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Dr Abi Roper

Speech and Language Technologist

School of Health & Medical Sciences Department of Allied Health

Contact details

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About

Overview

Abi is a Research Fellow at City St George's, University of London.

She is a speech and language therapist and researcher passionate about technology use within atypical speech & language populations.

She is a researcher co-investigator on the Dara project investigating and creating inclusive data visualisations to enable decision-making for people with the language disabilities aphasia or developmental language disorder (DLD).

Previous work includes collaborating on the INCA project, which investigated how to empower people with aphasia to create, curate and access digital content through innovative technologies.

Abi's PhD examined a novel computer gesture therapy (GeST+) for adults with severe expressive aphasia - exploring its effectiveness, accessibility and usability and looking at the effects of aphasia on technology use in general.

She has worked on a number of key web resources to benefit professionals working in the field of speech, language and communication:

1. https://cityaccess.org/home - An online, easy to use platform offering training, therapy packages and assessment resources for clinicians and researchers working with people with aphasia.

2. http://dcalportal.org - a communication assessment site for teachers & clinicians working with Deaf children & adults.

Qualifications

  • Introductory Certificate in Academic Practice, Higher Education Academy, United Kingdom, October 2020
  • PhD Language and Communication Science, City, University of London, United Kingdom, April 2012 - December 2016
  • MMedSci Clinical Communication Studies (Speech and Language Therapist Qualification), University of Sheffield, United Kingdom, September 2006 - December 2008
  • BSc (hons) Cognitive Science, University of Exeter, United Kingdom, September 2000 - July 2003

Employment

  • Research Fellow, City, University of London, United Kingdom, September 2022 - present
  • Speech and Language Technologist, City, University of London, United Kingdom, July 2017 - September 2022
  • Research Fellow, City, University of London, UK, January - June 2017

Memberships of professional organisations

  • Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists, January 2009 - present
  • Health Care Professionals Council, January 2009 - present

Languages

Sign Languages (can speak, understand spoken)

Teaching

MSc Inclusive Design Guest Lecturer

Developed and delivered teaching to introduce postgraduate students on the Human Computer Interaction Design degree course to the principles of design for adults with language needs.

BSc Nursery Placement Clinical Tutorials

Facilitated clinical tutorials with a group of 20 trainee speech and language therapists.

Undergraduate Optometry Communication Skills -

Developed and delivered an interactive 2-hour session introducing trainee optometrists to methods for adapting their communication within practice.

SLT Tasters - Widening Participation Activities

Speech and Language Taster Sessions as a part of the City University London Widening Participation Ambassadors (WPA) Scheme.
Alongside a fellow PhD colleague, I developed an interactive half-day session of activities introducing school-aged children to the study of Speech and Language Therapy. We delivered this session, on request, to a number of different student groups, ranging in age from 11 to 17 years old and ranging in number from 20 – 40 students.

Maths Tutoring as a part of the WPA Scheme

Supported a group of eight year six students to prepare for SATs exams. I developed a set of targeted differentiated materials to support the students in practising their maths skills which have subsequently been adopted by the WPA scheme for use by other City University London students working as Maths Tutors across London.

Research

PhD - Computer Delivery of Gesture Therapy

My PhD is entitled Computer Delivery of Gesture Therapy for People with Severe Aphasia. The project has involved designing, administering, analysing and reporting a randomised control group study of a language intervention for adults with severe communication difficulties (aphasia) following stroke.

Deafness, Cognition and Language

I'm presently working with researchers and technology developers to create http://DCALPortal.org - an on-line web portal for clinical and research assessments of deafness, cognition and language.

Computer Therapy for Aphasia and Apraxia of Speech

I've worked as a researcher and clinician on two major trials of computer-based therapy for aphasia and apraxia of speech. These are:

The GReAT Project (https://youtu.be/tnvYpaNuBNQ)
Here, I worked with Professor Jane Marshall, Stephanie Wilson and others at City to develop and trial a novel computerised gesture therapy intervention for adults with aphasia.

Computer Therapy for AoS (http://goo.gl/7fiirG)
I Worked on the SWORD project under Professor Rosemary Varley. This was a large trial of a computer-based speech and language therapy intervention aimed at remediating acquired word production impairments in apraxia of speech (AoS) and aphasia.

Virtual World Communication Rehabilitation

I've also been involved with the EVA Project (http://smcse.city.ac.uk/eva).
Here I acted as a Communication Support Worker to two people with aphasia in EVA Park - an on-line virtual communication environment similar to the on-line virtual community Second Life.

Publications

Featured publications

  1. Roper, A., Davey, I., Wilson, S., Neate, T., Marshall, J. and Grellmann, B. Usability Testing - An Aphasia Perspective. ASSETS '18: The 20th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility.doi:10.1145/3234695.3241481

Publications by category

Chapters (4)

  • Clark, L., Cowan, B.R., Roper, A., Lindsay, S. and Sheers, O. (2020). Speech diversity and speech interfaces - considering an inclusive future through stammering. In Torres, M. and Schlögl, S. (Eds.), CUI '20: Proceedings of the 2nd Conference on Conversational User Interfaces New York, USA: ACM. ISBN 9781450375443.
  • Roper, A. (2019). Computer-aided rehabilitation. In Damico, J.S. and Ball, M.J. (Eds.), The SAGE Encyclopedia of Human Communication Sciences and Disorders (pp. 456-460). Thousand Oaks, California: SAGE. ISBN 9781483380834.
  • Roper, A. (2019). Computer-Aided Rehabilitation. The SAGE Encyclopedia of Human Communication Sciences and Disorders (pp. 455-459). SAGE Publications, Incorporated. ISBN 9781483380834.
  • Roper, A., Wilson, S., Neate, T. and Marshall, J. (2019). Speech and Language. Human–Computer Interaction Series (pp. 121-131). Springer London. ISBN 9781447174394.

Conference papers and proceedings (27)

  • Devane, N., Meckled-Szembek, C., Behn, N., Bohan, J., Comer, A., Roper, A.... Hilari, K. Face to Face and Telehealth Equivalence of Assessments in Aphasia (FATE-A study): Fidelity of Online Assessments. .
  • Devane, N., Bohan, J., Comer, A., Beh, N., Exposito-Ramos, A., Gimeno, H.... Hilari, K. Clinical-Research Collaborations: Reflections on Recruiting to a Large-Scale Study. .
  • Kladouchou, V., Makri, S., Frankowska-Takhari, S., Neate, T., MacFarlane, A., Wilson, S.... Roper, A. "The Internet is Hard. Is Words": Investigating Information Search Difficulties Experienced by People with Aphasia and Strategies for Combatting Them. CHI 2025: CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems.doi:10.1145/3706598.3713808
  • Roper, A., Wilson, S., Devane, N., Talbot, R., Caute, A., Cruice, M.... Marshall, J. Connection and Cohesion in a Co-Designed Virtual World: Experience of Online Aphasia Groups. .doi:10.1007/978-3-031-84681-6_14
  • Northcott, S., Comer, A., Davis, L., Roper, A. and Hilari, K. (2024). What Do People Living With Aphasia Want Healthcare Professionals To Know When Supporting Emotional Recovery? Co-Designing A Series Of Short Films. 19th UK Stroke Forum Conference 3-5 December, Liverpool, UK.
  • Comer, A., Behn, N., Northcott, S., Roper, A., Devane, N., Bohan, J.... Hilari, K. Developing A Telehealth Assessment Toolkit For Speech And Language Therapists Using The Com-B And Tdf Models For Behaviour Change. .
  • Knoche, H., Abdul-Rahman, A., Clark, L., Curcin, V., Huo, Z., Iwaya, L.H.... Ziadeh, H. Identifying Challenges and Opportunities for Intelligent Data-Driven Health Interfaces to Support Ongoing Care. CHI '23: CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems.doi:10.1145/3544549.3573798
  • Bleakley, A., Rough, D., Roper, A., Lindsay, S., Porcheron, M., Lee, M.... Clark, L. Exploring Smart Speaker User Experience for People Who Stammer. ASSETS '22: The 24th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility.doi:10.1145/3517428.3544823
  • Neate, T., Roper, A. and Wilson, S. Painting a Picture of Accessible Digital Art. ASSETS '20: The 22nd International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility.doi:10.1145/3373625.3418019
  • Tamburro, C., Neate, T., Roper, A. and Wilson, S. Accessible Creativity with a Comic Spin. ASSETS '20: The 22nd International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility.doi:10.1145/3373625.3417012
  • Wilson, C., McNaney, R., Roper, A., Capel, T., Scheepmaker, L., Brereton, M.... Wallace, J. Rethinking Notions of 'Giving Voice' in Design. CHI '20: CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems.doi:10.1145/3334480.3375171
  • Neate, T., Roper, A., Wilson, S., Marshall, J. and Cruice, M. CreaTable Content and Tangible Interaction in Aphasia. CHI '20: CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems.doi:10.1145/3313831.3376490
  • Neate, T., Bourazeri, A., Roper, A., Stumpf, S. and Wilson, S. Co-Created Personas. CHI '19: CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems.doi:10.1145/3290605.3300880
  • Neate, T., Roper, A., Wilson, S. and Marshall, J. Empowering Expression for Users with Aphasia through Constrained Creativity. CHI '19: CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems.doi:10.1145/3290605.3300615
  • Grellmann, B., Neate, T., Roper, A., Wilson, S. and Marshall, J. Investigating Mobile Accessibility Guidance for People with Aphasia. ASSETS '18: The 20th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility.doi:10.1145/3234695.3241011
  • McNaney, R., Wilson, C., Wallace, J., Brereton, M., Roper, A., Wilson, S.... Sturdee, M. Giving a voice through design. PDC '18: Participatory Design Conference 2018.doi:10.1145/3210604.3210648
  • Roper, A., Marshall, J. and Wilson, S. (2015). Computer Gesture Therapy for People with Severe Aphasia: Effects on tests of spoken naming. British Aphasiology Society 9-11 September, London, UK.
  • Roper, A.H., Marshall, J. and Wilson, S. (2015). Computer Gesture Therapy for People with Severe Aphasia: Effects on tests of spoken naming. British Aphasiology Society Conference September-, London, UK.
  • Roper, A., Marshall, J. and Wilson, S.M. (2014). Assessing technology use in aphasia. the 16th international ACM SIGACCESS conference 20-22 October.doi:10.1145/2661334.2661397
  • Roper, A.H., marshall, J. and wilson, S. (2014). Revealing the Effects of Computer Gesture Therapy for Users with Severe Aphasia. British Aphasiology Society Research Update Meeting April-, Exeter, UK.
  • Roper, A.H., Marshall, J., Cocks, N., Galliers, J. and Wilson, S. (2012). Aphasia therapy and computer interaction design shake hands: testing a novel computer tool for gesture therapy in aphasia. 15th International Aphasia Rehabilitation Conference 7-10 October, Melbourne, Australia.
  • Roper, A.H. (2012). Designing a language free technology – lessons from the GReAT projec. Web Accessibility London 19 September, City University London.
  • Roper, A.H., Galliers, J., Muscroft, S., Cocks, N., Wilson, S., Pring, T.... Hilari, K. (2012). Developing and Evaluating a Computer Therapy Tool for People with Aphasia. British Aphasiology Symposium 2012 6-7 September, Cty University London.
  • Galliers, J., Wilson, S., Roper, A.H., Cocks, N., Marshall, J., Muscroft, S.... Bødker, K. (2012). Words are not enough: empowering people with aphasia in the design process. Participatory Design Conference 12-16 August, Roskilde, Denmark.
  • Galliers, J., Wilson, S., Roper, A., Cocks, N., Marshall, J. and Pring, T. Words are not enough: Empowering people with aphasia in the design process. Participatory Design Conference 2012.doi:10.1145/2347635.2347643
  • Galliers, J., Wilson, S., Muscroft, S., Marshall, J., Roper, A., Cocks, N.... Pring, T. (2011). Accessibility of 3D Game Environments for People with Aphasia: An Exploratory Study. 13th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility 24-26 October, Dundee, Scotland.
  • Varley, R.A., Cowell, P.E., Dyson, L., Roper, A.H., Inglis, A.L. and Whiteside, S.P. (2009). Lexical therapy for apraxia of speech. Paper Presented at the Science of Aphasia, 2009. Science of Aphasia 28 September-3 October, Antalya, Turkey.

Journal articles (25)

Report

Other

Professional activities

Events/conferences (15)

  • Language as a Form of Action. (Conference) Rome, Italy (2017).
    Paper: The Clinical Utility of Gesture Coding Frameworks
    Author: Roper, A
    Co-authors: Caute, A.; Dipper, L.; Pritchard, M.
  • Nordic Aphasia Conference 2017: Meaningful Outcomes. (Conference) Copenhagen, Denmark (2017).
    Paper: Meaningful Individualised Goal-setting within a Computer Training Course for Adults with Chronic Aphasia
    Author: Roper, A
    Co-authors: Lancashire, T.; Byrne, R.; Cruice, M.;
  • Internal Home Office Research and Design Meetup. (Seminar) London, UK (2016). Invited speaker.
    Paper: Language Light UX
    Author: Wilson, S.
    Co-authors: Roper, A.
  • 7th Conference of the International Society for Gesture Studies. (Conference) Paris, France (2016).
    Paper: Can People with Severe Aphasia Benefit from Computer-delivered Gesture Therapy?
    Author: Roper, A.
    Co-authors: Marshall, J; Wilson, S.
  • Therapy Ideas Live Conference. (Conference) London, UK (2015). Invited speaker.
    Paper: Work with Clients to Set Ambitious Goals
    Author: Roper, A
  • British Aphasiology Society Conference. (Conference) London, UK (2015).
    Paper: Computer Gesture Therapy for People with Severe Aphasia: Effects on tests of spoken naming
    Author: Roper, A.
    Co-authors: Marshall, J.; Wilson, S
  • Conference of Culture and Neuroscience. (Public lecture) Warsaw, Poland (2014). Invited speaker.
    Paper: Computer Rehabilitation – Aphasia joins the conversation
    Author: Abi Roper
  • ASSETS Accessible Computing Conference. (Conference) Rochester, New York, USA (2014).
    Paper: Assessing Technology Use in Aphasia
    Author: Roper, A
    Co-authors: Marshall, J.; Wilson, S.
  • ASSETS Accessible Computing Conference. (Conference) Bellevue, Washigton, USA (2013).
    Paper: Accessibility of Computer Therapy and Technology for People with Aphasia
    Author: Roper, A
    Co-authors: Marshall, J.; Wilson, S.
  • Service User Involvement - from Participation to Collaboration. London, UK (2013).
    Description: Therapy Ideas Live event - lightning talk. Available to watch at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XS8t1BMintM
  • Gesture Recognition in Aphasia Therapy: The GReAT project. Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists Registered Office, London (2012).
    Description: Presentation of project methods and research findings at biannual Aphasia Therapy Special Interest Group. Part of whole day event entitled: "Gesture in aphasia: Assessment, therapy and new technological applications"
  • Project Information Session - The GReAT project. Watford Stroke Association Communication Support Group (2012).
    Description: Talk and software demonstration given to community support group for people with aphasia following a stroke.
  • Project Information Session - The GReAT project. Woolwich Stroke Association Communication Support Group (2012).
    Description: Talk and software demonstration given to community support group for people with aphasia following a stroke.
  • Project Information Session - The GReAT project. Wandsworth Stroke Association Communication Support Group (2012).
    Description: Talk and software demonstration given to community support group for people with aphasia following a stroke.
  • Project Information Session - The GReAT project. North Kensington Stroke Association Communication Support Group (2012).
    Description: Talk and software demonstration given to community support group for people with aphasia following a stroke.

Keynote lectures/speeches (7)

  • Can People with Severe Aphasia Benefit from Computer-delivered Gesture Therapy? Sorbonne Nouvelle University, Paris, France (2016). International Society of Gesture Studies Conference in Paris ISGS 2016, July 18th-22nd 2016 https://isgs7.sciencesconf.org/?lang=en
  • Work with Clients to Set Ambitious Goals. London, UK (2015). Therapy Ideas Live Conference. Invited talk.
  • Computer Rehabilitation: Aphasia joins the conversation. Warsaw, Poland (2014). Conference of Culture and Neuroscience - Invited talk
  • North West Adult Acquired Neurology SIG: "Computer Gesture Recognition in Aphasia Therapy: Findings from the GReAT project." Abi Roper and Naomi Cocks. Astley Hall, Chorley, UK (2012). Presentation of Project findings at NW Aquired Neurology Special Interest Group
  • GeST – Computer Delivered Gesture Therapy for People with Aphasia. Frenchay Computers in Therapy Special Interest Group, Bristol (2012). Invited speaker at bi-annual Speech and Language Therapy Special Interest Group: Computers in Therapy. Presentation of Methods and findings from the GReAT project (www.soi.city.ac.uk/great)
  • Aphasia SIG "Gesture in aphasia: Assessment, therapy and new technological applications" A study day presented by Professor Jane Marshall, Dr Naomi Cocks, Dr Lucy Dipper, Anna Caute and Abi Roper. Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists, 2 White Hart Yard, London SE1 1NX (2012). Presentation of Research Data at Aphasia Special Interest Group
  • The use of technology in aphasia therapy: The GReAT Project and other applications. City University London, UK (2012). Event for clinicians and those working in the field of human computer interaction to find out about the GReAT (Gesture Recognition in Aphasia Therapy) Project and other technology that used in aphasia therapy.

Online article

  • Virtual world helping with speech recovery presented at Woburn Safari Park. (2016). City University of London Website - News from the University http://www.city.ac.uk/news/2016/march/virtual-world-helping-with-speech-recovery-presented-at-woburn-safari-park