Sources of variability in the prospective relation of language to social, emotional, and behavior problem symptoms: Implications for developmental language disorder.

Abstract

Children with developmental language disorder (DLD) are at risk for social, emotional, and behavioral (SEB) maladjustment throughout development, though it is unclear if poor language proficiency per se can account for this risk as associations between language and SEB appear more variable among typical-language children. This study investigated whether the relationship between language and SEB problems is stronger at very low levels of language and considered confounders including socioeconomic status, sex, and nonverbal intelligence. These were examined using a population-based survey design, including children with a wide range of language and cognitive profiles, and assessed using the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire and six standardized language measures (n = 363, weighted n = 6,451). Structural equation models adjusted for prior levels of SEB revealed that the relationship of language at age 5-6 years to SEB at 7-9 years was nonlinear. Language more strongly predicted all clusters of SEB at disordered language levels relative to typical language levels, with standardized betas of À.25 versus .03 for behavioral, À.31 versus À.04 for peer, and .27 versus .03 for prosocial problems. Wald tests between these pairs of betas yielded p values from .049 to .014. Sex moderated the nonlinear association between language and emotional symptoms. These findings indicate a clinical need to support language development in order to mitigate against problems of SEB and to carefully monitor the mental health needs of children with DLD, particularly in the context of multiple, and potentially sex-specific, risks. General Scientific SummaryChildren with a marked deficit in language have higher rates of behavioral and emotional disorders in later life. However, studies among typically developing children do not always find a link between language and symptoms of emotional behavioral disorders. This study supports the notion of unequal risk, where the risk is amplified for children with very low levels of language.

A Case for Early Language and Behavior Screening: Implications for Policy and Child Development

“…Children with language disorders are about twice as likely to develop later behavior problems (Yew & O’Kearney, 2013). Not only does language relate to later behavior problems, but the strength of this relation is greater in samples of children with developmental language disorders than in community samples (Goh et al, 2021). Together, these findings suggest that children with language delays are more likely to have similar delays in social-emotional development and may be particularly susceptible to developing internalizing and externalizing behavior problems.…”

Understanding the prevalence and manifestation of the anxiety and social difficulties experienced by children with Developmental Language Disorder.

“…For example, it is possible that experiencing anxiety could contribute towards preference for sameness as a way of coping with uncertainty (39). Conversely, preference for sameness could either itself contribute to the manifestation of anxiety (149), or the relationship between the two could be bidirectional (150,151). Nonetheless, the use of a mediation analysis suggests a direction between many of the variables, namely DLD diagnosis, anxiety, IU, ER and social frustration.…”

Early Identification of Developmental Language Delay

“…Children with DLD experience more difficulties in daily functioning compared with typically developing children. They have an increased risk for social, emotional, and behavioral problems (Goh et al, 2021; Lindsay et al, 2007; Rieffe & Wiefferink, 2017; Schoon et al, 2010; van Daal et al, 2007; Vermeij et al, 2021). Children with DLD experience lower levels of peer acceptance, have fewer friends, and are more often bullied by their peers (Lindsay et al, 2007; van den Bedem, Dockrell, van Alphen, Kalicharan, et al, 2018; van den Bedem, Willems, et al, 2018).…”