engleski

Modality as s predictor of processing speed

To study language acquisition also means to study the cognitive abilities that underlie language development. One of the most important underlying cognitive mechanisms is working memory (WM). The working memory enables processing of verbal information, storage, recall and manipulation of language knowledge and influence indirectly the acquisition of new words or reading abilities. The same mechanism has been often related with Specific Language Impairment (SLI). This connection was framed within information processing theories of SLI. Information processing theories emphasise the impact of inadequate functioning of WM on language development. Lower capacity and speed, and less efficient performance are the main characteristics of WM functioning in the group of children with SLI. The aim of this study was to test two WM efficiency measures within the frame of information processing theories of SLI, that is, performance and speed of processing in relation to type of input modality. Consequently, the second aim was to assess what type of modality will discriminate best the two tested groups. Ten SLI children and ten typical developing children (TDC) were tested (the mean in both groups was 9 year) using the Stenberg paradigm with four input modalities (words, pseudowords, lines and pictures). Analyses on two variables (speed and accuracy) showed that processing of sequences of words had the most discriminative value on both variables.

working memory; Specific Language Impairment (SLI); information processing theory

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