Expressive Vocabulary Predicts Nonverbal Executive Function: A 2‐year Longitudinal Study of Deaf and Hearing Children

Abstract

Numerous studies suggest an association between language and executive function (EF), but evidence of a developmental relationship remains inconclusive. Data were collected from 75 deaf/hard‐of‐hearing (DHH) children and 82 hearing age‐matched controls. Children were 6–11 years old at first time of testing and completed a battery of nonverbal EF tasks and a test of expressive vocabulary. These tasks were completed again 2 years later. Both groups improved their scores on all tasks over this period. DHH children performed significantly less well than hearing peers on some EF tasks and the vocabulary test at both time points. Cross‐lagged panel models showed that vocabulary at Time 1 predicted change in EF scores for both DHH and hearing children but not the reverse.

The relationship between reasoning and language ability: comparing children with cochlear implants and children with typical hearing

“…A negative influence of poorer overall language ability [49], as well as of productive vocabulary [50,51] has been found in other studies. The results from the studies of Botting et al [50] and Jones et al [51] suggest that weaker productive vocabulary skills have a negative influence on non-verbal executive function development. The results from the current study suggest that receptive grammar might influence non-verbal analogical reasoning.…”

Early Cognitive Predictors of 9-Year-Old Spoken Language in Children With Mild to Severe Hearing Loss Using Hearing Aids

“…In a similar vein, as noted earlier, both Botting et al (2017) and Jones et al (2019) reported evidence to suggest that language ability predicts executive function in children with hearing loss, but executive function does not, in turn, predict language outcomes. Botting et al (2017) conducted a mediation analysis using concurrent measures of language and executive function, and showed that language ability mediated differences in executive function between groups of deaf and hearing children.…”

“…The current research aimed to shed light on this unresolved issue. In doing so, the intention was not to evaluate the reciprocal view, that early language impacts later cognitive ability, because that view has not been cast into doubt on the basis of recent research (e.g., Botting et al, 2017; Jones et al, 2019). On the other hand, neither Botting et al (2017) nor Jones et al (2019) found evidence for an influence of cognitive ability on language outcomes, an important finding that warrants further attention.…”

“…More specifically, after controlling for language, group no longer predicted executive function; whereas after controlling for executive function, group differences in language remained significant. On the other hand, Jones et al (2019) used longitudinal data to demonstrate that early expressive vocabulary (assessed at around 8 years of age) predicted later executive function (at around 10 years old), but not the reverse.…”

“…In comparing the results of the studies by Botting et al (2017) and Jones et al (2019) with the findings from studies of cochlear implant users, two important methodological differences are noteworthy. As already mentioned, participants in the studies by Botting et al (2017) and Jones et al (2019) constituted a more diverse group of children using hearing aids or cochlear implants and various modes of communication, including British Sign Language, Sign supported English, or spoken English. In addition, language was assessed using a single measure of expressive vocabulary and executive function using a battery of explicitly non-verbal measures.…”