Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES:Pragmatic language skills form the foundation for conversational competence, whereas deficits in this area are associated with behavioral problems and low literacy skills. Children who are deaf or hard of hearing demonstrate significant delays in this critical area of language. Our purpose with this research was to identify variables associated with pragmatic language ability in children who are deaf or hard of hearing.METHODS:This was a longitudinal study of 124 children with bilateral hearing loss between 4 and 7 years of age living in Colorado. As part of a comprehensive speech and language assessment, pragmatic language skills were evaluated annually by using the Pragmatics Checklist.RESULTS:The children’s pragmatic skills increased significantly with age. Higher levels of pragmatic language ability at 7 years of age were predicted by (1) meeting Early Hearing Detection and Intervention 1–3–6 guidelines (hearing screening by 1 month, identification of hearing loss by 3 months, and receiving intervention by 6 months of age), (2) greater quantity of parent talk, (3) higher nonverbal intelligence, (4) lesser degrees of hearing loss, and (5) higher maternal education.CONCLUSIONS:With the findings of this study, we underscore the importance of pediatricians and other health care professionals counseling parents about the value of adherence to the Early Hearing Detection and Intervention 1–3–6 guidelines with regard to intervention outcomes. The strong association between amount of child-directed parent talk in the first 4 years of life and pragmatic language outcomes at 7 years of age emphasizes the need for professionals to encourage parents to talk to their children as much as possible.
Highlights
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVESPragmatic language skills form the foundation for conversational competence, whereas deficits in this area are associated with behavioral problems and low literacy skills
The strong association between amount of child-directed parent talk in the first 4 years of life and pragmatic language outcomes at 7 years of age emphasizes the need for professionals to encourage parents to talk to their children as much as possible
Deficits in pragmatic language ability have been associated with lower levels of literacy[13,14,15] and an increased incidence of behavioral problems.[16,17]
Summary
This was a longitudinal study of 124 children with bilateral hearing loss between 4 and 7 years of age living in Colorado. As part of a comprehensive speech and language assessment, pragmatic language skills were evaluated annually by using the Pragmatics Checklist. This was a longitudinal study of 124 children with bilateral, prelingual hearing loss from 3 years, 9 months to 7 years, 3 months of age (mean = 5 years, 6 months). All participants lived in Colorado, had hearing parents, and were from homes in which the primary language was spoken English. During the birth-to-3-year period, the families received early intervention services (1 hour per week) from the Colorado Home Intervention Program.
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