Abstract
BackgroundNonword repetition, the ability to retain and repeat unfamiliar sequences of phonemes is usually impaired in children with specific language impairment (SLI), but it is unclear whether this explains slow language learning. Traditional nonword repetition tests involve a single presentation of nonwords for immediate repetition. Here we considered whether rate of learning of novel phonological sequences was impaired when the same items were presented repeatedly.Methodology/Principal FindingsThree complex nonwords were each presented for repetition five times in two sessions (A and B) separated by one hour. We studied both adults and children from (i) families with a child with SLI and (ii) families whose children did not have SLI. This gave a 2×2 design with familial SLI as one factor, and age (up to or above 18 years) as the other. Overall, participants from families with SLI were poorer at nonword repetition than their peers from typical-language families, and there was a trend for children with SLI to show less within-session learning than typically developing children. However, between-session retention, measured as the difference between the last trial from session 1 and the first trial of session 2, showed a significant age effect, η2 = .139, p = .004, regardless of family SLI status. Adult participants showed a decrease in score from the last trial of session A to the first trial of session B, whereas children maintained their level of performance, regardless of whether or not they had SLI.Conclusions/SignificancePoor nonword repetition in SLI appears to reflect inadequate encoding of phonological information, rather than problems retaining encoded information. Furthermore, the nonword learning task is consistent with the notion of a sensitive period in language learning: Children show better retention over a delay for new phonological sequences than adults, regardless of overall level of language ability.
Highlights
* E-mail: dorothy.bishop@psy.ox.ac.uk ¤ Current address: MRC Institute of Hearing Research, Nottingham Clinical Section, Queens Medical Centre, Nottingham, United Kingdom. People vary in their language-learning ability; some have language-learning problems in the context of otherwise normal development and are diagnosed with specific language impairment (SLI), a strongly heritable condition affecting around 3–7% of children [1]
Poor nonword repetition is well-established as a correlate of SLI [8], there remains some debate concerning the extent to which this impairment is responsible for languagelearning problems
From an analysis of error patterns and response latencies, they concluded that the problems with nonword repetition were not caused by poor auditory perception or motor execution, and were more likely due to the way in which new information was encoded in phonological memory, with reliance on holistic rather than segmented representations
Summary
People vary in their language-learning ability; some have language-learning problems in the context of otherwise normal development and are diagnosed with specific language impairment (SLI), a strongly heritable condition affecting around 3–7% of children [1]. From an analysis of error patterns and response latencies, they concluded that the problems with nonword repetition were not caused by poor auditory perception or motor execution, and were more likely due to the way in which new information was encoded in phonological memory, with reliance on holistic rather than segmented representations. This suggests, that the task indexes poor encoding of phonological information, rather than rapid decay in memory. Regardless of SLI status, adults tended to show a decline in performance after a delay, whereas children did not
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