Caregivers' vocabulary use for children with cochlear implants and children with normal hearing during the first year...

This study compared caregivers' use of content words (common nouns, verbs, adjectives) in speech directed to young children with cochlear implants (CIs) and those with normal hearing (NH). Specifically, we examined potential group differences in caregivers' use of content words during the first year following CI activation. We analyzed free play interactions for three groups of 12 caregiver-child dyads: (1) caregivers of children with CIs (mean age at activation = 13.77 months, SD = 4.31), (2) caregivers of NH children matched by hearing experience to the CI group (NHE), and (3) caregivers of NH children matched by chronological age to the CI group (NCA). Interactions were recorded at 3, 6, and 12 months post-activation (or equivalent). Caregivers' speech was transcribed and coded to measure the number of words (tokens) and unique word forms (types) for each content word class. Linear mixed-effects models showed a marginally significant effect of group on word tokens. A significant difference in word types was found between the CI group and both NH groups. Caregivers of younger NH children used more tokens and types than caregivers of children with CIs. Children with NH experience more word tokens and greater word variety in caregiver speech compared to children with CIs during their first year of robust hearing. This richer input may benefit NH children's language development, while children with CIs may experience different patterns of exposure to a variety of word types, reflecting their current developmental levels. Further research is needed to explore how caregiver speech affects language outcomes in children with CIs.