Nonword Repetition Performance Differentiates Children Who Stutter With and Without Concomitant Speech Sound and Developmental Language Disorders

Purpose: The aim of this study was to examine how nonword repetition (NWR) performance may be impacted by the presence of concomitant speech and language disorders in young children who stutter (CWS). Method: One hundred forty-one children (88 CWS and 53 children who do not stutter [CWNS]) participated. CWS were divided into groups based on the presence of speech sound and/or language disorder or typical speech sound production and language abilities. NWR abilities were measured using stimuli composed of one- to four-syllable nonwords. Results: CWS with typical speech and language and CWNS had higher accuracy scores than CWS with concomitant speech and language disorders. We found no difference in accuracy scores between CWNS and CWS with typical speech and language abilities, nor did we find differences between CWS with speech sound disorder and CWS with both speech sound and language disorders. Accuracy decreased as nonword length increased for all groups. Conclusions: We found that the presence of a concomitant speech and language disorder was a driving factor behind poorer NWR performance in CWS. Accuracy scores differentiated CWS with concomitant disorders from CWS with typical speech and language but not CWS with typical speech and language from CWNS. Considering the speech and language abilities of CWS helped clarify poorer NWR performance and enhances generalizability to the population that exists clinically.

Production of English lexical stress by Mandarin speakers: Acoustics and kinematics

This study aims to understand if Mandarin late learners of English can successfully manipulate acoustic and kinematic cues to deliver English stress contrast in production. Mandarin ( N = 8) and English ( N = 8) speakers were recorded producing English trochaic (initial stress) and iambic (final stress) items during a nonword repetition task. Speakers’ jaw movement for the utterances was tracked and analysed. Acoustic and kinematic cues were measured for each syllable, including acoustic duration, fundamental frequency (F0), and intensity, as well as jaw movement duration, displacement, peak velocity, and stiffness. Stress ratios (syllable 1 / syllable 2) were calculated for each cue and compared between groups. Results showed that English and Mandarin speakers had generally comparable performance in differentiating trochaic from iambic patterns, as well as in the degree of between-syllable contrast within each pattern. Between-group differences were only observed in acoustic duration and jaw movement velocity/stiffness. These results suggest that the experience with Mandarin stress contributes to Mandarin speakers’ overall successful production of English stress but also results in nonnative use of some acoustic/kinematic cues.

Nonword Repetition in Bilingual Assessment: A Guide to Clinical Application

Purpose: Nonword repetition (NWR) is a useful tool in the identification of language impairment in bilingual children. As a method of alternative assessment, the task is less biased than many traditional forms of assessment. Despite its potential utility, the use of NWR in language assessment is limited. The goal of this tutorial is to provide speech-language pathologists with the information needed to use NWR as a diagnostic tool in bilingual assessment by describing research into its diagnostic accuracy and considerations for clinical application. Conclusions: NWR is a useful diagnostic tool in bilingual language assessment when used as part of an assessment battery. Although its diagnostic accuracy limits its ability to be used in the absence of other tools, it can provide valuable information that can be used to strengthen clinical impressions. When using NWR measures, clinicians should take several important aspects in account, including the language and age for which it was intended, the type of stimuli included, and the scoring procedures. Clinicians who work with bilingual children should consider including NWR in their diagnostic toolkits, as a less biased method of assessment.

Genome-wide association analyses of individual differences in quantitatively assessed reading- and language-related skills in up to 34,000 people

The use of spoken and written language is a capacity that is unique to humans. Individual differences in reading- and language-related skills are influenced by genetic variation, with twin-based heritability estimates of 30-80%, depending on the trait. The relevant genetic architecture is complex, heterogeneous, and multifactorial, and yet to be investigated with well-powered studies. Here, we present a multicohort genome-wide association study (GWAS) of five traits assessed individually using psychometric measures: word reading, nonword reading, spelling, phoneme awareness, and nonword repetition, with total sample sizes ranging from 13,633 to 33,959 participants aged 5-26 years (12,411 to 27,180 for those with European ancestry, defined by principal component analyses). We identified a genome-wide significant association with word reading (rs11208009, p=1.098 x 10-8) independent of known loci associated with intelligence or educational attainment. All five reading-/language-related traits had robust SNP-heritability estimates (0.13-0.26), and genetic correlations between them were modest to high. Using genomic structural equation modelling, we found evidence for a shared genetic factor explaining the majority of variation in word and nonword reading, spelling, and phoneme awareness, which only partially overlapped with genetic variation contributing to nonword repetition, intelligence and educational attainment. A multivariate GWAS was performed to jointly analyse word and nonword reading, spelling, and phoneme awareness, maximizing power for follow-up investigation. Genetic correlation analysis of multivariate GWAS results with neuroimaging traits identified association with cortical surface area of the banks of the left superior temporal sulcus, a brain region with known links to processing of spoken and written language. Analysis of evolutionary annotations on the lineage that led to modern humans showed enriched heritability in regions depleted of Neanderthal variants. Together, these results provide new avenues for deciphering the biological underpinnings of these uniquely human traits.

Sobre o impacto da constituência silábica na repetição de pseudopalavras: dados preliminares do desenvolvimento típico para a validação do LITMUS-QU-NWR-EP

Nonword repetition is a relevant task in clinical phonological assessment. However, few authors have considered the impact of syllable constituency on child performance in such task. In this study, we analyse the contribution of syllable constituency in nonword repetition through the validation of a new test (LITMUS-QU-NWR-EP) adapted to European Portuguese (EP). Two syllable structures were considered: lateral coda (both in word-medial and word-final position) and branching onsets (obstruent + lateral clusters). Results from typically developing children, aged 5 to 8 years, showed generalized difficulties in both structures, although codas were less problematic than branching onsets. Portuguese child performance contrasts with the data obtained for the French version of the instrument (LITMUS-QU-NWR-FR), given the overall lower performance found for EP, and the preference for codas over branching onsets, unlike attested for French children. A comparative analysis shows that nonword repetition difficulties in what concerns syllabic constituency may be language dependent. Clinical implications for EP are discussed.

Phonology Processing and Reading Ability in Elementary School-aged children with Cleft Palate

Objectives: This study aimed to examine the phonological processing and reading abilities of elementary school-aged children with and without cleft palate (CP).Methods: The participants were 10 children with CP and 12 typically developing children in the first to the second grades of elementary school. All children with CP in the study were identified with speech and language development problems during preschool age and were recommended speech and language therapy. The performances of phonological processing were measured in terms of phonological awareness (syllable and phoneme awareness), phonological memory (nonword repetition, digit span and backward digit span), and rapid automatized naming. The reading abilities were also measured in terms of decoding, reading fluency and reading comprehension. The correlations among vocabulary, articulation, and phonological processing and reading ability were examined.Results: Children with CP showed significantly lower performances in phonological awareness of syllable level and nonword repetition than typically developing children. Also, significant group differences were seen in all decoding and reading comprehension tasks except reading fluency. The results showed that nonword repetition performances of children with CP were highly correlated with receptive vocabulary and percentage of consonants correct.Conclusion: This study confirmed that school-aged children with CP who showed speech sound disorders in preschool age are likely to have difficulties in phonological processing and reading. Therefore, this study suggested that comprehensive evaluation of phonological processing skills should be performed more actively in preschool children with CP who show speech sound disorders, and intervention should continue to improve reading skills for school age.

The role of existing language knowledge in bilingual and multilingual toddlers’ repetition of cross-linguistic and language-specific nonwords

Previous studies have shown that bilingual children typically score more poorly on nonword repetition (NWR) tasks than monolingual peers, which has been attributed to bilinguals’ lower proficiency in the language that the NWR task is based on. To enable fairer assessments of bilingual children, Cross-Linguistic NWR tasks (CL-NWR tasks) have been developed that are based on the linguistic properties of many languages. The aim of this study is to investigate whether young children’s performance on a CL-NWR is less dependent on existing knowledge of a specific language than performance on a Language-Specific (Dutch-based) NWR (LS-NWR). Bilingual and multilingual two- and three-year-olds (N = 216) completed a CL-NWR and LS-NWR, as well as a Dutch receptive vocabulary task. Parents reported the number of languages children spoke other than Dutch. Results of linear mixed-effect regressions showed that Dutch vocabulary scores related to performance on the CL-NWR task less strongly than to performance on the LS-NWR task. The number of non-Dutch languages spoken did not differentially relate to performance on the two tasks. These findings indicate that CL-NWR tasks – at least as used here – allow for more language-neutral NWR assessments within linguistically diverse samples, already at toddler age.

Using Nonword Repetition to Identify Developmental Language Disorder in Monolingual and Bilingual Children: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Purpose A wealth of studies has assessed the diagnostic value of the nonword repetition task (NWRT) for the detection of developmental language disorder (DLD) in the clinical context of speech and language therapy, first in monolingual children and, more recently, in bilingual children. This review article reviews this literature systematically and conducts a meta-analysis on the discriminative power of this type of task in both populations. Method Three databases were used to select articles based on keyword combinations, which were then reviewed for relevance and methodological rigor based on internationally recognized checklists. From an initial pool of 488 studies, 46 studies were selected for inclusion in the systematic review, and 35 of these studies could be included in a meta-analysis. Results Most of the articles report significant discrimination between children with and without DLD in both monolingual and bilingual contexts, and the meta-analysis shows a large mean effect size. Three factors (age of the child, linguistic status, and language specificity of the task) yielded enough quantitative data for further exploration. Subgroups analysis shows variance in effect sizes, but none of the three factors, neither their interactions, were significant in a metaregression. We discuss how other, less explored factors (e.g., nature of the stimuli, scoring methods) could also contribute to differences in results. Sensitivity and specificity analyses reported in 33 studies confirmed that, despite possible effect size differences, the diagnostic accuracy of the NWRT is generally near thresholds considered to be discriminatory. It generally increases when it is combined with other tasks (e.g., parental questionnaire). Conclusions This review indicates that the NWRT is a promising diagnostic tool to identify children with DLD in monolingual and bilingual contexts with a large mean effect size. However, it seems necessary to choose the precise NWRT materials based on the children's language background and to complement the assessment sessions with other tools in order to ensure diagnosis and to obtain complete language profile of the child. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.15152370