Attitudes Toward the Use of Voice-Assisted Technologies Among People With Parkinson Disease: Findings From a Web-Based Survey.
Orla Duffy, Jonathan Synnott, Roisin McNaney and 2 others
PMID 33704072WHAT IT FOUND
Most surveyed people with Parkinson disease owned a voice assistant, and some reported it helped them speak more clearly, louder, or with less repetition.
Others reported it misunderstood their speech or reduced confidence.
Key findings
01205 of 290 respondents owned a voice-assisted technology, and 166 answered questions about using it.
02Among 166 respondents who answered questions about using a voice-assisted technology, 52 reported that voice assistants helped them with aspects of Parkinson disease.
03Among 108 respondents with Parkinson disease who reported speech changes, 27 said the voice assistant asked them to repeat less, 16 said their voice was clearer, and 10 said confidence in their speech had decreased.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
The survey was advertised and distributed electronically, so respondents may have been self-selected people with Parkinson disease who were already engaging with technology. People familiar with voice-assisted technology may have been more likely to respond than people with no experience with it. The study reports self-reported attitudes and experiences, not a controlled trial of a voice assistant, so it cannot show that the technology caused speech improvement. The authors note that being asked to repeat less could reflect increased familiarity with the technology, increased awareness of reliable commands, or improved voice recognition rather than improved speech. Some respondents reported decreased confidence in their speech, and the authors state it is not certain whether this was caused by the voice assistant or by progression of Parkinson disease. Free-text explanations about how well the voice assistant worked were provided by 144 of 166 users, so the reported problems may not represent all users. The Voice Handicap Index was completed by the 229 respondents who said they or others had noticed speech or voice changes, not by all 290 respondents.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that voice assistants improve speech in Parkinson disease. This was a self-selected survey of reported experiences, and the authors say that being asked to repeat less could reflect familiarity with the device or improved recognition rather than improved speech.