Toward an Understanding of Developmental Language Disorder in Adults: Investigating the Relationship Between Cognitive Abilities and Linguistic Outcomes
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Blake, A., Dąbrowska, E., & Llompart, M. (2025). Toward an Understanding of Developmental Language Disorder in Adults: Investigating the Relationship Between Cognitive Abilities and Linguistic Outcomes. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 68(8), 3895-3918.
Key terms that are in this paper
Language analytic ability: recognising what different parts of a sentence do, and where words belong in a sentence (i.e., their grammatical functions).
Form–meaning pairs: the association between a word and its meaning.
Aim of the paper
This study explored the relationship between cognition (thinking) and language in adults with DLD and adults with typical language development.
The study included 60 participants.
30 adults with DLD.
30 adults with typical language development.
Participants took part in tasks which measured different parts of their cognition and language.
The researchers looked at participants’...
Nonverbal IQ (intelligence).
Learning of word–meaning pairs.
Pattern learning.
Speed of understanding language.
What was found
Adults with DLD struggled more with language than adults with typical language development.
In both groups, those with better language analytic ability had better word knowledge.
Language analytical ability only predicted grammar in the DLD group.
Adults with DLD benefitted from explicitly learning form–meaning pairs.
Adults with DLD performed just as well as adults with typical language in thinking abilities, for example pattern learning.
Adults with DLD spent more time completing both thinking and language tasks than adults with typical language.
What does this mean?
Individuals with DLD face difficulties with language processing into adulthood.
Language analytical ability is important for understanding language outcomes in people with and without DLD.
Explicitly learning form–meaning pairs is useful for people with DLD.
Adults with DLD may require more processing time when completing thinking and language tasks.
Where can I read this paper?
If you are part of an institution which has purchased access, you can read this paper here.
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