Methods of Diagnosing Speech Sound Disorders in Multilingual Children

Area of Science:

• Speech-language pathology
• Developmental linguistics
• Cross-cultural communication

Background:

• Accurate identification of speech sound disorder (SSD) in multilingual children presents significant challenges for speech-language pathologists (SLPs) due to limited clinical resources.
• Existing diagnostic tools and approaches often favor monolingual speakers, creating a gap in effective assessment for diverse linguistic backgrounds.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe features of multilingual speech acquisition.
• To identify evidence-based resources for the differential diagnosis of SSD in understudied language groups.
• To demonstrate the implementation of culturally responsive practices in various linguistic contexts.

Main Methods:

• The study examined diagnostic approaches for multilingual children aged 2-8 years.
• Methods included analyzing adult speech models, conducting validation studies, and refining evidence-informed techniques.
• These approaches were applied across four distinct language paradigms in diverse global settings (Jamaica, Australia, Belgium, Iceland).

Main Results:

• Key findings include the identification of dialect-specific features relevant to SSD diagnosis.
• Validation of tools for assessing functional speech intelligibility and production accuracy in multilingual children was successful.
• The utility of various diagnostic techniques across different linguistic contexts was demonstrated.

Conclusions:

• Culturally responsive methods provide a valuable framework for SLPs' diagnostic practices with multilingual children.
• Effective application of these practices necessitates adaptation to local linguistic, cultural, and geographic contexts.
• This research supports more equitable and accurate diagnosis of SSD in diverse populations.