ERIC Number: EJ1283731
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2021-Jan
Pages: 7
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1092-4388
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Is One Ear Good Enough? Unilateral Hearing Loss and Preschoolers' Comprehension of the English Plural
Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, v64 n1 p272-278 Jan 2021
Purpose: The plural is one of the first grammatical morphemes acquired by English-speaking children with normal hearing (NH). Yet, those with hearing loss show delays in both plural comprehension and production. However, little is known about the effects of unilateral hearing loss (UHL) on children's acquisition of the plural, where children's ability to perceive fricatives (e.g., the /s/ in "cats") can be compromised. This study therefore tested whether children with UHL were able to identify the grammatical number of newly heard words, both singular and plural. Method: Eleven 3- to 5-year-olds with UHL participated in a novel word two-alternative forced choice task presented on an iPad. Their results were compared to those of 129 NH 3- to 5-year-olds. During the task, children had to choose whether an auditorily presented novel word was singular (e.g., "tep," "koss") or plural (e.g., "teps," "kosses") by touching the appropriate novel picture. Results: Like their NH peers, children with UHL demonstrated comprehension of novel singulars. However, they were significantly less accurate at identifying novel plurals, with performance at chance. However, there were signs that their ability to identify novel plurals may improve with age. Conclusion: While comparable to their NH peers at identifying novel singulars, these results suggest that young children with UHL do not yet have a robust representation of plural morphology, particularly on words they have not encountered before.
Descriptors: Hearing Impairments, Hearing (Physiology), Preschool Children, Auditory Perception, Listening Comprehension, Morphemes, Accuracy, Auditory Discrimination, Foreign Countries, Language Processing
American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. 2200 Research Blvd #250, Rockville, MD 20850. Tel: 301-296-5700; Fax: 301-296-8580; e-mail: slhr@asha.org; Web site: http://jslhr.pubs.asha.org
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Australia
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A