Developmental Language Disorders and Executive Function Skills: A Systematic Review of Studies Comparing Executive Function Skills in Children Between 4-7 Years of Age

Yıl 2023, Cilt: 6 Sayı: 1, 72 - 95, 30.04.2023

Elif Erva Bektaşoğlu , Maral Yeşilyurt

https://doi.org/10.58563/dkyad-2023.61.5

Öz

Purpose: Many children with developmental language disorders (DLD) also have difficulties in executive functions. Although the number of studies focusing on this subject has increased in the last two decades, there still is a need to investigate the difficulties experienced in executive function skills in preschool children with DLD. This review aims to examine the studies in the literature comparing the executive function skills of children between the ages of 4-7 with and without DLD, to reveal the differences between the groups, and to inform clinicians about the executive function measurement tools used.

Method: For this purpose, the systematic review procedure was prepared and reported using the PRISMA Statement. Two assessment tools, JBI Cross-sectional Studies and JBI Randomized Controlled Studies, were used to measure the methodological quality of the studies, and the PRISMA Flow Chart was followed in the selection of the studies. Seven studies that met the inclusion criteria and scored high in the methodological quality assessment were included in the review. The total number of children included in these studies were 625, 292 of whom were between the ages of 4;0-6;3 diagnosed with a developmental language disorder and 333 with typical language development.

Results: When the findings of the studies were examined, it was found that children with DLD showed lower performance on tasks measuring executive function skills than children with typical development. Children with DLD scored lower than their TD peers in both verbal and nonverbal cognitive flexibility and working memory tasks, and in verbal inhibition measures. In tasks measuring non-verbal inhibition, some studies found significant differences between groups, while others did not. Although models that want to reveal the possible relationship between language disorders and executive functions have been created, longitudinal studies examining these models are not sufficient in number. Studies published in the literature to date have compared DLD and TD children and found differences in executive function skills, but a causal relationship between language skills and executive function could not be obtained. Longitudinal studies are needed in the literature to examine the relationship between language skills and executive function.


Conclusion: This review reveals that the children with DLD experience problems in executive functions. In line with the findings of the literature, this study emphasises the importance of including executive function skills in the intervention programs provided to these children at early ages for the purpose of improving their language skills and reducing the difficulties that children may experience academically in the future.

Anahtar Kelimeler

developmental language disorder, executive functions, cognitive flexibility, working memory, inhibition

Gelişimsel Dil Bozukluğu ve Yürütücü İşlev Becerileri: 4-7 Yaş Arası Çocuklarda Yürütücü İşlev Becerilerini Karşılaştıran Çalışmaların Sistematik Derlemesi

Öz

Amaç: Gelişimsel dil bozukluğu (GDB) olan çocuklar dilsel becerilerinin yanı sıra, yürütücü işlevlerde de zorluklar yaşamaktadır. Son yirmi yılda, bu konuya odaklanan çalışmaların sayısı artmış olsa da, GDB’ li okul öncesi çocuklarda yürütücü işlev becerilerinde yaşanan güçlüklerin araştırılmasına halen ihtiyaç duyulmaktadır. Bu derleme, alanyazında yer alan 4-7 yaş arası GDB olan ve olmayan çocukların yürütücü işlev becerilerinin karşılaştırıldığı çalışmaları incelemeyi, gruplar arasındaki farkları ortaya koymayı ve kullanılan yürütücü işlev ölçüm araçları hakkında klinisyenlere bilgi vermeyi amaçlamaktadır.

Yöntem: Bu amaç doğrultusunda sistematik derleme prosedürü PRISMA Bildirgesi kullanılarak oluşturulmuş ve raporlanmıştır. Çalışmaların metodolojik kalitelerinin ölçümünde JBI Kesitsel Çalışmalar ve JBI Randomize Kontrollü Çalışmalar için olmak üzere iki değerlendirme aracı kullanılmış olup, çalışmaların seçilmesinde PRISMA Akış Şeması izlenmiştir. Dahil etme kriterlerini karşılayan ve metodolojik kalite değerlendirilmesinde yüksek puan alan yedi çalışma derlemeye dahil edilmiştir. Çalışmaların örneklemini 4;0-6;3 yaş arasında gelişimsel dil bozukluğu olan 292 ve tipik gelişim gösteren 333 olmak üzere toplam 625 çocuk oluşturmaktadır.

Bulgular: Çalışmaların bulguları incelendiğinde, GDB’ li çocukların, tipik gelişim gösteren çocuklara göre yürütücü işlev becerilerini ölçen görevlerde daha düşük performans gösterdiği bulunmuştur.

Sonuç: Bu derleme ile GDB yürütücü işlevlerde yaşadıkları problemler ortaya konmuştur. Alanyazın bulguları doğrultusunda, bu çocuklara erken dönemde sağlanan müdahale programlarında yürütücü işlev becerilerine yönelik uygulamalara da yer verilmesinin önemli olduğu ve çocukların ileri dönemde akademik olarak yaşayabilecekleri zorlukları azaltabileceği düşünülmektedir.

Anahtar Kelimeler

gelişimsel dil bozukluğu, yürütücü işlevler, bilişsel esneklik, çalışma belleği, ketleme

Kaynakça

• Acosta‐Rodríguez, V. M., Ramírez‐Santana, G. M., & Hernández‐Expósito, S. (2022). Intervention for oral language comprehension skills in preschoolers with developmental language disorder. International Journal of Language & Communication Disorders, 57(1), 90-102.
• Akoğlu, G., & Acarlar, F. (2014). Akoğlu, G., & Acarlar, F. (2014). Gelişimsel dil bozukluklarında söz dizimi anlama ve sözel çalışma belleği ilişkisinin incelenmesi. Türk Psikoloji Dergisi (2014) 29(73) 89-10.
• Alloway, T. P., Gathercole, S. E., & Pickering, S. J. (2006). Verbal and visuospatial short‐term and working memory in children: Are they separable?. Child Development, 77(6), 1698-1716.
• Archibald, L. M., & Gathercole, S. E. (2006). Short‐term and working memory in specific language impairment. International Journal of Language & Communication Disorders, 41(6), 675-693.
• Baddeley, A. (1986). Working Memory Oxford University Press, New York.
• Baddeley, A. (2003). Working memory and language: An overview. Journal of communication disorders, 36(3), 189-208.
• Baddeley, A. (2012). Working memory: Theories, models, and controversies. Annual review of psychology, 63, 1-29.
• Bates, E., Dale, P. S., & Thal, D. (2017). Individual differences and their implications for theories of language development. The Handbook of Child Language, 95-151.
• Benham, S., & Goffman, L. (2020). Lexical–semantic cues induce sound pattern stability in children with developmental language disorder. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 63(12), 4109-4126.
• Bishop, D. V., Nation, K., & Patterson, K. (2014). When words fail us: insights into language processing from developmental and acquired disorders. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 369(1634), 2-11.
• Bishop, D. V., Snowling, M. J., Thompson, P. A., Greenhalgh, T., & Catalise Consortium. (2016). CATALISE: A multinational and multidisciplinary Delphi consensus study. Identifying language impairments in children. PLOS one, 11(7), e0158753.
• Blom, E., Berke, R., Shaya, N., & Adi-Japha, E. (2021). Cognitive flexibility in children with Developmental Language Disorder: Drawing of nonexistent objects. Journal of Communication Disorders, 93, 106137. Buchsbaum, B. R. (2016). Working memory and language. In Neurobiology of language (pp. 863-875). Academic Press.
• Carlson, S. M. (2005). Developmentally sensitive measures of executive function in preschool children. Developmental Neuropsychology, 28(2), 595-616.
• Cuevas, K., Rajan, V., & Bryant, L. J. (2017). Emergence of executive function in infancy. In Executive Function (pp. 11-28). Routledge.
• Diamond, A. (2013). Executive functions. Annual Review of Psychology, 64, 135.
• Diamond, A., & Lee, K. (2011). Interventions shown to aid executive function development in children 4 to 12 years old. Science, 333(6045), 959-964.
• Diamond, A., & Ling, D. S. (2016). Conclusions about interventions, programs, and approaches for improving executive functions that appear justified and those that, despite much hype, do not. Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, 18, 34-48.
• Evans, J. L., Gillam, R. B., & Montgomeryc, J. W. (2018). Cognitive Predictors of Spoken Word Recognition in Children With and Without Developmental Language Disorders. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 61, 1409-1425. Farrant, B. M., Maybery, M. T., & Fletcher, J. (2012). Language, cognitive flexibility, and explicit false belief understanding: Longitudinal analysis in typical development and specific language impairment. Child Development, 83(1), 223-235.
• Fuhs, M. W., & Day, J. D. (2011). Verbal ability and executive functioning development in preschoolers at head start. Developmental Psychology, 47(2), 404.
• Gültekin Ahçı, Z. (2016). 3-5 yaş çocuklarının yürütücü işlev performansları ve dil becerileri ile ilişkisi 1. Cumhuriyet International Journal of Education, 5(2), 84.
• Hamamcı, B. (2020). Okul öncesi dönem çocuklarının yürütücü işlev becerilerinin değerlendirilmesi. Unpublished master’s thesis]. Marmara Üniversitesi
• Ibbotson, P., & Kearvell-White, J. (2015). Inhibitory control predicts grammatical ability. PLoS One, 10(12), e0145030.
• Joanna Briggs Institute. (2017). The Joanna Briggs Institute critical appraisal tools for use in JBI systematic reviews. Checklist for Prevalence Studies, 2019-05.
• Kalliontzi, E., Ralli, A. M., Palikara, O., & Roussos, P. (2022). Examining the relationship between oral language skills and executive functions: Evidence from Greek-speaking 4–5-year-old children with and without Developmental Language Disorder. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 124, 104215.
• Kapa, L. L., & Erikson, J. A. (2019). Variability of executive function performance in preschoolers with developmental language disorder. In Seminars in speech and language (Vol. 40, No. 04, pp. 243-255). Thieme Medical Publishers.
• Kapa, L. L., & Erikson, J. A. (2020). The relationship between word learning and executive function in preschoolers with and without developmental language disorder. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 63(7), 2293-2307.
• Kapa, L. L., & Plante, E. (2015). Executive function in SLI: Recent advances and future directions. Current Developmental Disorders Reports, 2, 245-252.
• Kapa, L. L., Plante, E., & Doubleday, K. (2017). Applying an integrative framework of executive function to preschoolers with specific language impairment. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 60(8), 2170-2184.
• Lee, K., Bull, R., & Ho, R. M. (2013). Developmental changes in executive functioning. Child Development, 84(6), 1933-1953.
• Leonard, L. B., Weismer, S. E., Miller, C. A., Francis, D. J., Tomblin, J. B., & Kail, R. V. (2007). Speed of processing, working memory, and language impairment in children. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 50(2), 408-428.
• Lukács, Á., Ladányi, E., & Kemény, F. (2016). Executive functions and the contribution of short-term memory span in children with specific language impairment. Neuropsychology, 30(3), 296.
• Marini, A., Piccolo, B., Taverna, L., Berginc, M., & Ozbič, M. (2020). The complex relation between executive functions and language in preschoolers with Developmental Language Disorders. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(5), 1772.
• McClelland, M. M., Cameron, C. E., Wanless, S. B., Murray, A., Saracho, O., & Spodek, B. (2007). Executive function, behavioral self-regulation, and social-emotional competence. Contemporary Perspectives on Social Learning in Early Childhood Education, 1, 113-137.
• Miller, M. R., Giesbrecht, G. F., Müller, U., McInerney, R. J., & Kerns, K. A. (2012). A latent variable approach to determining the structure of executive function in preschool children. Journal of Cognition and Development, 13(3), 395-423.
• Miyake, A., Friedman, N. P., Emerson, M. J., Witzki, A. H., Howerter, A., & Wager, T. D. (2000). The unity and diversity of executive functions and their contributions to complex “frontal lobe” tasks: A latent variable analysis. Cognitive Psychology, 41(1), 49-100.
• Moher, D., Liberati, A., Tetzlaff, J., Altman, D. G., & PRISMA Group*. (2009). Preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses: the PRISMA statement. Annals of Internal Medicine, 151(4), 264-269. Moraleda-Sepúlveda, E., & López-Resa, P. (2022). Morphological Difficulties in People with Developmental Language Disorder. Children, 9(2), 125.
• National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, 2022 https://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/developmental-language-disorder Erişim tarihi:27/12/2022.
• Pauls, L. J., & Archibald, L. M. (2016). Executive functions in children with specific language impairment: A meta-analysis. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 59(5), 1074-1086.
• Ponitz, C. E. C., McClelland, M. M., Jewkes, A. M., Connor, C. M., Farris, C. L., & Morrison, F. J. (2008). Touch your toes! Developing a direct measure of behavioral regulation in early childhood. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 23(2), 141-158.
• Rodríguez, V. A., Santana, G. R., & Expósito, S. H. (2017). Executive functions and language in children with different subtypes of specific language impairment. Neurología (English Edition), 32(6), 355-362.
• Roello, M., Ferretti, M. L., Colonnello, V., & Levi, G. (2015). When words lead to solutions: Executive function deficits in preschool children with specific language impairment. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 37, 216-222.
• Steenbergen‐Hu, S., Olszewski‐Kubilius, P., & Calvert, E. (2017). PROTOCOL: The direct and indirect effects of school‐based executive function interventions on children and adolescents’ executive function, academic, social‐emotional, and behavioral outcomes: A systematic review. Campbell Systematic Reviews, 13(1), 1-63.
• Vissers, C., Koolen, S., Hermans, D., Scheper, A., & Knoors, H. (2015). Executive functioning in preschoolers with specific language impairment. Frontiers in Psychology, 6, 1574.
• Vugs, B., Hendriks, M., Cuperus, J., & Verhoeven, L. (2014). Working memory performance and executive function behaviors in young children with SLI. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 35(1), 62-74.
• Vygotsky, L. S. (1987). Thinking and speech. The collected works of LS Vygotsky, 1, 39-285.
• Weiland, C., Barata, M. C., & Yoshikawa, H. (2014). The co‐occurring development of executive function skills and receptive vocabulary in preschool‐aged children: A look at the direction of the developmental pathways. Infant and Child Development, 23(1), 4-21.
• Wittke, K., Spaulding, T. J., & Schechtman, C. J. (2013). Specific language impairment and executive functioning: Parent and teacher ratings of behavior. American Journal of Speech Language Paathology, 22(2), 161-172.
• Yang, H. C., & Gray, S. (2017). Executive function in preschoolers with primary language impairment. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 60(2), 379-392.