Abstract
What memory systems underlie grammar in children, and do these differ between typically developing (TD) children and children with specific language impairment (SLI)? Whilst there is substantial evidence linking certain memory deficits to the language problems in children with SLI, few studies have investigated multiple memory systems simultaneously, examining not only possible memory deficits but also memory abilities that may play a compensatory role. This study examined the extent to which procedural, declarative, and working memory abilities predict receptive grammar in 45 primary school aged children with SLI (30 males, 15 females) and 46 TD children (30 males, 16 females), both on average 9;10 years of age. Regression analyses probed measures of all three memory systems simultaneously as potential predictors of receptive grammar. The model was significant, explaining 51.6% of the variance. There was a significant main effect of learning in procedural memory and a significant group × procedural learning interaction. Further investigation of the interaction revealed that procedural learning predicted grammar in TD but not in children with SLI. Indeed, procedural learning was the only predictor of grammar in TD. In contrast, only learning in declarative memory significantly predicted grammar in SLI. Thus, different memory systems are associated with receptive grammar abilities in children with SLI and their TD peers. This study is, to our knowledge, the first to demonstrate a significant group by memory system interaction in predicting grammar in children with SLI and their TD peers. In line with Ullman’s Declarative/Procedural model of language and procedural deficit hypothesis of SLI, variability in understanding sentences of varying grammatical complexity appears to be associated with variability in procedural memory abilities in TD children, but with declarative memory, as an apparent compensatory mechanism, in children with SLI.
Highlights
Specific language impairment (SLI) is a neurodevelopmental disorder that affects around 3–7% of children (Tomblin et al, 1997; American Psychiatric Association, 2000), and can have serious impacts on a child’s life (Conti-Ramsden et al, 2012)
This study shows that receptive grammar is associated with different memory systems in children with specific language impairment (SLI) and typically developing (TD) children
It is associated with only procedural memory in TD children, and mainly with declarative memory in children with SLI, perhaps with some influence of working memory
Summary
Specific language impairment (SLI) is a neurodevelopmental disorder that affects around 3–7% of children (Tomblin et al, 1997; American Psychiatric Association, 2000), and can have serious impacts on a child’s life (Conti-Ramsden et al, 2012). It needs to be noted that the definition of SLI continues to rely more on exclusionary criteria (e.g., the lack of hearing and intelligence deficits, or the absence of co-morbidity with other disorders such as autism) than on a specification of the difficulties. This state of affairs is no longer tenable, and a swell of discussion and consultation have, ensued in academic venues (see Bishop, 2014; Conti-Ramsden, 2014; Reilly et al, 2014a) as well as in social media (see, for example, https://twitter.com/deevybee). In the absence of such a new agreed-upon diagnostic label, we continue to use the term SLI, while fully acknowledging its limitations
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