Diversity

In the field of Speech–Language pathology, diversity is often narrowly construed to mean racial and/or ethnic differences. Sometimes, it might be broadened to include linguistic differences as well. There is no doubt that diversity should include those areas, although the term should be broad enough to cover other areas such as culture, dialect, and acquisition of more than one language. In other words, clients/patients are diverse along a number of dimensions. This entry explores these dimensions, which include culture, dialect, multilingualism, and then closes with an overview of assessment and treatment of diverse populations.

It is important to address issues of diversity in Speech–Language pathology because it is not uncommon for those from diverse populations to be misdiagnosed. That misdiagnosis can lead to either underdiagnosis (i.e., ...