Language-Appropriate Assessment Improves Central Auditory Processing Evaluation of Spanish-English Bilinguals

Area of Science:

• Audiology
• Neuroscience
• Linguistics

Background:

• Central Auditory Processing Disorder (CAPD) evaluations often use language-dependent tests.
• The impact of testing in a secondary language on CAPD assessment for nonnative English speakers is not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate how test language (Spanish vs. English) affects CAPD assessment performance in Spanish-English bilingual speakers.
• To determine if bilingual auditory processing differs when assessed in native versus secondary languages.

Main Methods:

• A repeated-measures study involving 25 Spanish-English bilingual participants.
• Assessment of binaural integration and separation using dichotic digits, competing words, and competing sentences in both Spanish and English.
• Comparison of performance across languages to identify language-based impacts on auditory processing.

Main Results:

• Performance on challenging auditory tasks varied significantly by language.
• Participants showed poorer performance or interaural asymmetries on English tests compared to Spanish tests.
• Increasing age exacerbated language differences in performance.

Conclusions:

• Assessing Spanish-English bilinguals in only one language may not capture the full scope of their auditory processing.
• A bilingual assessment approach, incorporating both native and nonnative languages, offers richer clinical insights for CAPD diagnosis and intervention in bilingual populations.