Spatio‐visual memory of children with specific language impairment: evidence for generalized processing problems

Abstract

The results indicate that the memory limitations of children with SLI are not restricted to verbal memory, and this fact has implications for its aetiology. Intervention programmes for young children with SLI need to extend beyond language in order to help them develop strategies for processing information in different situations.

Short-Term Memory Skills in Children With Specific Language Impairment

“…This finding of no difference on the block span recall task between the children with SLI and their TD peers is in contrast to the finding by Bavin et al (2005) who showed a small but reliable difference between the two groups on a computerized spatial span task. The reason for this difference is not entirely clear but may be because the sample in Bavin et al (2005) was much younger or because they used a computerised task. The finding in the present study may indicate that many children with SLI do not experience domain-general deficits with memory load.…”

“…Children with SLI, who by definition have verbal difficulties, have been reported to show nonverbal difficulties as well (Bavin et al, 2005;Hick et al 2005), particularly in memory span tasks. This study attempted to unpack that finding further by exploring the degree to which the visual and verbal input and response-mode elements of a task might be involved in short term memory performance for all children and whether children with SLI would differ in this regard from their typically developing peers.…”

“…Research now reports a wide range of cognitive difficulties in some children with SLI, including problems with longer term procedural memory systems (Lum, Gelgic & Conti-Ramsden, 2010;Lum et al, 2012), visual/spatial short term memory (Bavin et al, 2005;Hick et al, 2005), and non-verbal executive function tasks (Henry, Messer and Nash, 2012). Botting (2005) reported on a large group of children with SLI aged 11 who were recruited to longitudinal research with normal non-verbal IQ (NVIQ) at 7 years of age.…”

“…For many of the tasks, it is possible self-directed speech or verbal encoding might have been used by children for whom such abilities come naturally. Studies by Hick et al (2005) and Bavin et al (2005) are exceptions in that the researchers attempted to take this factor into account by using a variety of verbal and non-verbal tasks. However, no studies to date have attempted to manipulate verbal load systematically to investigate this boundary.…”

Specific language impairment as systemic developmental disorders

“…Long-term memory is known to be deficient in dyslexia (Nicolson & Fawcett, 2000), and it could also play a role in SLI. Computation load has often been singled out as a key problem for children with SLI (Bavin, Wilson, Maruff, & Sleeman, 2005), but whether this problem is specific to language remains to be seen. Problems with sequential material are often mentioned in connection with phonology, but they are also important for syntax and could exist in other dimensions of cognition.…”