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Expressive versus receptive language skills in specific reading disorder
Vesna Stojanovik1, Patricia Riddell
1School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, Reading, UK. v.stojanovik@reading.ac.uk
Clinical Linguistics & Phonetics
|April 17, 2008
Summary
Children with specific reading disorder often have weaker receptive language skills than expressive language skills. This finding aligns with neuro-anatomical models predicting this difference in reading development.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Neuroscience
- Linguistics
Background:
- Specific reading disorder (SRD) affects reading development.
- Previous research has not differentiated between expressive and receptive language skills in children with SRD.
- Neuro-anatomical models suggest potential differences in language processing in SRD.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the difference between expressive and receptive language skills in children with specific reading difficulty.
- To test the prediction from neuro-anatomical models regarding language skill disparities in SRD.
Main Methods:
- A sample of 17 children aged 7-12 years with specific reading difficulty participated.
- Participants were assessed using a battery of two receptive and two expressive language measures.
Main Results:
- Children with specific reading difficulty scored significantly lower on receptive language measures compared to expressive language measures.
- The results support the hypothesis derived from neuro-anatomical models.
Conclusions:
- Children with specific reading difficulty exhibit a specific deficit in receptive language skills compared to expressive skills.
- These findings have implications for understanding the neuro-linguistic profile of reading disorders and inform targeted interventions.
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