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Language Beliefs And Practices Of Caregivers In The Deep South, Maria Maldonado Mar 2024

Language Beliefs And Practices Of Caregivers In The Deep South, Maria Maldonado

LSU Master's Theses

The 30 million word gap refers to the disparity in early language exposure between low socioeconomic status (SES) children and their higher SES peers; a gap that is thought to negatively impact children’s language development and future academic success. Although many early intervention approaches have proven effective in promoting language development among low SES children, they often fall short in terms of cultural responsiveness, which in turn affects caregiver buy-in. Culturally and linguistically diverse children disproportionately live in poverty, as such there is a need for research to inform more responsive interventions that take a strengths- based approach and build …


Assessing Word Recognition In Infants With A History Of Chronic Otitis Media, Sarah Wright May 2023

Assessing Word Recognition In Infants With A History Of Chronic Otitis Media, Sarah Wright

Dissertations, 2020-current

Otitis media (OM) is a common ear-related disorder diagnosed in children that can cause a temporary conductive hearing loss. The fluctuating hearing loss may alter auditory processing which may interfere with language development while impacting quality of life for infants and their caregivers (Homøe et al., 2019). In several languages, eleven-month-old infants have shown a preference for familiar words over unfamiliar words using the head-turn preference paradigm. This study examines the effect of chronic OM on the preference for familiar or unfamiliar words in eleven-month-old infants. Fourteen eleven-month-old infants (mean age 344 days) with three or more diagnosed ear infections …


The Role Of Working Memory And Linguistic Knowledge On Language Performance, Theresa Ai Vy Pham Nov 2021

The Role Of Working Memory And Linguistic Knowledge On Language Performance, Theresa Ai Vy Pham

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

The language system is highly flexible and draws on distinct but interconnected cognitive mechanisms, including verbal working memory and long-term linguistic knowledge. Verbal working memory is the ability to manipulate verbal information in mind. Long-term linguistic knowledge refers to our knowledge of the language (i.e., phonology, semantics, syntax), stored in long-term memory. The close interaction between verbal working memory and linguistic knowledge highlights a pressing need to investigate the construct of verbal working memory, its separability and its relationship with linguistic knowledge. To understand the way working memory influences and interacts with language abilities in children and adults, I ask …


The Examination Of Morpho-Syntactic Production In Bahamian Children Exposed To Bahamian Creole English And English, Danielle Moss Dec 2020

The Examination Of Morpho-Syntactic Production In Bahamian Children Exposed To Bahamian Creole English And English, Danielle Moss

Dissertations, 2020-current

Purpose. Information on the morpho-syntax development of children who speak varieties of Bahamian English, such as Bahamian Creole English (BCE), remains understudied. Therefore, speech-language pathologists (SLPs) assessing the expressive language of children who speak BCE encounter challenges in making clinical judgments of language difference, developmental errors, and language disorder because they are unable to judge the morpho-syntactic features of this creole to the rules of another variety of Bahamian English, standard English (SE1), as both varieties, BCE and SE, are independently rule-governed. This dissertation study investigated the morpho-syntax of typically developing four and six-year-old Bahamian children who speak …


Examination Of Language Skills In Children Who Attend Head Start Programs, Madilyn Littlefield May 2020

Examination Of Language Skills In Children Who Attend Head Start Programs, Madilyn Littlefield

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Socioeconomic status and poverty can greatly affect child development and have lasting impacts throughout life. Children who are raised in a low socioeconomic status homes may experience limited parent sensitivity, limited parental engagement, and limited access to stimulating materials. These factors may also limit opportunities to experience rich language and literacy experiences which can negatively impact development of emergent literacy skills and later educational growth. To reduce the effects of poverty on school readiness, income-based childcare programs allow families access to affordable early school readiness opportunities that are developmentally appropriate. Head Start programs are designed to facilitate child development, provide …


Language-Deprived Environments: Neonatal Intensive Care Units And Hearing Loss, Margaret Caesar Jan 2020

Language-Deprived Environments: Neonatal Intensive Care Units And Hearing Loss, Margaret Caesar

Undergraduate Honors Thesis Collection

Adequate language exposure is crucial for speech-language development in children. Previous research suggests that decreased language exposure leads to an increased risk for speech-language developmental delays. This study aims to explore the language exposure of two arguably language-deprived environments: Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICU) and severe-to-profound hearing loss. This is a two-part study that examines caregiver-infant interactions through the analysis of infant-directed speech (IDS). In the first part of the study, researchers transcribed and analyzed pre-recorded Language Environment Analysis (LENA) audio recordings of five (5) infants with severe-to-profound hearing loss (6-months post cochlear implantation). These LENA recordings collected speech, language, …


The Role Of Socio-Economic Status On The Language Output Of 3-6 Year Old's During A Naturalistic Museum Study, Serena K. Mueller Jan 2020

The Role Of Socio-Economic Status On The Language Output Of 3-6 Year Old's During A Naturalistic Museum Study, Serena K. Mueller

Honors Theses and Capstones

Over the past 50 years, the lexical nature of young children’s multi-word utterances has been disputed. We ask how socioeconomic status (SES) impacts content and function word usage, and how function word use impacts MLU. Findings show that SES positively correlates with content word production and MLU, which contributes to our knowledge on how SES shapes language and highlights the need for its consideration across settings.


Pupillometry As A Test Of Infant Word Recognition, Amy Vinyard Dec 2018

Pupillometry As A Test Of Infant Word Recognition, Amy Vinyard

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

Pupillometry holds great promise as a tool for infant language research but has not yet been used to probe word recognition. The goal of the described study was to design a functioning method that can later be used to test the possibility of using pupil dilation as a gauge of word recognition in 11-month-olds. To do this, we used the methods of an existing study (The Role of Accentual Pattern in Early Lexical Representation, Vihman, Nakai, DePaolis, & Hallé 2004) with modifications. Our method ran a one-sided head turn preference paradigm with the addition of an eye tracker for pupil …


Autism Spectrum Disorder : Investigating Predictive Diagnostic Relationships In Children Three Years-Of-Age And Younger., Kaitlin Juergensen May 2018

Autism Spectrum Disorder : Investigating Predictive Diagnostic Relationships In Children Three Years-Of-Age And Younger., Kaitlin Juergensen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a heterogeneous neurodevelopmental disorder whose symptoms may involve deficits across three domains: communication, socialization, and atypical behaviors or interests. With a high prevalence across populations and a tendency to impact males more so than females, early and accurate diagnosis appears critical. The most current literature on ASD provides a myriad of difficulties associated with diagnosis under the age of three years. The purpose of this study was to determine if a predictive relationship exists between a child’s individual developmental domain standard deviation (SD) subscale scores (motor, language, cognitive, social-emotional, and adaptive skills) on the Bayley …


A Multi-Generational Deaf Family: A Case Study On Literacy, Rubecca Sue Wilson May 2017

A Multi-Generational Deaf Family: A Case Study On Literacy, Rubecca Sue Wilson

MSU Graduate Theses

Literacy is a crucial component of life in our society, and the journey to becoming fluent readers begins before conventional classroom instruction. Literacy rates of adults who are deaf and hard of hearing are consistently in the fourth grade, age nine to ten years, range. In order to help build more skilled readers who are deaf and hard of hearing, it is critical to increase understanding of how deafness affects the development of literacy. This case study was of a family of six with all members' deaf and American Sign Language (ASL) as their first language. The purpose of this …


Gender Differences In Parents' Assessment Of Language Development, Michelle Lacroix Jan 2017

Gender Differences In Parents' Assessment Of Language Development, Michelle Lacroix

Honors Theses and Capstones

This study aims to determine if there is a statistically significant difference between genders in the reporting of their child’s communication abilities. Possible variances between men and women are important to consider because parent-based questionnaires are often used to help identify children who are in need and eligible for the services of a speech-language pathologist. Literature surrounding parental stereotypes and the impact of the parent in development, as well as stigma in relation to the need for speech therapy services is explored. A survey based off of the Ages and Stages Questionnaire, Third Edition was distributed to parents of children …


The Influence Of Social Context On Communication And Restricted And Repetitive Behaviors In Autism, Shannon Campbell Jan 2017

The Influence Of Social Context On Communication And Restricted And Repetitive Behaviors In Autism, Shannon Campbell

Honors Theses

Two of the most salient features of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are impairments in communication and engagement in restricted and repetitive behaviors (RRBs). The goal of this study was to identify the effects of social context on both the occurrence of RRBs and social language performance in children with ASD. In this study, we defined the social context of a situation based on the primary focus (object or conversation) and the initiator of the interaction (child or experimenter). We performed a frequency count of RRBs as well as a mean length of utterance (MLU) analysis for play tasks with variations …


The Relation Between Auditory Integration, Inspection Time, And Language In Children, Rachael E. Smyth Jul 2015

The Relation Between Auditory Integration, Inspection Time, And Language In Children, Rachael E. Smyth

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

It has been proposed that impairment in auditory temporal integration (ATI) may be related to impaired language development in children, although results have been inconsistent. We investigated the relation between ATI and language development and whether it is domain-specific (i.e., isolated to the auditory system) or domain-general (i.e., part of a larger, global processing system) using behavioural measures. We measured ATI and global processing speed using experimental tasks, and language and intelligence using standardized tests, in 26 5-6 year old children with typical development. Results revealed no significant relations between ATI and language, between ATI and global processing speed, or …


The Effects Of Sign On Speech Segmentation In Infants, Alma Rosa Acosta Jan 2015

The Effects Of Sign On Speech Segmentation In Infants, Alma Rosa Acosta

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Introduction: The ability to extract words from fluent speech (speech segmentation), perhaps one of the greatest obscure achievements for the purpose of learning language, is dependent upon imperceptible endeavors. Remarkably, infants are active participants from the moment they are born, using auditory and visual information to assist them segmenting speech. As motivated parents attempt to use baby sign to bridge communication gaps, visual information in the form of baby sign may benefit children in extracting words from speech. To examine the effects of baby sign on speech segmentation, a systematic replication of the Hollich et al. (2005) study, a within-subject …


Early Intervention Of Parent-Infant Interactions In Preterm Infants: A Systematic Review, Stacey Osborne Jan 2015

Early Intervention Of Parent-Infant Interactions In Preterm Infants: A Systematic Review, Stacey Osborne

Theses : Honours

Every year approximately 15 million babies are born preterm. These infants are at an increased risk of language, and other developmental delays due to their immature brain development and higher incidence of brain abnormalities. They also have poorer health outcomes in the early stages of life which may go on to hinder successful parent-infant interactions. Successful parent-infant interactions are important for infant developmental outcomes such as language, cognition and behaviour. While interventions targeting the promotion of positive interactions have been found to have positive effects in a number of populations to date, interactions involving preterm infants have not been explored. …


Benefits Of Baby Sign On Cognitive Development In Infants, Clarissa Navedo Jan 2013

Benefits Of Baby Sign On Cognitive Development In Infants, Clarissa Navedo

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Research in the area of baby sign language has increased dramatically over the past several years, however there is still a lack of research regarding baby signs effects on typical infant development, specifically in the area of cognition. The hypothesis of this study was that instruction of baby sign would be correlated with a significant increase in the development of cognition and language acquisition for infant participants. This study provided a five-week instructional course on baby sign for parents/caregivers to implement with their typically developing infants (n=11). The course provided instruction of baby signs, methods of implementation and encouragement to …


Noun Clauses In Clinical Child Language Samples, Christine Beate Scoville Dec 2012

Noun Clauses In Clinical Child Language Samples, Christine Beate Scoville

Theses and Dissertations

Noun clauses are grammatical constructions that are of relevance both to typical language development and impaired language development. These clauses have been part of published techniques for the clinical analysis of language samples, and computer software for the automated analysis of clinical language samples has attempted to identify noun clauses, with limited success. The present study examined the development and clinical use of noun clauses as well as the automated identification of these clauses. Two sets of language samples were examined. One set consisted of 10 children with specific language impairment (SLI) whose age ranged from 7;6 to 11;1 (years;months), …


The Elan Event-Related Potential In Children 5 To 12 Years Of Age, Melissa Crandall Jun 2010

The Elan Event-Related Potential In Children 5 To 12 Years Of Age, Melissa Crandall

Theses and Dissertations

The examination of Event Related Potentials during language processing tasks provides valuable information of how the brain processes language over time. In the current study, the development of the early left anterior negativity (ELAN) was analyzed in young children. Previous research has described the ELAN as a negative waveform elicited during syntactic processing between 200 and 500 ms post linguistic stimuli. Thirty children from 5 to 12 years of age listened to sentences that were linguistically correct, syntactically incorrect, or semantically incorrect. Sentences were presented for right monaural, left monaural, and binaural ear conditions to determine possible differences related to …


The Co-Development Of Manual And Vocal Activity In Infants, Holly Meadowsweet Koegler May 2010

The Co-Development Of Manual And Vocal Activity In Infants, Holly Meadowsweet Koegler

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

Manual and vocal actions in humans are coupled throughout the lifespan, from the anticipatory opening of the mouth as the hand moves to meet it in natal development to the more sophisticated co-expressive gesture of the proficient communicator (Iverson & Thelen, 1999). By adulthood, the systems supporting both speech and manual actions of gesture are so wholly integrated that the expression of both actions together is seamless and effortless (Gentilucci & Nicoladis, 2008). Both systems, though controlled by different muscles moving different articulators, exhibit parallels in their development and organization (Meier & Willerman, 1995). The manual control supporting gesture emerges …


The N400 Event-Related Potential In Children Across Sentence Type And Ear Condition, Laurie Anne Hansen Mar 2010

The N400 Event-Related Potential In Children Across Sentence Type And Ear Condition, Laurie Anne Hansen

Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated the neurophysiology of semantic language processing in children, ages 5 to 12 years. A well-established marker of semantic processing, the N400 event related potential (ERP), was analyzed within and across child age groups. Child N400s were recorded in response to correct sentences, semantically incorrect sentences, and syntactically incorrect sentences. N400s were also recorded across ear condition to examine potential processing differences. Children across all age groups consistently demonstrated N400s in the semantic error condition. N400s were also regularly observed in the syntactic error condition; especially, for younger children. Younger children also demonstrated N400s even in response to …


The P600 Event-Related Potential Across Ages And Ear Conditions, Kyla Lewis Tree Dec 2009

The P600 Event-Related Potential Across Ages And Ear Conditions, Kyla Lewis Tree

Theses and Dissertations

Studying language development through event-related potentials provides specific information regarding how the brain processes specific aspects of language over time. In this study, the P600 component, a positive wave occurring approximately 600 ms post-stimulus and known for detecting syntactic errors, was specifically analyzed. Thirty children between the ages of 5 and 12 years listened to linguistically correct, syntactically incorrect, and semantically incorrect sentences in three ear conditions: monaurally to the right ear, monaurally to the left ear, and binaurally. The participants were instructed to judge the sentences to be correct or incorrect. Comparisons were then made of the latency and …


Effects Of Otitis Media On Language Development In Native Populations: A Review Of The Literature, Monica Malmgren May 1993

Effects Of Otitis Media On Language Development In Native Populations: A Review Of The Literature, Monica Malmgren

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

From the time a fetus reaches about 20 weeks gestational age, its auditory system is functioning. Before we are ever born, we are exposed to sounds within our environment. With birth, we begin to interact with, experiment with, and learn to interpret the sounds around us. Before learning to speak, we are bombarded by the sounds of our language. An infant's head is known to perk up at the sound of a voice, a sudden noise, music... all the sounds of the environment, which is evidence that children are aware of the sounds around them before they are ever able …