ABSTRACT
Primary prevention of communication disorders can be related to measures of genetic and other types of counseling in parents and situations that pose a heightened risk. The contextual factors relate to the essence of communication: the transmission of information from one person to another. This is essentially a social event: it is by definition highly influenced by the individual characteristics of the communication partners as well as by cultural and social patterns. Secondary prevention consists of early identification of factors that can lead to communication disorders. Intervention can only be effective if one has a good understanding of the nature of the disorder and its implications and threats. Primary characteristics are the communicative behaviors that are atypical, and may include absence of functional speech, articulatory distortions, stuttering, a-grammatical utterances, and ineffective and unusual non-verbal communicative behavior. Developmental secondary characteristics are reflected in how the communicative limitations have an effect on other developmental domains such as social, cognitive, and academic development.
