Differential verbal working memory effects on linguistic production in children with Specific Language Impairment

2014 ◽  
Vol 35 (12) ◽  
pp. 3534-3542 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrea Marini ◽  
Cinzia Gentili ◽  
Massimo Molteni ◽  
Franco Fabbro
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Language Impairment ◽  
Specific Language Impairment ◽  
Verbal Working Memory ◽  
Memory Effects ◽  
Specific Language

An Examination of Verbal Working Memory Capacity in Children With Specific Language Impairment

1999 ◽  
Vol 42 (5) ◽  
pp. 1249-1260 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan Ellis Weismer ◽  
Julia Evans ◽  
Linda J. Hesketh
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Language Processing ◽  
Language Impairment ◽  
Specific Language Impairment ◽  
Working Memory Capacity ◽  
Verbal Working Memory ◽  
Memory Capacity ◽  
Word Recall ◽  
School Age Children ◽  
Specific Language

This study investigated verbal working memory capacity in children with specific language impairment (SLI). The task employed in this study was the Competing Language Processing Task (CLPT) developed by Gaulin and Campbell (1994). A total of 40 school-age children participated in this investigation, including 20 with SLI and 20 normal language (NL) age-matched controls. Results indicated that the SLI and NL groups performed similarly in terms of true/false comprehension items, but that the children with SLI evidenced significantly poorer word recall than the NL controls, even when differences in nonverbal cognitive scores were statistically controlled. Distinct patterns of word-recall errors were observed for the SLI and NL groups, as well as different patterns of associations between CLPT word recall and performance on nonverbal cognitive and language measures. The findings are interpreted within the framework of a limited-capacity model of language processing.

A Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging Investigation of Verbal Working Memory in Adolescents With Specific Language Impairment

2005 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 405-425 ◽  
Author(s):  
Susan Ellis Weismer ◽  
Elena Plante ◽  
Maura Jones ◽  
J. Bruce Tomblin
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Resonance Imaging ◽  
Working Memory ◽  
Magnetic Resonance ◽  
Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging ◽  
Language Impairment ◽  
Specific Language Impairment ◽  
Verbal Working Memory ◽  
Functional Magnetic Resonance ◽  
Resonance Imaging ◽  
Specific Language

This study used neuroimaging and behavioral techniques to examine the claim that processing capacity limitations underlie specific language impairment (SLI). Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) was used to investigate verbal working memory in adolescents with SLI and normal language (NL) controls. The experimental task involved a modified listening span measure that included sentence encoding and recognition of final words in prior sets of sentences. The SLI group performed significantly poorer than the NL group for both encoding and recognition and displayed slower reaction times for correct responses on high complexity encoding items. fMRI results revealed that the SLI group exhibited significant hypoactivation during encoding in regions that have been implicated in attentional and memory processes, as well as hypoactivation during recognition in regions associated with language processing. Correlational analyses indicated that adolescents with SLI exhibited different patterns of coordinating activation among brain regions relative to controls for both encoding and recognition, suggesting reliance on a less functional network. These findings are interpreted as supporting the notion that constraints in nonlinguistic systems play a role in SLI.

Understanding the Language Difficulties of Children With Specific Language Impairments

2002 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 77-91 ◽  
Author(s):  
James W. Montgomery
Keyword(s):  
Working Memory ◽  
Language Impairment ◽  
Specific Language Impairment ◽  
Sentence Comprehension ◽  
Verbal Working Memory ◽  
Language Impairments ◽  
Specific Language ◽  
Clinical Marker ◽  
Language Difficulties ◽  
Specific Language Impairments

Many children with specific language impairment (SLI) demonstrate deficits in both verbal working memory (VWM) and language. Among child language researchers, the debate continues whether these two deficits are related. In this article, I take the position that there is indeed a connection between SLI and VWM. I review evidence suggesting that the lexical/morphological learning and sentence comprehension problems of many of these children are associated with deficient VWM abilities. Evidence is also reviewed for the possibility that deficient VWM provides a clinical marker of SLI. I end by offering various assessment and intervention techniques that may prove useful in SLI.

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