A distinctive feature approach to intervention is a treatment technique that targets phonemes absent in a child’s sound inventory, generally focusing on sound substitutions. Comprehension of phonemic contrasts are indicative of phonological complexity; therefore, children that present with phonological disorders are less aware of these contrasts, hindering speech sound development. A preschool-aged child was provided with instruction using a holistic distinctive features program that targeted final consonants. An AB, single subject design was used across eight sessions and measured improvement on presence of final consonants throughout various word lists. The participant engaged in a multi-step process including: auditory discrimination, practice, participant teaching, and elicitation. Results indicated that this contrastive intervention approach aided in increased inclusion of final consonants and suppressing the phonological process of final consonant deletion.
Keywords: Final consonant deletion, phonological process, distinctive features
