- Post-doctoral training, Training Program in Integrative Developmental Process (Cognitive Development Lab - PI Linda Smith), Indiana University
- Ph.D., Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences, The University of Texas at Dallas
- M.S., Speech-Language Pathology, Purdue University
- B.A., Spanish, Southwestern University
BIO
Dr. Benham鈥檚 research focuses on phonological and lexical development in children with and without speech and language disorders. In her lab, she uses an array of methods to analyze speech sound production such as phonetic transcription, acoustic analyses, and motion tracking, as well as methods from network science to detect principles of word and sound organization in the developing child.
The long-term objective of Dr. Benham鈥檚 research program is to understand the contributions of speech, language, and motor skills that support children鈥檚 individual pathways when learning to produce new sounds and words. This information is vital for the discovery of markers of atypical sound and word learning skills. Ultimately, Dr. Benham seeks to contribute to the early identification and treatment of children who struggle with word and sound learning, such as children with developmental language disorder (DLD) and children with speech sound disorders (SSD).
Courses
- Clinical Phonetics
- Speech Sound Disorders in Children
- Development of Spoken Language
- Fundamentals of Critical Inquiry: Evidence-Based Practice
Area(s) of expertise
Word and sound learning in early development, developmental language disorder, speech sound disorders, acoustic analysis, phonetic transcription, network science
Bio
Dr. Benham鈥檚 research focuses on phonological and lexical development in children with and without speech and language disorders. In her lab, she uses an array of methods to analyze speech sound production such as phonetic transcription, acoustic analyses, and motion tracking, as well as methods from network science to detect principles of word and sound organization in the developing child.
The long-term objective of Dr. Benham鈥檚 research program is to understand the contributions of speech, language, and motor skills that support children鈥檚 individual pathways when learning to produce new sounds and words. This information is vital for the discovery of markers of atypical sound and word learning skills. Ultimately, Dr. Benham seeks to contribute to the early identification and treatment of children who struggle with word and sound learning, such as children with developmental language disorder (DLD) and children with speech sound disorders (SSD).
Courses
- Clinical Phonetics
- Speech Sound Disorders in Children
- Development of Spoken Language
- Fundamentals of Critical Inquiry: Evidence-Based Practice
Areas of Expertise
Word and sound learning in early development, developmental language disorder, speech sound disorders, acoustic analysis, phonetic transcription, network science
Research and/or Creative Works
- Interactivity between speech, language, and motor processes
- Speech sound production in developmental language disorder (DLD)
- Network science applications to speech production
- Multiple pathways in word learning/precision science approaches to understanding individual differences
Publications
- Benham, S.*, Wisler, A.*, Berlin, J., Wang, J., & Goffman, L. (2023). Acoustic and kinematic methods of indexing spatiotemporal stability in children with developmental language disorder. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences, 66, 3026-3037.
*Equal contribution - Benham, S. & Goffman, L. (2021). A longitudinal study of the phonological organisation of novel word forms in children with developmental language disorder. International Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 24, 212-223.
- Benham, S. & Goffman, L. (2020). Lexical-semantic cues induce sound pattern stability in children with developmental language disorder. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences, 63(12), 4109-4126.
- Benham, S., Goffman, L., & Schweickert, R. (2018). An application of network science to phonological sequence learning in children with developmental language disorder. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences, 61(9), 2275-2291.