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Code-Switching During Narratives by Bilingual Children With and Without Developmental Language Disorder.

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Children with developmental language disorder (DLD) show distinct code-switching (CS) patterns in Spanish-English narratives, using more between-utterance CS and specific within-utterance structures, aiding in language assessment.

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Area of Science:

  • Linguistics
  • Child Language Acquisition
  • Clinical Linguistics

Background:

  • Bilingual children frequently engage in code-switching (CS), the alternation between two languages within discourse.
  • Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) can impact various aspects of language, including the complex linguistic behaviors of bilingual children.
  • Understanding CS patterns in bilingual children with DLD is crucial for accurate language assessment and intervention.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the frequency, direction, and structural characteristics of code-switching (CS) in Spanish-English bilingual children with and without developmental language disorder (DLD).
  • To determine if children with DLD exhibit unique CS features that can inform clinical decision-making.
  • To analyze the relationship between CS patterns and morphosyntactic proficiency in both languages.

Main Methods:

  • A cohort of Spanish-English bilingual children aged 4;0-6;11, with DLD (n=33) and typical language development (TLD; n=33), participated.
  • Participants completed narrative retell and story generation tasks in both Spanish and English.
  • Code-switching instances were classified (between-utterance vs. within-utterance), and within-utterance CS was analyzed for grammatical structure. Morphosyntactic proficiency was assessed using the Bilingual English-Spanish Assessment.

Main Results:

  • Children with DLD were more likely to use between-utterance CS (producing whole utterances in English during a Spanish narrative) compared to TLD peers.
  • Within-utterance CS was linked to lower morphosyntax scores in the target language, but DLD status did not significantly affect this.
  • Noun insertions were the most common within-utterance CS type for both groups; however, children with DLD showed more determiner/verb insertions and congruent lexicalization.

Conclusions:

  • Code-switching, especially within-utterance CS, is a normal bilingual behavior, even in single-language contexts.
  • Specific CS patterns, including between-utterance and certain within-utterance structures, may indicate language difficulties associated with DLD.
  • Analyzing CS patterns provides valuable insights into the dual-language skills of children, contributing to a more comprehensive assessment profile.