provides an interdisciplinary description of the theoretical frameworks in the field of communication disorders and an overview of the main current methodological approaches.

ALISON FERGUSON is Associate Professor in Speech Pathology at the University of Newcastle, Australia. Her internationally-recognized research explores the application of sociolinguistic theory to the analysis of interactions involving people with aphasia, students and speech-language pathologists. Alison received the University of Newcastle's 'Supervisor of the Year' Award in 2007, and in 2008 her book Expert Practice: A Critical Discourse was published (Plural Publishing).

ELIZABETH ARMSTRONG is Foundation Chair in Speech Pathology at Edith Cowan University in Perth, with over 20 years experience in the field of speech-language pathology. She has pioneered the application of Systemic Functional Linguistics to the field of speech-language pathology, with her published work appearing in both book chapters and international peer-reviewed publications. Professor Armstrong was the Founding Editor of the International Journal of Speech Language Pathology (formerly Advances in Speech Language Pathology), first published in 1999.