Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 1, 2026
Measuring Statistical Learning Across Modalities and Domains in School-Aged Children Via an Online Platform and Neuroimaging Techniques
Published on: June 30, 2020
Differences in the performance of children with specific language impairment and their typically developing peers on
Purpose:
This study used meta-analysis to investigate the difference in nonverbal cognitive test performance of children with specific language impairment (SLI) and their typically developing (TD) peers.
Method:
The meta-analysis included studies (a) that were published between 1995 and 2012 of children with SLI who were age matched (and not nonverbal cognitive matched) to TD peers and given a norm-referenced nonverbal cognitive test and (b) that reported sufficient data for an effect size analysis. Multilevel modeling was used to examine the performance of children with SLI relative to their typically developing, age-matched peers on nonverbal IQ tests.
Results:
Across 138 samples from 131 studies, on average children with SLI scored 0.69 standard deviations below their TD peers on nonverbal cognitive tests after adjusting for the differences in the tests used, the low-boundary cutoff scores, the age of the participants, and whether studies matched the two groups on socioeconomic status.
Discussion:
The lower performance of children with SLI relative to TD children on nonverbal IQ tests has theoretical implications for the characterization of SLI and clinical and political implications regarding how nonverbal cognitive tests are used and interpreted for children with this disorder.
