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Couvignou M, Peyre H, Ramus F, Kolinsky R. Do early musical impairments predict later reading difficulties? A longitudinal study of pre-readers with and without familial risk for dyslexia. Dev Sci 2024:e13519. [PMID: 38679927 DOI: 10.1111/desc.13519] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2023] [Revised: 03/14/2024] [Accepted: 04/05/2024] [Indexed: 05/01/2024]
Abstract
The present longitudinal study investigated the hypothesis that early musical skills (as measured by melodic and rhythmic perception and memory) predict later literacy development via a mediating effect of phonology. We examined 130 French-speaking children, 31 of whom with a familial risk for developmental dyslexia (DD). Their abilities in the three domains were assessed longitudinally with a comprehensive battery of behavioral tests in kindergarten, first grade, and second grade. Using a structural equation modeling approach, we examined potential longitudinal effects from music to literacy via phonology. We then investigated how familial risk for DD may influence these relationships by testing whether atypical music processing is a risk factor for DD. Results showed that children with a familial risk for DD consistently underperformed children without familial risk in music, phonology, and literacy. A small effect of musical ability on literacy via phonology was observed, but may have been induced by differences in stability across domains over time. Furthermore, early musical skills did not add significant predictive power to later literacy difficulties beyond phonological skills and family risk status. These findings are consistent with the idea that certain key auditory skills are shared between music and speech processing, and between DD and congenital amusia. However, they do not support the notion that music perception and memory skills can serve as a reliable early marker of DD, nor as a valuable target for reading remediation. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS: Music, phonology, and literacy skills of 130 children, 31 of whom with a familial risk for dyslexia, were examined longitudinally. Children with a familial risk for dyslexia consistently underperformed children without familial risk in musical, phonological, and literacy skills. Structural equation models showed a small effect of musical ability in kindergarten on literacy in second grade, via phonology in first grade. However, early musical skills did not add significant predictive power to later literacy difficulties beyond phonological skills and family risk status.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manon Couvignou
- Unité de Recherche en Neurosciences Cognitives (Unescog), Center for Research in Cognition & Neurosciences (CRCN), Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), Brussels, Belgium
- Department of Psychology, Centre for Neuroscience in Education, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Hugo Peyre
- Département d'Études Cognitives, Laboratoire de Sciences Cognitives et Psycholinguistique, École Normale Supérieure, PSL University, EHESS, CNRS, Paris, France
- Autism Reference Centre of Languedoc-Roussillon CRA-LR, Excellence Centre for Autism and Neurodevelopmental disorders CeAND, Montpellier University Hospital, MUSE University, Montpellier, France
- CESP, INSERM U1178, Centre de recherche en Épidémiologie et Santé des Populations, Villejuif, France
| | - Franck Ramus
- Département d'Études Cognitives, Laboratoire de Sciences Cognitives et Psycholinguistique, École Normale Supérieure, PSL University, EHESS, CNRS, Paris, France
| | - Régine Kolinsky
- Unité de Recherche en Neurosciences Cognitives (Unescog), Center for Research in Cognition & Neurosciences (CRCN), Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), Brussels, Belgium
- Fonds de la Recherche Scientifique-FNRS (FRS-FNRS), Brussels, Belgium
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Gijbels L, Lee AKC, Yeatman JD. Children with developmental dyslexia have equivalent audiovisual speech perception performance but their perceptual weights differ. Dev Sci 2024; 27:e13431. [PMID: 37403418 DOI: 10.1111/desc.13431] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2023] [Revised: 05/18/2023] [Accepted: 06/19/2023] [Indexed: 07/06/2023]
Abstract
As reading is inherently a multisensory, audiovisual (AV) process where visual symbols (i.e., letters) are connected to speech sounds, the question has been raised whether individuals with reading difficulties, like children with developmental dyslexia (DD), have broader impairments in multisensory processing. This question has been posed before, yet it remains unanswered due to (a) the complexity and contentious etiology of DD along with (b) lack of consensus on developmentally appropriate AV processing tasks. We created an ecologically valid task for measuring multisensory AV processing by leveraging the natural phenomenon that speech perception improves when listeners are provided visual information from mouth movements (particularly when the auditory signal is degraded). We designed this AV processing task with low cognitive and linguistic demands such that children with and without DD would have equal unimodal (auditory and visual) performance. We then collected data in a group of 135 children (age 6.5-15) with an AV speech perception task to answer the following questions: (1) How do AV speech perception benefits manifest in children, with and without DD? (2) Do children all use the same perceptual weights to create AV speech perception benefits, and (3) what is the role of phonological processing in AV speech perception? We show that children with and without DD have equal AV speech perception benefits on this task, but that children with DD rely less on auditory processing in more difficult listening situations to create these benefits and weigh both incoming information streams differently. Lastly, any reported differences in speech perception in children with DD might be better explained by differences in phonological processing than differences in reading skills. RESEARCH HIGHLIGHTS: Children with versus without developmental dyslexia have equal audiovisual speech perception benefits, regardless of their phonological awareness or reading skills. Children with developmental dyslexia rely less on auditory performance to create audiovisual speech perception benefits. Individual differences in speech perception in children might be better explained by differences in phonological processing than differences in reading skills.
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Affiliation(s)
- Liesbeth Gijbels
- Department of Speech & Hearing Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- University of Washington, Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Adrian K C Lee
- Department of Speech & Hearing Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- University of Washington, Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Jason D Yeatman
- Division of Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics, Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, California, USA
- Stanford University Graduate School of Education, Stanford, California, USA
- Stanford University Department of Psychology, Stanford, California, USA
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Piazza C, Dondena C, Riboldi EM, Riva V, Cantiani C. Baseline EEG in the first year of life: Preliminary insights into the development of autism spectrum disorder and language impairments. iScience 2023; 26:106987. [PMID: 37534149 PMCID: PMC10391601 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.106987] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2023] [Revised: 04/19/2023] [Accepted: 05/24/2023] [Indexed: 08/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Early identification of neurodevelopmental disorders is important to ensure a prompt and effective intervention, thus improving the later outcome. Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and language learning impairment (LLI) are among the most common neurodevelopmental disorders, and they share overlapping symptoms. This study aims to characterize baseline electroencephalography (EEG) spectral power in 6- and 12-month-old infants at higher likelihood of developing ASD and LLI, compared to typically developing infants, and to preliminarily verify if spectral power components associated with the risk status are also linked with the later ASD or LLI diagnosis. We found risk status for ASD to be associated with reduced power in the low-frequency bands and risk status for LLI with increased power in the high-frequency bands. Interestingly, later diagnosis shared similar associations, thus supporting the potential role of EEG spectral power as a biomarker useful for understanding pathophysiology and classifying diagnostic outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caterina Piazza
- Scientific Institute, IRCCS E. Medea, Bioengineering Lab, 23842 Bosisio Parini, Lecco, Italy
| | - Chiara Dondena
- Scientific Institute, IRCCS E. Medea, Child Psychopathology Unit, 23842 Bosisio Parini, Lecco, Italy
| | - Elena Maria Riboldi
- Scientific Institute, IRCCS E. Medea, Child Psychopathology Unit, 23842 Bosisio Parini, Lecco, Italy
| | - Valentina Riva
- Scientific Institute, IRCCS E. Medea, Child Psychopathology Unit, 23842 Bosisio Parini, Lecco, Italy
| | - Chiara Cantiani
- Scientific Institute, IRCCS E. Medea, Child Psychopathology Unit, 23842 Bosisio Parini, Lecco, Italy
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Rinaldi P, Bello A, Simonelli I, Caselli MC. Is Specific Learning Disorder Predicted by Developmental Language Disorder? Evidence from a Follow-Up Study on Italian Children. Brain Sci 2023; 13:brainsci13040701. [PMID: 37190666 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci13040701] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2023] [Revised: 04/19/2023] [Accepted: 04/19/2023] [Indexed: 05/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Specific Learning Disorder (SLD) is a complex disorder with a strong genetic component, characterized by varying manifestations and considerable differences among children. Several studies have highlighted that difficulties in language acquisition and the presence of Developmental Language Disorders (DLDs) are frequently associated with SLD, suggesting a continuity between the two disorders. This study aimed to add evidence on the proximal and distal predictors of SLD, focusing on the eventual continuity for the presence of DLD at 4-5 years, on some linguistic and communicative abilities at 27-30 months, and on biological and environmental factors. Our sample consisted of 528 families, whose children (Italian monolingual) participated in a screening program at the age of 27-30 months. When children were on average 8.05 years old, parents were asked to answer an interview aimed at collecting information about the children's language and learning development. Results showed that the prevalence of children with an SLD (7.01%) was in line with those reported in other similar studies. The diagnosis of SLD was significantly predicted by the previous diagnosis of DLD, by male sex/gender, and by the familial risk of SLD. Children with these characteristics had a 54% probability of presenting an SLD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pasquale Rinaldi
- Institute of Cognitive Sciences and Technologies, National Research Council, Via Nomentana 56, 00161 Rome, Italy
| | - Arianna Bello
- Department of Education, Roma Tre University, Via Castro Pretorio 20, 00185 Rome, Italy
| | - Ilaria Simonelli
- Clinical Trial Center Fatebenefratelli Tiberina Island-Gemelli Island, Via di Ponte Quattro Capi 39, 00186 Rome, Italy
| | - Maria Cristina Caselli
- Institute of Cognitive Sciences and Technologies, National Research Council, Via Nomentana 56, 00161 Rome, Italy
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Firat T, Bildiren A. Developmental characteristics of children with learning disabilities aged 0?6 based on parental observations. CURRENT PSYCHOLOGY 2023. [DOI: 10.1007/s12144-023-04526-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/29/2023]
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de Bree EH, Boerma T, Hakvoort B, Blom E, van den Boer M. Word reading in monolingual and bilingual children with developmental language disorder. LEARNING AND INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.lindif.2022.102185] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/15/2022]
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Kouvava S, Antonopoulou K, Ralli AM, Kokkinos CM, Maridaki-Kassotaki K. Children's vocabulary and friendships: A comparative study between children with and without Specific Learning Disorder and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder. DYSLEXIA (CHICHESTER, ENGLAND) 2022; 28:149-165. [PMID: 35138002 DOI: 10.1002/dys.1709] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2021] [Revised: 11/28/2021] [Accepted: 01/13/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Language skills are important in the formation and maintenance of friendships. Children with specific learning disorder (SLD) or attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) experience difficulties with their relationships and have language-related problems. This study aims to examine how expressive and receptive vocabulary may relate to friendships of children with and without SLD or ADHD. Participants were 64 children with SLD, 64 children with ADHD, and 64 typically developing (TD) children, aged 8-12 years (Mage = 9.77 years, SD = 1.22), attending Grades 3 to 6 in inclusive primary schools of Attica, Greece. The Greek versions of the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test and the expressive vocabulary subscale of the WISC-III were administered along with the sociometric nominations of friends and the self-reports of best friendship duration. Results showed that children with SLD and ADHD reported best friendships of shorter duration and had significantly poorer receptive and expressive vocabulary. Children with ADHD had significantly fewer close and best friends than children with SLD, who in turn had significantly fewer close and best friends than the TD children. Children's vocabulary in all three groups was positively correlated with the duration of their best friendships and was found to moderately predict children's close friendships.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sofia Kouvava
- Department of Economics and Sustainable Development, Harokopio University, Athens, Greece
| | - Katerina Antonopoulou
- Department of Economics and Sustainable Development, Harokopio University, Athens, Greece
| | - Asimina M Ralli
- Department of Psychology, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece
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Maassen BAM, Krikhaar E, van der Leij A, Fikkert P. Early Productive Vocabulary Composition as Precursor of Dyslexia. JOURNAL OF SPEECH, LANGUAGE, AND HEARING RESEARCH : JSLHR 2022; 65:760-774. [PMID: 35089813 DOI: 10.1044/2021_jslhr-20-00599] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE The aim of this study was to gain more insight into the linguistic characterization of dyslexia by investigating vocabulary acquisition. In a previous study, vocabulary at 17 months of age appeared to be related to familial risk (FR) of dyslexia. The aim of this study was to investigate how the differences in lexical composition further develop up to 3 years (35 months) of age and, more importantly, to what extent these differences can be considered specific precursors of dyslexia later on. METHOD In a total number of 262 children from the Dutch Dyslexia Program, 169 with and 93 without FR for dyslexia, productive vocabulary was assessed with the Dutch version of the MacArthur Communicative Development Inventories at ages 17, 23, 29, and 35 months. Reading tests were administered in Grades 2 and 3, resulting in dyslexia diagnosis in 60 FR children (FR-dys), leaving 109 FR children who developed normal reading skills (FR-nondys) and 93 control children. Children's expressive vocabulary was scored according to the total number of words produced and according to the different major linguistic word categories: nouns, predicates, and closed-class words. The analyses comprised a comparison of total productive vocabulary and the number of words per grammatical category at four different ages for the three groups (FR-dys, FR-nondys, and control). Also, correlations were calculated between vocabulary scores and reading scores. RESULTS Up to 29 months of age, the total numbers of nouns, predicates, and closed-class words are significantly lower for the FR-dys group as compared with the FR-nondys and control groups; for closed-class words at 23 and 35 months of age, the FR-nondys group's mean values are in between the mean of the FR-dys and control groups. Weak correlations were found between total vocabulary size, number of verbs, number and proportion of predicates at 23 months of age, and word and pseudoword reading fluency in Grades 2 and 3. CONCLUSIONS These results indicate that development of vocabulary is a significant though weak predictor of reading fluency and dyslexia; vocabulary size and proportion of verbs at 23 months of age, as well as proportion of closed-class words up to 35 months of age, seem to be the most sensitive indicators of delayed vocabulary development and later reading difficulties. There is no indication that FR for dyslexia by itself is related to vocabulary development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ben A M Maassen
- Center for Language and Cognition Groningen, University of Groningen, the Netherlands
- Research School of Behavioural and Cognitive Neurosciences, University Medical Center Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Evelien Krikhaar
- Expertisecentrum Nederlands, Radboud University of Nijmegen, the Netherlands
| | - Aryan van der Leij
- Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Paula Fikkert
- Centre for Language Studies, Radboud University of Nijmegen, the Netherlands
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Junge C, Boumeester M, Mills DL, Paul M, Cosper SH. Development of the N400 for Word Learning in the First 2 Years of Life: A Systematic Review. Front Psychol 2021; 12:689534. [PMID: 34276518 PMCID: PMC8277998 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.689534] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2021] [Accepted: 05/27/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The N400 ERP component is a direct neural index of word meaning. Studies show that the N400 component is already present in early infancy, albeit often delayed. Many researchers capitalize on this finding, using the N400 component to better understand how early language acquisition unfolds. However, variability in how researchers quantify the N400 makes it difficult to set clear predictions or build theory. Not much is known about how the N400 component develops in the first 2 years of life in terms of its latency and topographical distributions, nor do we know how task parameters affect its appearance. In the current paper we carry out a systematic review, comparing over 30 studies that report the N400 component as a proxy of semantic processing elicited in infants between 0 and 24 months old who listened to linguistic stimuli. Our main finding is that there is large heterogeneity across semantic-priming studies in reported characteristics of the N400, both with respect to latency and to distributions. With age, the onset of the N400 insignificantly decreases, while its offset slightly increases. We also examined whether the N400 appears different for recently-acquired novel words vs. existing words: both situations reveal heterogeneity across studies. Finally, we inspected whether the N400 was modulated differently with studies using a between-subject design. In infants with more proficient language skills the N400 was more often present or showed itself here with earlier latency, compared to their peers; but no consistent patterns were observed for distribution characteristics of the N400. One limitation of the current review is that we compared studies that widely differed in choice of EEG recordings, pre-processing steps and quantification of the N400, all of which could affect the characteristics of the infant N400. The field is still missing research that systematically tests development of the N400 using the same paradigm across infancy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caroline Junge
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands
| | - Marlijne Boumeester
- Department of Experimental Psychology, Utrecht University, Utrecht, Netherlands
| | - Debra L. Mills
- School of Psychology, Bangor University, Bangor, United Kingdom
| | - Mariella Paul
- Psychology of Language Research Group, Georg-August-Universität Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Samuel H. Cosper
- Institute of Cognitive Science, University of Osnabrück, Osnabrück, Germany
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Caglar-Ryeng Ø, Eklund K, Nergård-Nilssen T. School-entry language outcomes in late talkers with and without a family risk of dyslexia. DYSLEXIA (CHICHESTER, ENGLAND) 2021; 27:29-49. [PMID: 32181543 DOI: 10.1002/dys.1656] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2018] [Revised: 02/18/2020] [Accepted: 03/02/2020] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Children with familial risk (FR) of dyslexia and children with early language delay are known to be at risk for later language and literacy difficulties. However, research addressing long-term outcomes in children with both risk factors is scarce. This study tracked FR and No-FR children identified as late talkers at 2 years of age and reports development from 4;6 through 6 years. We examined the possible effects of FR-status and late talking (LT) status, respectively, on language skills at school entry, and whether FR-status moderated the associations between 4;6-year and 6-year language scores. Results indicated an effect of LT status on language at both ages, while FR status affected language skills at 6 years only. The interaction between LT and FR statuses was not significant, implying that LT status affected language skills independently of the child's FR status. A proportion of late talkers developed typical language at 6 years of age, while some FR children with typical vocabulary skills in toddlerhood had emerging developmental language disorder by school entry. FR status had a moderating effect on the association between expressive grammar at ages 4;6 and 6 years. Possible explanations for the effect of FR status on language skills are discussed. We highlight limitations in the study size and suggest how these preliminary findings can inform future research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ømur Caglar-Ryeng
- Department of Education, UiT-The Arctic University of Norway, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Kenneth Eklund
- Department of Psychology, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland
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Oliveira CM, Vale AP, Thomson JM. The relationship between developmental language disorder and dyslexia in European Portuguese school-aged children. J Clin Exp Neuropsychol 2021; 43:46-65. [PMID: 33499738 DOI: 10.1080/13803395.2020.1870101] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) [Also referred to as Specific Language Impairment (SLI)] and dyslexia are neurodevelopmental disorders which show similar behavioral manifestations. In this study, between-group comparisons and frequency analysis were combined to investigate the relationship between DLD and dyslexia. European Portuguese children aged 7-10 years, with DLD (N = 7) or dyslexia (N = 11) were recruited and compared to age-matched typically developing (TD) children (N = 21) on phonological processing, language andf literacy measures. The between-group comparison revealed that for phonological processing, the clinical groups scored significantly below TD children on most tasks, yet the DLD group performed similarly to TD children for RAN speed and digit span. The clinical groups did not statistically differ in their phonological processing abilities. For language abilities, children with dyslexia did not differ from TD children, whilst children with DLD performed significantly below TD children on all measures and significantly below children with dyslexia for vocabulary. Finally, for literacy measures, there were no statistical differences between clinical groups which underperformed on all measures when compared to TD children. The frequency analysis showed that children with DLD exhibited a lower prevalence of RAN difficulties when compared to children with dyslexia, whilst children with DLD tended to show more frequent nonword repetition and phoneme deletion deficits. Additionally, whilst children with DLD consistently showed more prevalent language impairments, both clinical groups demonstrated similar prevalence rates of literacy deficits compared to TD children.These findings lend support to the additional deficit model as children with DLD show more severe and prevalent language impairments than those with dyslexia, despite similar phonological and literacy difficulties.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Ana Paula Vale
- Department of Education and Psychology, Universidade de Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, Vila Real, Portugal
| | - Jenny M Thomson
- Division of Human Communication Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, UK
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Abstract
OBJECTIVE Acoustic distortions to the speech signal impair spoken language recognition, but healthy listeners exhibit adaptive plasticity consistent with rapid adjustments in how the distorted speech input maps to speech representations, perhaps through engagement of supervised error-driven learning. This puts adaptive plasticity in speech perception in an interesting position with regard to developmental dyslexia inasmuch as dyslexia impacts speech processing and may involve dysfunction in neurobiological systems hypothesized to be involved in adaptive plasticity. METHOD Here, we examined typical young adult listeners (N = 17), and those with dyslexia (N = 16), as they reported the identity of native-language monosyllabic spoken words to which signal processing had been applied to create a systematic acoustic distortion. During training, all participants experienced incremental signal distortion increases to mildly distorted speech along with orthographic and auditory feedback indicating word identity following response across a brief, 250-trial training block. During pretest and posttest phases, no feedback was provided to participants. RESULTS Word recognition across severely distorted speech was poor at pretest and equivalent across groups. Training led to improved word recognition for the most severely distorted speech at posttest, with evidence that adaptive plasticity generalized to support recognition of new tokens not previously experienced under distortion. However, training-related recognition gains for listeners with dyslexia were significantly less robust than for control listeners. CONCLUSIONS Less efficient adaptive plasticity to speech distortions may impact the ability of individuals with dyslexia to deal with variability arising from sources like acoustic noise and foreign-accented speech.
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Foreign Language Attainment of Children/Adolescents with Poor Literacy Skills: a Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. EDUCATIONAL PSYCHOLOGY REVIEW 2020. [DOI: 10.1007/s10648-020-09566-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
AbstractThis systematic review investigated how successful children/adolescents with poor literacy skills learn a foreign language compared with their peers with typical literacy skills. Moreover, we explored whether specific characteristics related to participants, foreign language instruction, and assessment moderated scores on foreign language tests in this population. Overall, 16 studies with a total of 968 participants (poor reader/spellers: n = 404; control participants: n = 564) met eligibility criteria. Only studies focusing on English as a foreign language were available. Available data allowed for meta-analyses on 10 different measures of foreign language attainment. In addition to standard mean differences (SMDs), we computed natural logarithms of the ratio of coefficients of variation (CVRs) to capture individual variability between participant groups. Significant between-study heterogeneity, which could not be explained by moderator analyses, limited the interpretation of results. Although children/adolescents with poor literacy skills on average showed lower scores on foreign language phonological awareness, letter knowledge, and reading comprehension measures, their performance varied significantly more than that of control participants. Thus, it remains unclear to what extent group differences between the foreign language scores of children/adolescents with poor and typical literacy skills are representative of individual poor readers/spellers. Taken together, our results indicate that foreign language skills in children/adolescents with poor literacy skills are highly variable. We discuss the limitations of past research that can guide future steps toward a better understanding of individual differences in foreign language attainment of children/adolescents with poor literacy skills.
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Goswami U, Huss M, Mead N, Fosker T. Auditory Sensory Processing and Phonological Development in High IQ and Exceptional Readers, Typically Developing Readers, and Children With Dyslexia: A Longitudinal Study. Child Dev 2020; 92:1083-1098. [PMID: 32851656 DOI: 10.1111/cdev.13459] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Phonological difficulties characterize children with developmental dyslexia across languages, but whether impaired auditory processing underlies these phonological difficulties is debated. Here the causal question is addressed by exploring whether individual differences in sensory processing predict the development of phonological awareness in 86 English-speaking lower- and middle-class children aged 8 years in 2005 who had dyslexia, or were age-matched typically developing children, some with exceptional reading/high IQ. The predictive relations between auditory processing and phonological development are robust for this sample even when phonological awareness at Time 1 (the autoregressor) is controlled. High reading/IQ does not much impact these relations. The data suggest that basic sensory abilities are significant longitudinal predictors of growth in phonological awareness in children.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Tim Fosker
- University of Cambridge.,Queen's University
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15
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Stokes SF, de Bree E, Kerkhoff A, Momenian M, Zamuner T. Phonology, Semantics, and the Comprehension-Expression Gap in Emerging Lexicons. JOURNAL OF SPEECH, LANGUAGE, AND HEARING RESEARCH : JSLHR 2019; 62:4509-4522. [PMID: 31747525 DOI: 10.1044/2019_jslhr-19-00177] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Purpose Children come to understand many words by the end of their 1st year of life, and yet, generally by 12 months, only a few words are said. In this study, we investigated which linguistic factors contribute to this comprehension-expression gap the most. Specifically, we asked the following: Are phonological neighborhood density, semantic neighborhood density, and word frequency (WF) significant predictors of the probability that words known (understood) by children would appear in their spoken lexicons? Method Monosyllabic words in the active (understood and said) and passive (understood, not said) lexicons of 201 toddlers were extracted from the Dutch Communicative Development Inventory (Zink & Lejaegere, 2002) parent-completed forms. A generalized linear mixed-effects model was applied to the data. Results Phonological neighborhood density and WF were independently and significantly associated with whether or not a known word would be in children's spoken lexicons, but semantic neighborhood density was not. There were individual differences in the impact of WF on the probability that known words would be said. Conclusion The novel findings reported here have 2 major implications. First, they indicate that the comprehension-expression gap exists partly because the phonological distributional properties of words determine how readily words can be phonologically encoded for word production. Second, there are likely subtle and complex individual differences in how and when the statistical properties of the ambient language impact on children's emerging lexicons that might best be explored via longitudinal sampling of word knowledge and use.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Elise de Bree
- College of Child Development and Education, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Annemarie Kerkhoff
- Utrecht Institute of Linguistics OTS, Utrecht University, the Netherlands
| | | | - Tania Zamuner
- Department of Linguistics, University of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
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16
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Caglar-Ryeng Ø, Eklund K, Nergård-Nilssen T. Lexical and grammatical development in children at family risk of dyslexia from early childhood to school entry: a cross-lagged analysis. JOURNAL OF CHILD LANGUAGE 2019; 46:1102-1126. [PMID: 31317848 DOI: 10.1017/s0305000919000333] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
The aim of this study was to examine (a) the development of vocabulary and grammar in children with family-risk (FR) of dyslexia and their peers with no such risk (NoFR) between ages 1;6 and 6;0, and (b) whether FR-status exerted an effect on the direction of temporal relationships between these two constructs. Groups were assessed at seven time-points using standardised tests and parental reports. Results indicated that although FR and NoFR children had a similar development in the earlier years, the FR group appeared to perform significantly more poorly on vocabulary at the end of the preschool period. Results showed no significant effect of FR status on the cross-lagged relations between lexical and grammatical skills, suggesting a similar developmental pattern of cross-domain relations in both groups. However, FR status seemed to have a significantly negative association with vocabulary and grammar scores at age 6;0, resulting in language outcomes in favour of NoFR children.
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17
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Kalashnikova M, Goswami U, Burnham D. Delayed development of phonological constancy in toddlers at family risk for dyslexia. Infant Behav Dev 2019; 57:101327. [PMID: 31207365 DOI: 10.1016/j.infbeh.2019.101327] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/17/2018] [Revised: 04/26/2019] [Accepted: 04/27/2019] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
Phonological constancy refers to infants' ability to disregard variations in the phonetic realisation of speech sounds that do not indicate lexical contrast, e.g., when listening to accented speech. In typically-developing infants, this ability develops between 15- and 19-months of age, coinciding with the consolidation of infants' native phonological competence and vocabulary growth. Here we investigated the developmental time course of phonological constancy in infants at family risk for developmental dyslexia, using a longitudinal design. Developmental dyslexia is a disorder affecting the acquisition of reading and spelling skills, and it also affects early auditory processing, speech perception, and lexical acquisition. Infants at-risk and not at-risk for dyslexia, based on a family history of dyslexia, participated when they were 15-, 19-, and 26-months of age. Phonological constancy was indexed by comparing at-risk and not at-risk infants' ability to recognise familiar words in two preferential looking tasks: (1) a task using words presented in their native accent, and (2) a task using words presented in a non-native accent. We expected a delay in phonological constancy for the at-risk infants. As predicted, in the non-native accent task, not at-risk infants recognised familiar words by 19 months, but at-risk infants did not. The control infants thus exhibited phonological constancy. By 26 months, at-risk toddlers did show successful word recognition in the native accent task. However, for the non-native accent task at 26 months, neither at-risk nor control infants showed familiar word recognition. These findings are discussed in terms of the impact of family risk for dyslexia on toddlers' consolidation of early phonological and lexical skills.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marina Kalashnikova
- BCBL. Basque Center on Cognition, Brain and Language, Donostia, Spain; The MARCS Institute for Brain, Behaviour and Development, Western Sydney University, Penrith, Australia.
| | - Usha Goswami
- Centre for Neuroscience in Education, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Denis Burnham
- The MARCS Institute for Brain, Behaviour and Development, Western Sydney University, Penrith, Australia
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18
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Kalashnikova M, Goswami U, Burnham D. Sensitivity to amplitude envelope rise time in infancy and vocabulary development at 3 years: A significant relationship. Dev Sci 2019; 22:e12836. [PMID: 31004544 DOI: 10.1111/desc.12836] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2018] [Revised: 03/17/2019] [Accepted: 04/13/2019] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Here we report, for the first time, a relationship between sensitivity to amplitude envelope rise time in infants and their later vocabulary development. Recent research in auditory neuroscience has revealed that amplitude envelope rise time plays a mechanistic role in speech encoding. Accordingly, individual differences in infant discrimination of amplitude envelope rise times could be expected to relate to individual differences in language acquisition. A group of 50 infants taking part in a longitudinal study contributed rise time discrimination thresholds when aged 7 and 10 months, and their vocabulary development was measured at 3 years. Experimental measures of phonological sensitivity were also administered at 3 years. Linear mixed effect models taking rise time sensitivity as the dependent variable, and controlling for non-verbal IQ, showed significant predictive effects for vocabulary at 3 years, but not for the phonological sensitivity measures. The significant longitudinal relationship between amplitude envelope rise time discrimination and vocabulary development suggests that early rise time discrimination abilities have an impact on speech processing by infants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marina Kalashnikova
- BCBL, Basque Center on Cognition, Brain and Language, Donostia, Spain.,The MARCS Institute for Brain, Behaviour and Development, Western Sydney University, Penrith, Australia
| | - Usha Goswami
- Centre for Neuroscience in Education, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Denis Burnham
- The MARCS Institute for Brain, Behaviour and Development, Western Sydney University, Penrith, Australia
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19
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D'Mello AM, Gabrieli JDE. Cognitive Neuroscience of Dyslexia. Lang Speech Hear Serv Sch 2019; 49:798-809. [PMID: 30458541 DOI: 10.1044/2018_lshss-dyslc-18-0020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2018] [Accepted: 05/08/2018] [Indexed: 01/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Purpose This review summarizes what is known about the structural and functional brain bases of dyslexia. Method We review the current literature on structural and functional brain differences in dyslexia. This includes evidence about differences in gray matter anatomy, white matter connectivity, and functional activations in response to print and language. We also summarize findings concerning brain plasticity in response to interventions. Results We highlight evidence relating brain function and structure to instructional issues such as diagnosis and prognosis. We also highlight evidence about brain differences in early childhood, before formal reading instruction in school, which supports the importance of early identification and intervention. Conclusion Neuroimaging studies of dyslexia reveal how the disorder is related to differences in structure and function in multiple neural circuits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anila M D'Mello
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge.,McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge
| | - John D E Gabrieli
- Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge.,McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge
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20
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Bornstein MH, Hahn CS, Putnick DL, Pearson RM. Stability of core language skill from infancy to adolescence in typical and atypical development. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2018; 4:eaat7422. [PMID: 30474055 PMCID: PMC6248911 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.aat7422] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/29/2018] [Accepted: 10/24/2018] [Indexed: 05/15/2023]
Abstract
Command of language is a fundamental life skill, a cornerstone of cognitive and socioemotional development, and a necessary ingredient for successful functioning in society. We used 15-year prospective longitudinal data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children to evaluate two types of stability of core language skill in 5036 typically developing and 1056 atypically developing (preterm, dyslexic, autistic, and hearing impaired) children in a multiage, multidomain, multimeasure, multireporter framework. A single core language skill was extracted from multiple measures at multiple ages, and this skill proved stable from infancy to adolescence in all groups, even accounting for child nonverbal intelligence and sociability and maternal age and education. Language skill is a highly conserved and robust individual-differences characteristic. Lagging language skills, a risk factor in child development, would profitably be addressed early in life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marc H. Bornstein
- Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
- Institute for Fiscal Studies, London, UK
| | - Chun-Shin Hahn
- Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Diane L. Putnick
- Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Rebecca M. Pearson
- School of Social and Community Medicine, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
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21
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van Viersen S, de Bree EH, Zee M, Maassen B, van der Leij A, de Jong PF. Pathways Into Literacy: The Role of Early Oral Language Abilities and Family Risk for Dyslexia. Psychol Sci 2018; 29:418-428. [PMID: 29346032 PMCID: PMC5862320 DOI: 10.1177/0956797617736886] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The present study investigated the role of early oral language and family risk for dyslexia in the two developmental pathways toward reading comprehension, through word reading and through oral language abilities. The sample contained 237 children (164 at family risk for dyslexia) from the Dutch Dyslexia Program. Longitudinal data were obtained on seven occasions when children were between 4 and 12 years old. The relationship between early oral language ability and reading comprehension at the age of 12 years was mediated by preliteracy skills and word-decoding ability for the first pathway and by later language abilities for the second pathway. Family risk influenced literacy development through its subsequent relations with preliteracy skills, word decoding, and reading comprehension. Although performance on language measures was often lower for the family-risk group than for the no-family-risk group, family risk did not have a specific relation with either early or later oral language abilities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sietske van Viersen
- 1 Research Institute of Child Development and Education, University of Amsterdam
| | - Elise H de Bree
- 1 Research Institute of Child Development and Education, University of Amsterdam
| | - Marjolein Zee
- 1 Research Institute of Child Development and Education, University of Amsterdam
| | - Ben Maassen
- 2 Centre for Language and Cognition, University of Groningen
| | - Aryan van der Leij
- 1 Research Institute of Child Development and Education, University of Amsterdam
| | - Peter F de Jong
- 1 Research Institute of Child Development and Education, University of Amsterdam
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