Language Processes and Linguistic Levels

1982 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. 2-10
Author(s):  
Clara S. Wing
Keyword(s):  
Response Selection ◽  
Expressive Language ◽  
Language Ability ◽  
Auditory Memory ◽  
Auditory Attention ◽  
Assessment Instruments ◽  
Language Abilities ◽  
Language Deficits ◽  
Oral Motor

Historical reasons for the variety of approaches to the classification of language abilities and disabilities are explained. A model of language abilities in matrix form is described in which areas of language ability are defined in terms of the effects of receptive and expressive language processes on four linguistic levels: phonology, morphology, syntax, and semantics. The language processes are selective auditory attention, auditory discrimination, auditory memory, auditory association or comprehension, response selection and organization, oral retrieval, oral sequencing, and oral motor output. This model provides a better basis for assessment and remediation of language deficits than does one in which language processes and linguistic levels are seen as parallel because its framework can be used for evaluating and selecting nonconfounding assessment instruments so that specific areas of deficit can be identified.

scholarly journals Social communication, executive functions and expressive language in children with ASD with ADHD symptoms –an exploratory study

2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 83-112
Author(s):  
Cristina Balas-Baconschi ◽  
◽  
Carmen Pop ◽  
Cristina Costescu ◽  
◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Communication ◽  
Exploratory Study ◽  
Expressive Language ◽  
Preliminary Investigation ◽  
Memory Task ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Auditory Memory ◽  
Adhd Symptoms ◽  
Language Deficits ◽  
Children With Asd

There are several factors associated with language deficits in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Previous research identified theory of mind difficulties, executive function deficits, abstract thinking and social information processing deficits as being linked with language deficits in ASD. However when it comes to the co-occurance of ASD and ADHD symptoms studies have different theories regarding the way language and social communication deficits emerge. In our exploratory study we propose to investigate the role of the auditory memory in the development of vocabulary and his indirect relation to social interaction and communication. In order to reach our goals we have described 6 case studies of children with ASD and ADHD s ymptoms aged 7 years old. Our results reveal that even if the participants in this study have a low to medium performance in the auditory memory task, this does not seem to impact expressive language to a high extend. Moreover the majority of the participants in our study had good vocabulary skills but seem to have difficulties in social communication. This study was designed to be a preliminary investigation of the connection between different factors that may influence social communication in children with ASD and ADHD symptoms and it can bring new research directions in the domain.

scholarly journals Exploring the Neural Structures Underlying the Procedural Memory Network as Predictors of Language Ability in Children and Adolescents With Autism Spectrum Disorder and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder

2020 ◽  
Vol 14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Teenu Sanjeevan ◽  
Christopher Hammill ◽  
Jessica Brian ◽  
Jennifer Crosbie ◽  
Russell Schachar ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Language Learning ◽  
Inferior Frontal Gyrus ◽  
Procedural Memory ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Language Ability ◽  
Language Abilities ◽  
Language Deficits ◽  
Hyperactivity Disorder ◽  
Memory Network ◽  
Structural Language

Introduction: There is significant overlap in the type of structural language impairments exhibited by children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). This similarity suggests that the cognitive impairment(s) contributing to the structural language deficits in ASD and ADHD may be shared. Previous studies have speculated that procedural memory deficits may be the shared cognitive impairment. The procedural deficit hypothesis (PDH) argues that language deficits can be explained by differences in the neural structures underlying the procedural memory network. This hypothesis is based on the premise that the neural structures comprising the procedural network support language learning. In this study, we aimed to test the PDH in children with ASD, ADHD, and typical development (TD).Methods: One hundred and sixty-three participants (ages 10–21): 91 with ASD, 26 with ADHD, and 46 with TD, completed standardized measures of cognitive and language ability as well as structural magnetic resonance imaging. We compared the structural language abilities, the neural structures underlying the procedural memory network, and the relationship between structural language and neural structure across diagnostic groups.Results: Our analyses revealed that while the structural language abilities differed across ASD, ADHD, and TD groups, the thickness, area, and volume of the structures supporting the procedural memory network were not significantly different between diagnostic groups. Also, several neural structures were associated with structural language abilities across diagnostic groups. Only two of these structures, the inferior frontal gyrus, and the left superior parietal gyrus, are known to be linked to the procedural memory network.Conclusions: The inferior frontal gyrus and the left superior parietal gyrus, have well-established roles in language learning independent of their role as part of the procedural memory system. Other structures such as the caudate and cerebellum, with critical roles in the procedural memory network, were not associated with structural language abilities across diagnostic groups. It is unclear whether the procedural memory network plays a fundamental role in language learning in ASD, ADHD, and TD.

The influence of child-based factors and parental inputs on expressive language abilities in children with autism spectrum disorder

Autism ◽  
2021 ◽  
pp. 136236132110545
Author(s):  
Xue-Ke Song ◽  
Wing-Chee So
Keyword(s):  
Autism Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Language Skills ◽  
Expressive Language ◽  
Autism Spectrum ◽  
Language Ability ◽  
Spectrum Disorder ◽  
Language Outcomes ◽  
Autistic Children ◽  
Language Abilities ◽  
Autism Traits

Studies of language development in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have been primarily focused on the influence of child-based factors such as autism traits, IQ, and initial language skills. Yet the findings of these studies are inconclusive. There has, moreover, been little research compared the relative influences of child-based factors with environmental factors, (e.g. parental inputs). The current study attempts to fill this research gap by examining a range of both child-based factors and parental inputs. We measured the structural language abilities manifested in parent-child interactions over four time points across nine months in 42 Chinese-speaking autistic children ( M = 57.42 months, SD = 11.39). Our results showed that children’s mean length of utterance (MLU), word types, and word tokens grew rapidly, but their development trajectories varied. Initial expressive language ability was a significant predictor of children’s language outcomes, while nonverbal IQ and autism traits did not relate to children’s language abilities when controlling for initial expressive language ability. Parents’ MLU, word tokens, and word types did not associate with children’s structural language abilities. The findings shed lights on the importance of one of the child-based factors in particular, that is, initial expressive language skills, in the language development of autistic children. Lay abstract Language impairment is one of the early signs of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) that alerts parents to take their children for early diagnosis and intervention. Little is known about how children’s autism traits, IQ, initial language abilities and parental inputs influence their language abilities. In addition, only a few studies have compared the relative influence of these factors. The present study addressed these issues by examining the structural language in parent-child spontaneous interactions. Forty-two Cantonese (Chinese)-speaking autistic children aged four to eight were recruited. Their expressive language skills grew rapidly more than 9 months, but their development trajectories varied. Initial expressive language ability is the only significant predictor of child language outcomes and language growth trajectories. In contrast, nonverbal cognition, autism traits, and parents’ input do not affect language outcomes in children with ASD. Therefore, early language intervention is crucial for autistic children at all severity and IQ levels.

Narrative Skills in Children With Selective Mutism

2004 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 304-315 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alison McInnes ◽  
Daniel Fung ◽  
Katharina Manassis ◽  
Lisa Fiksenbaum ◽  
Rosemary Tannock
Keyword(s):  
Comparison Group ◽  
Expressive Language ◽  
Selective Mutism ◽  
Receptive Language ◽  
Assessment Procedure ◽  
Language Abilities ◽  
Language Deficits ◽  
Assessment Protocol ◽  
Complex Disorder ◽  
Narrative Skills

Selective mutism (SM) is a rare and complex disorder associated with anxiety symptoms and speech-language deficits; however, the nature of these language deficits has not been studied systematically. A novel cross-disciplinary assessment protocol was used to assess anxiety and nonverbal cognitive, receptive language, and expressive narrative abilities in 7 children with SM and a comparison group of 7 children with social phobia (SP). The children with SM produced significantly shorter narratives than children with SP, despite showing normal nonverbal cognitive and receptive language abilities. The findings suggest that SM may involve subtle expressive language deficits that may influence academic performance and raise additional questions for further research. The assessment procedure developed for this study may be potentially useful for language clinicians.

scholarly journals Oral Motor and Gesture Abilities Independently Associated With Preschool Language Skill: Longitudinal and Concurrent Relationships at 21 Months and 3–4 Years

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-20
Author(s):  
Katie Alcock ◽  
Simon Connor
Keyword(s):  
Language Development ◽  
Motor Skill ◽  
Language Ability ◽  
Language Skill ◽  
Fine Motor ◽  
Fine Motor Skill ◽  
Language Abilities ◽  
Motor Abilities ◽  
Oral Motor ◽  
Manual Gesture

Purpose Early motor abilities (gesture, oral motor, and gross/fine skills) are related to language abilities, and this is not due to an association with cognitive or symbolic abilities: Oral motor skills are uniquely associated with language abilities at 21 months of age. It is important to determine whether this motor–language relationship continues beyond the earliest stage of language development to understand language acquisition better and better predict which children may have lasting language difficulties. Method In this longitudinal study, we assessed language comprehension and production, oral motor skill, gross/fine motor skill, and meaningless manual gesture at ages 3 years ( N = 89) and 4 years ( N = 71), comparing the contribution of motor skill and earlier (at 21 months of age) language ability. We also examined covariates: nonverbal cognitive ability, socioeconomic status, and stimulation in the home as measured on the Home Screening Questionnaire. Results Motor abilities continue to have a significant relationship with language abilities independent of other factors in the preschool years. Meaningless manual gesture ability, gross/fine motor skill, and oral motor skill were still associated with language skill at 3 years of age; these relationships are not explained by the contribution of cognitive abilities or earlier language abilities. Conclusions Relationships between early motor skill and language development persist into preschool years and are not explained by other cognitive or home factors, nor by a relationship with earlier language ability. This finding should lead to a better understanding of the origins of language abilities.

Phonetic, Phonological, and Language Skills of Children with a Cleft Palate

2003 ◽  
Vol 40 (5) ◽  
pp. 460-470 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helen Morris ◽  
Anne Ozanne
Keyword(s):  
Language Development ◽  
Cleft Palate ◽  
Language Proficiency ◽  
Language Skills ◽  
Expressive Language ◽  
Speech Development ◽  
Group Differences ◽  
Language Abilities ◽  
Significant Group ◽  
Language Measures

Objective To evaluate the language, phonetic, and phonological skills at age 3 years of two groups of young children with a cleft palate, with different expressive language proficiency at 2 years of age. Design Two groups of children with a cleft palate with differing abilities in early expressive language skills were identified at age 2 years. Comparisons across groups were made over a range of speech and language measures at age 3 years. Participants Twenty children with cleft palate were allocated to two groups dependent on expressive language abilities at age 2 years. One group had normal language development, and the second group had been identified as having significantly delayed (8 to 12 months’ delay) expressive language development. Main Outcome Measures The children were assessed at 3 years of age using standardized assessments and spontaneous speech samples. Comparisons between the two groups were made on a range of language measures including comprehension, expressive language, and speech. Results Group differences were found on both language and speech abilities at age 3 years. Significant group differences were found in expressive language, percentage of consonants correct, phonetic inventory, and phonological process usage. The group with delayed early expressive language abilities at 2 years continued to have expressive language difficulties at 3 years of age and had more disordered speech development, compared with the nondelayed group. Conclusions A subgroup of children with a cleft palate was identified who exhibited delays in early expressive language and continued to have delayed language and disordered phonological patterns at a later age. Support for three possible etiologies including a structural/anatomical deficit, cognitive/linguistic delay, or language/phonological disorder are discussed.

A comparison of the performance of five aphasic patients on different tests of language ability

1974 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Barbara Solarsh
Keyword(s):  
Differential Diagnosis ◽  
Expressive Language ◽  
Language Ability ◽  
Vocabulary Test ◽  
Peabody Picture Vocabulary ◽  
Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test ◽  
Accurate Predictor ◽  
Communicative Ability ◽  
Communicative Success ◽  
Language Sample

The performance of five aphasic patients was rated on three tests of language ability: The Minnesota Test for  Differential  Diagnosis; Luria's Tests of aphasia; and a Test of expressive language based on graded stimuli from the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test. In order to assess communicative-ability of the subjects, each expressive language sample was administered to four judges and a score of communicative success was computed. The study aimed at comparing each subject's performance on these tests of aphasia and its relationship to the degree of communicative success, in an attempt to ascertain which test is the most accurate predictor of  "amount" of aphasic impairment. It also aimed at extracting those variables most useful and appropriate in the diagnosis of the impairment found in aphasic patients. Inter-test correlations revealed that tests of aphasia appear to be accurate predictors of "amount" of communicative success. Inter-item comparison revealed fourteen sub-tests which indicated greatest difference in the performance of all the subjects.

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