Work

The repetition of language-specific non-words: A weak clinical marker for language-related disorders in German-speaking monolingual and multilingual children

Year: 2024

Type: article

Abstract: Non-word repetition (NWR) is often utilized for the assessment of phonological short-term memory (PSTM) and as a clinical marker for language-related disorders. In this study, associations between children's language competence and their performance in language-specific NWR tasks as well as the relevance of NWR for the prediction of language development were scrutinized. German preschoolers (N = 1,801) were compared regarding their performance in NWR, German vocabulary, and articulation. For 141 children, results of a school enrolment test were available. Multilingual children performed as well as monolingual German-speaking children in NWR only under the condition of comparable German language skills. NWR performance depended on item length, children's vocabulary and articulation skills and was weakly associated with language-related medical issues. The predictive power of NWR for children's performance in the school enrolment test was minimal. To conclude, chosen German-based NWR tasks did not deliver convincing results as a clinical marker or predictor of language development.

Source: The Canadian Journal of Linguistics / La revue canadienne de linguistique

DOI: 10.1017/cnj.2024.31

Authors: Eugen Zaretsky, Benjamin P. Lange

Institutions: Philipps University of Marburg, IU International University of Applied Sciences

Language: English

Topic: Language Development and Disorders

Subfield: Developmental and Educational Psychology

Field: Psychology

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: bronze

OpenAlex ID: W4408534947