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Josvassen JL, Hedegaard VAM, Jørgensen ML, Percy-Smith L. The Effect of LENA (Language ENvironment Analysis) for Children with Hearing Loss in Denmark including a Pilot Validation for the Danish Language. J Clin Med 2024; 13:2688. [PMID: 38731217 PMCID: PMC11084579 DOI: 10.3390/jcm13092688] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2024] [Revised: 04/27/2024] [Accepted: 04/30/2024] [Indexed: 05/13/2024] Open
Abstract
Background/Objectives: This study aimed to investigate whether day-long recordings with Language Environment Analysis (LENA) can be utilized in a hospital-based Auditory Verbal Therapy (AVT) program in Denmark for children with hearing loss and to conduct a pilot validation in the Danish language. Methods and materials: A license for the LENA system (LENA SP) was purchased, and trials were offered to three families enrolled in the AVT program. Each family made two day-long recordings with 3-4 months in between and received feedback during the therapy sessions. From 18 × 10-min clips randomly pulled out of the recordings, a comparison of adult word counts (AWC) between the LENA algorithm counts and the counts made by two human transcribers was made and used for the pilot validation. Results: LENA proved to be valuable as a guiding tool for Danish parents. Pilot validation showed good correlations and an acceptable limit of agreement (LoA). Conclusions: LENA holds the potential for Danish validation and use in AVT/clinical practice. When used in clinical practice, parents must be informed of the biases and limitations, and possible ethical issues must be considered. Because of the GDPR rules, there is a need to discuss the possibility of implementing this tool clinically in Denmark and the EU.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jane Lignel Josvassen
- Copenhagen Hearing and Balance Center, Rigshospitalet, Inge Lehmannsvej 8, Opgang 8, 3. Sal, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark; (V.A.M.H.); (L.P.-S.)
| | - Victoria Amalie Michael Hedegaard
- Copenhagen Hearing and Balance Center, Rigshospitalet, Inge Lehmannsvej 8, Opgang 8, 3. Sal, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark; (V.A.M.H.); (L.P.-S.)
| | - Mie Lærkegård Jørgensen
- Department of Health Technology, Hearing Systems Section, Computational Auditory Modeling, Technical University of Denmark (DTU), Ørsteds Plads, Bygning 352, 2800 Kongens Lyngby, Denmark;
| | - Lone Percy-Smith
- Copenhagen Hearing and Balance Center, Rigshospitalet, Inge Lehmannsvej 8, Opgang 8, 3. Sal, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark; (V.A.M.H.); (L.P.-S.)
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Szarkowski A, Moeller MP, Gale E, Smith T, Birdsey BC, Moodie STF, Carr G, Stredler-Brown A, Yoshinaga-Itano C, Holzinger D. Family-Centered Early Intervention Deaf/Hard of Hearing (FCEI-DHH): Cultural & Global Implications. JOURNAL OF DEAF STUDIES AND DEAF EDUCATION 2024; 29:SI27-SI39. [PMID: 38422445 DOI: 10.1093/deafed/enad036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2022] [Revised: 08/06/2023] [Accepted: 08/07/2023] [Indexed: 03/02/2024]
Abstract
This article is the third in a series of eight articles that comprise this special issue on family-centered early intervention for children who are deaf or hard of hearing and their families (FCEI-DHH). It highlights the origins of FCEI-DHH in Western contexts and well-resourced locations and emphasizes the role of culture(s) in shaping FCEI-DHH. This article also cautions against the direct application of the 10 FCEI-DHH Principles presented in this issue across the globe without consideration of cultural implications. Cultural perceptions of decision-making processes and persons who can be decision-makers in FCEI-DHH are explored. Deaf culture(s) and the benefits of exposure to DHH adults with diverse backgrounds are introduced. Structural inequities that impact families' access to FCEI-DHH programs/services and systems, within and among nations and regions, are noted. The need to consider the cultural influences on families is emphasized; this applies to all levels of FCEI, including the development of systems through implementation of supports.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amy Szarkowski
- The Institute, Children's Center for Communication/Beverly School for the Deaf, Beverly, MA, United States
- Institute for Community Inclusion, University of Massachusetts Boston, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Mary Pat Moeller
- Center for Childhood Deafness, Language & Learning, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Omaha, NE, United States
| | - Elaine Gale
- School of Education, Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Program, Hunter College, City University of New York, New York, NY, United States
| | | | - Bianca C Birdsey
- Global Coalition of Parents of Children Who Are Deaf or Hard of Hearing (GPODHH), Durban, South Africa
| | - Sheila T F Moodie
- Health Sciences, School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Western University, London, ON, Canada
| | - Gwen Carr
- Early Hearing Detection and Intervention and Family Centered Practice, London, United Kingdom
| | - Arlene Stredler-Brown
- Colorado Early Hearing Detection and Intervention, Colorado Department of Human Services, Denver, CO, United States
| | | | - Daniel Holzinger
- Institute of Neurology of Senses and Language, Hospital of St. John of God, Linz, Austria
- Research Institute for Developmental Medicine, Johannes Kepler University, Linz, Austria
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Szarkowski A, Moeller MP, Gale E, Smith T, Birdsey BC, Moodie STF, Carr G, Stredler-Brown A, Yoshinaga-Itano C, Holzinger D. Family-Centered Early Intervention Deaf/Hard of Hearing (FCEI-DHH): Support Principles. JOURNAL OF DEAF STUDIES AND DEAF EDUCATION 2024; 29:SI64-SI85. [PMID: 38422442 DOI: 10.1093/deafed/enad039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2022] [Revised: 07/07/2023] [Accepted: 08/31/2023] [Indexed: 03/02/2024]
Abstract
This article is the sixth in a series of eight articles that comprise a special issue on Family-Centered Early Intervention (FCEI) for children who are deaf or hard of hearing (DHH) and their families, or FCEI-DHH. The Support Principles article is the second of three articles that describe the 10 Principles of FCEI-DHH, preceded by the Foundation Principles, and followed by the Structure Principles, all in this special issue. The Support Principles are composed of four Principles (Principles 3, 4, 5, and 6) that highlight (a) the importance of a variety of supports for families raising children who are DHH; (b) the need to attend to and ensure the well-being of all children who are DHH; (c) the necessity of building the language and communication abilities of children who are DHH and their family members; and (d) the importance of considering the family's strengths, needs, and values in decision-making.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amy Szarkowski
- The Institute, Children's Children's Center for Communication/Beverly School for the Deaf, Beverly, MA, United States
- Institute for Community Inclusion, University of Massachusetts Boston, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Mary Pat Moeller
- Center for Childhood Deafness, Language & Learning, Boys Town National Research Hospital, Omaha, NE, United States
| | - Elaine Gale
- School of Education, Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Program, Hunter College, City University of New York, New York, NY, United States
| | | | - Bianca C Birdsey
- Global Coalition of Parents of Children who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing (GPODHH), Durban, South Africa
| | - Sheila T F Moodie
- Health Sciences, School of Communication Sciences & Disorders, Western University, London, ON, Canada
| | - Gwen Carr
- Early Hearing Detection and Intervention and Family Centered Practice, London, United Kingdom
| | - Arlene Stredler-Brown
- Colorado Early Hearing Detection and Intervention Program, Colorado Department of Human Services, Denver, CO, United States
| | | | - Daniel Holzinger
- Institute of Neurology of Senses and Language, Hospital of St. John of God, Linz, Austria
- Research Institute for Developmental Medicine, Johannes Kepler University, Linz, Austria
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Levin-Asher B, Segal O, Kishon-Rabin L. The validity of LENA technology for assessing the linguistic environment and interactions of infants learning Hebrew and Arabic. Behav Res Methods 2023; 55:1480-1495. [PMID: 35668342 DOI: 10.3758/s13428-022-01874-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 05/06/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
The present study assessed LENA's suitability as a tool for monitoring future language interventions by evaluating its reliability, construct validity, and criterion validity in infants learning Hebrew and Arabic, across low and high levels of maternal education. Participants were 32 infants aged 3 to 11 months (16 in each language) and their mothers, whose socioeconomic status (SES) was determined based on their years of education (H-high or L-low ME-maternal education). The results showed (1) good reliability for the LENA's automatic count on adult word count (AWC), conversational turns (CTC), and infant vocalizations (CVC), based on the positive associations and fair to excellent agreement between the manual and automatic counts; (2) good construct validity based on significantly higher counts for HME vs. LME and positive associations between LENA's automatic vocal assessment (AVA) and developmental questionnaire (DA) and age; and (3) good concurrent criterion validity based on the positive associations between the LENA counts for CTC, CVC, AVA, and DA and the scores on the preverbal parent questionnaire (PRISE). The present study supports the use of LENA in early intervention programs for infants whose families speak Hebrew or Arabic. The LENA could be used to monitor the efficacy of these programs as well as to provide feedback to parents on the amount of language experience their infants are getting and their progress in vocal production. The results also indicate a potential utility of LENA in assessing linguistic environments and interactions in Hebrew- and Arabic-speaking infants with developmental disorders, such as hearing impairment and cerebral palsy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bonnie Levin-Asher
- Department of Communication Disorders, Steyer School of Health Professions Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel.
| | - Osnat Segal
- Department of Communication Disorders, Steyer School of Health Professions Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel
| | - Liat Kishon-Rabin
- Department of Communication Disorders, Steyer School of Health Professions Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel-Aviv University, Tel Aviv-Yafo, Israel
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Ma Y, Jonsson L, Yao Z, Zhang X, Friesen D, Medina A, Rozelle S, Pappas L. The home language environment in rural China: variations across family characteristics. BMC Public Health 2023; 23:354. [PMID: 36797712 PMCID: PMC9936727 DOI: 10.1186/s12889-023-15245-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2022] [Accepted: 02/09/2023] [Indexed: 02/18/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND A rich language environment is an important element of a nurturing home environment. Despite their proven importance, vocabulary and conversation have been shown to vary widely across households-even within the same socio-economic class. One significant gap in the existing literature is its nearly exclusive geographic focus on Western and developed settings, with little attention given to poorer communities in lower/middle income countries. The purpose of this study was to empirically illustrate the characteristics of the home language environment in the low SES, non-Western cultural setting of rural China. METHODS Using Language Environment Analysis (LENA) automated language-analysis system, this study measured the home language environment of 38 children aged 20-27 months in Northwest rural China. Our primary measures of the home language environment were Adult Word Count (AWC), Conversational Turn Count (CTC) and Child Vocalization Count (CVC). Multivariate linear regression models were used to examine the association between home language environment and family/child characteristics, and language skills (Measured by MacArthur-Bates Communicative Developmental Inventory score). RESULTS In this paper, by comparison, we found that the home language environment of our rural sample fell far behind that of urban households. We also identify significant, positive correlations between language skills and both AWC and CTC. Our analysis finds no significant correlations between home language environment and family/child characteristics. CONCLUSION In this paper, we present the first ever findings using the LENA system to measure the home language environment of young children from poor rural communities in China. We found that the home language environment of lower-SES household was significantly worse than high-SES households, and demonstrated the importance of the home language environment to language skills, pointing to a need for more high-quality studies of the home language environment in rural China to better understand possible mechanisms behind low levels of parent-child language engagement and ways to improve the home language environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yue Ma
- grid.168010.e0000000419368956Rural Education Action Program, Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA USA
| | - Laura Jonsson
- grid.168010.e0000000419368956Rural Education Action Program, Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA USA
| | - Zixin Yao
- grid.168010.e0000000419368956Rural Education Action Program, Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA USA ,grid.21729.3f0000000419368729Economics Department, Columbia University, New York City, USA
| | - Xinwu Zhang
- School of Public Administration, Northwest University, 1 Xuefu Road, Chang'an District, 710127, Xi'an, Shaanxi, PR China.
| | - Dimitris Friesen
- grid.168010.e0000000419368956Rural Education Action Program, Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA USA
| | - Alexis Medina
- grid.168010.e0000000419368956Rural Education Action Program, Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA USA
| | - Scott Rozelle
- grid.168010.e0000000419368956Rural Education Action Program, Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA USA
| | - Lucy Pappas
- grid.168010.e0000000419368956Rural Education Action Program, Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA USA
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Piot L, Havron N, Cristia A. Socioeconomic status correlates with measures of Language Environment Analysis (LENA) system: a meta-analysis. JOURNAL OF CHILD LANGUAGE 2022; 49:1037-1051. [PMID: 34180383 DOI: 10.1017/s0305000921000441] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Using a meta-analytic approach, we evaluate the association between socioeconomic status (SES) and children's experiences measured with the Language Environment Analysis (LENA) system. Our final analysis included 22 independent samples, representing data from 1583 children. A model controlling for LENATM measures, age and publication type revealed an effect size of r z = .186, indicating a small effect of SES on children's language experiences. The type of LENA metric measured emerged as a significant moderator, indicating stronger effects for adult word counts than child vocalization counts. These results provide important evidence for the strength of association between SES and children's everyday language experiences as measured with an unobtrusive recording analyzed automatically in a standardized fashion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leonardo Piot
- Laboratoire de Sciences Cognitives et de Psycholinguistique, Département d'Etudes cognitives, ENS, EHESS, CNRS, PSL University, France
| | - Naomi Havron
- Laboratoire de Sciences Cognitives et de Psycholinguistique, Département d'Etudes cognitives, ENS, EHESS, CNRS, PSL University, France
- University of Haifa, Israel
| | - Alejandrina Cristia
- Laboratoire de Sciences Cognitives et de Psycholinguistique, Département d'Etudes cognitives, ENS, EHESS, CNRS, PSL University, France
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VanDam M, Thompson L, Wilson-Fowler E, Campanella S, Wolfenstein K, De Palma P. Conversation Initiation of Mothers, Fathers, and Toddlers in their Natural Home Environment. COMPUT SPEECH LANG 2022; 73:101338. [PMID: 34970021 PMCID: PMC8713565 DOI: 10.1016/j.csl.2021.101338] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
In a conversational exchange, interlocutors use social cues including conversational turn-taking to communicate. There has been attention in the literature concerning how mothers, fathers, boys, and girls converse with each other, and in particular who initiates a conversation. Better understanding of conversational dynamics may deepen our understanding of social roles, speech and language development, and individual language variability. Here we use large-scale automatic analysis of 186 naturalistic daylong acoustic recordings to examine the conversational dynamics of 26 families with children about 30 months of age to better understand communication roles. Families included 15 with boys and 11 with girls. There was no difference in conversation initiation rate by child sex, but children initiated more conversations than mothers, and mothers initiated more than fathers. Results support developmental theories of the different and variable roles that interlocutors play in a social context.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark VanDam
- Speech & Hearing Sciences, Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine, Washington State University, 412 E. Spokane Falls Blvd, Spokane, WA, 99202, USA
- Hearing Oral Program of Excellence of Spokane, HOPE School, 502 E. 5 Ave., Spokane, WA 99202, USA
| | - Lauren Thompson
- Speech & Hearing Sciences, Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine, Washington State University, 412 E. Spokane Falls Blvd, Spokane, WA, 99202, USA
| | - Elizabeth Wilson-Fowler
- Communication Sciences and Disorders, Eastern Washington University, 310 North Riverpoint Blvd, Box B, Spokane, WA, 99202, USA
| | - Sarah Campanella
- Speech & Hearing Sciences, Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine, Washington State University, 412 E. Spokane Falls Blvd, Spokane, WA, 99202, USA
| | - Kiley Wolfenstein
- Speech & Hearing Sciences, Elson S. Floyd College of Medicine, Washington State University, 412 E. Spokane Falls Blvd, Spokane, WA, 99202, USA
| | - Paul De Palma
- Computer Science, School of Engineering and Applied Science, Gonzaga University, 502 E. Boone Ave., Spokane, WA, 99258, USA
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Pace A, Rojas R, Bakeman R, Adamson LB, Tamis-LeMonda CS, O'Brien Caughy M, Owen MT, Suma K. A Longitudinal Study of Language Use During Early Mother-Child Interactions in Spanish-Speaking Families Experiencing Low Income. JOURNAL OF SPEECH, LANGUAGE, AND HEARING RESEARCH : JSLHR 2022; 65:303-319. [PMID: 34890248 PMCID: PMC9150737 DOI: 10.1044/2021_jslhr-21-00329] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2021] [Revised: 08/18/2021] [Accepted: 09/09/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE This longitudinal study assessed continuity and stability of productive language (vocabulary and grammar) and discourse features (turn-taking; asking and responding to questions) during mother-child play. METHOD Parent-child language use in 119 Spanish-speaking, Mexican immigrant mothers and their children at two ages (M = 2.5 and 3.6 years) was evaluated from transcriptions of interactions. RESULTS Child productive language significantly increased over the year, whereas mothers showed commensurate increases in vocabulary diversity but very little change in grammatical complexity. Mother-child discourse was characterized by discontinuity: Mothers decreased their turn length and asked fewer questions while children increased on both measures. Rates of responding to questions remained high for both mothers and children even as children increased and mothers decreased over time. Mothers and children showed significant rank-order stability in productive language and measures of discourse. Mothers' rate of asking questions and children's responses to questions during the first interaction predicted children's receptive vocabulary a year later. CONCLUSIONS As children become more sophisticated communicators, language input remains important, with discourse features growing in relevance. Children's early opportunities to respond to parents' questions in the context of play benefit their language skills. This work extends the evidence base from monolingual English-speaking families and is interpreted in the context of prior research on parenting practices in U.S. families of Mexican origin.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amy Pace
- University of Washington, Seattle
| | - Raúl Rojas
- The University of Texas at Dallas, Richardson
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9
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Cychosz M, Villanueva A, Weisleder A. Efficient Estimation of Children's Language Exposure in Two Bilingual Communities. JOURNAL OF SPEECH, LANGUAGE, AND HEARING RESEARCH : JSLHR 2021; 64:3843-3866. [PMID: 34520232 PMCID: PMC9132038 DOI: 10.1044/2021_jslhr-20-00755] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/10/2023]
Abstract
Purpose The language that children hear early in life is associated with their speech-language outcomes. This line of research relies on naturalistic observations of children's language input, often captured with daylong audio recordings. However, the large quantity of data that daylong recordings generate requires novel analytical tools to feasibly parse thousands of hours of naturalistic speech. This study outlines a new approach to efficiently process and sample from daylong audio recordings made in two bilingual communities, Spanish-English in the United States and Quechua-Spanish in Bolivia, to derive estimates of children's language exposure. Method We employed a general sampling with replacement technique to efficiently estimate two key elements of children's early language environments: (a) proportion of child-directed speech (CDS) and (b) dual language exposure. Proportions estimated from random sampling of 30-s segments were compared to those from annotations over the entire daylong recording (every other segment), as well as parental report of dual language exposure. Results Results showed that approximately 49 min from each recording or just 7% of the overall recording was required to reach a stable proportion of CDS and bilingual exposure. In both speech communities, strong correlations were found between bilingual language estimates made using random sampling and all-day annotation techniques. A strong association was additionally found for CDS estimates in the United States, but this was weaker at the Bolivian site, where CDS was less frequent. Dual language estimates from the audio recordings did not correspond well to estimates derived from parental report collected months apart. Conclusions Daylong recordings offer tremendous insight into children's daily language experiences, but they will not become widely used in developmental research until data processing and annotation time substantially decrease. We show that annotation based on random sampling is a promising approach to efficiently estimate ambient characteristics from daylong recordings that cannot currently be estimated via automated methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Margaret Cychosz
- Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences, University of Maryland, College Park
- Center for Comparative and Evolutionary Biology of Hearing, College Park, MD
| | - Anele Villanueva
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL
| | - Adriana Weisleder
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL
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10
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MARCHMAN VA, WEISLEDER A, HURTADO N, FERNALD A. Accuracy of the Language Environment Analyses (LENA TM) system for estimating child and adult speech in laboratory settings. JOURNAL OF CHILD LANGUAGE 2021; 48:605-620. [PMID: 32690113 PMCID: PMC8178803 DOI: 10.1017/s0305000920000380] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Laboratory observations are a mainstay of language development research, but transcription is costly. We test whether speech recognition technology originally designed for day-long contexts can be usefully applied to this use-case. We compared automated adult word and child vocalization counts from Language Environment Analysis (LENATM) to those of transcribers in 20-minute play sessions with Spanish-speaking dyads (n = 104) at 1;7 and 2;2. For adult words, results indicated moderate associations but large absolute differences. Associations for child vocalizations were weaker with larger absolute discrepancies. LENA has moderate potential to ease the burden of transcription in some research and clinical applications.
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11
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Tulviste T, Tamm A. Is silence golden? A pilot study exploring associations between children's language environment and their language skills in Estonian-speaking families. J Exp Child Psychol 2021; 207:105096. [PMID: 33684893 DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2021.105096] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2020] [Revised: 01/06/2021] [Accepted: 01/07/2021] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
This two-wave longitudinal study explored how Estonian children's language environment relates to their language skills. The Language ENvironment Analysis (LENA) system's automated measures were used as a source of information about children's home language environment. Children's expressive vocabulary was measured via the parent-reported Estonian CDI III (ECDI-III), and language comprehension and production were measured via the examiner-administered New Reynell Developmental Language Scales (NRDLS). The assessments were made 1 year apart at ages 3;0 (years; months) (N = 22) and 4;0 (N = 19). The results revealed wide variability in children's home language environment and language skills. Girls' language production scores were higher; they heard a larger quantity of adult words and spent less time in noisy environments than boys at Wave 2. At Wave 1, children's word count was positively associated with productive language scores, whereas silence was negatively associated with language production and expressive vocabulary. At Wave 2, children who had been more exposed to electronic media scored higher on expressive vocabulary. Distant speech at Wave 1 was positively correlated with language comprehension scores at Wave 2 also when controlling for language comprehension scores at Wave 1. The results, which indicate that distant talk is a positive aspect and silence is a negative aspect of the language environment, highlight the importance of "languagizing" homes also in cultures where silence tends to be more highly valued and talkativeness tends to be less highly valued when compared with English-speaking middle-class families.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tiia Tulviste
- Institute of Psychology, University of Tartu, 50409 Tartu, Estonia.
| | - Anni Tamm
- Department of Developmental Psychology, University of Tartu, 50409 Tartu, Estonia
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Cychosz M, Romeo R, Soderstrom M, Scaff C, Ganek H, Cristia A, Casillas M, de Barbaro K, Bang JY, Weisleder A. Longform recordings of everyday life: Ethics for best practices. Behav Res Methods 2020; 52:1951-1969. [PMID: 32103465 PMCID: PMC7483614 DOI: 10.3758/s13428-020-01365-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
Recent advances in large-scale data storage and processing offer unprecedented opportunities for behavioral scientists to collect and analyze naturalistic data, including from underrepresented groups. Audio data, particularly real-world audio recordings, are of particular interest to behavioral scientists because they provide high-fidelity access to subtle aspects of daily life and social interactions. However, these methodological advances pose novel risks to research participants and communities. In this article, we outline the benefits and challenges associated with collecting, analyzing, and sharing multi-hour audio recording data. Guided by the principles of autonomy, privacy, beneficence, and justice, we propose a set of ethical guidelines for the use of longform audio recordings in behavioral research. This article is also accompanied by an Open Science Framework Ethics Repository that includes informed consent resources such as frequent participant concerns and sample consent forms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Margaret Cychosz
- Department of Linguistics, University of California, 1203 Dwinelle Hall, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA.
| | - Rachel Romeo
- Boston Children's Hospital and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Boston, MA, USA
| | | | - Camila Scaff
- Human Ecology Group, Institute of Evolutionary Medicine, University of Zurich, Zürich, Switzerland
| | | | - Alejandrina Cristia
- Laboratoire de Sciences Cognitives et de Psycholinguistique, Département d'études cognitives, ENS, EHESS, CNRS, PSL University, Paris, France
| | - Marisa Casillas
- Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Kaya de Barbaro
- Department of Psychology, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Janet Y Bang
- Department of Psychology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Adriana Weisleder
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Northwestern University, 2240 Campus Dr., Frances Searle Building, Room 3-358, Evanston, IL, 60208, USA.
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13
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Sultana N, Wong LLN, Purdy SC. Analysis of Amount and Style of Oral Interaction Related to Language Outcomes in Children With Hearing Loss: A Systematic Review (2006-2016). JOURNAL OF SPEECH, LANGUAGE, AND HEARING RESEARCH : JSLHR 2019; 62:3470-3492. [PMID: 31479621 DOI: 10.1044/2019_jslhr-l-19-0076] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Purpose This systematic review summarizes the evidence for differences in the amount of language input between children with and without hearing loss (HL). Of interest to this review is evaluating the associations between language input and language outcomes (receptive and expressive) in children with HL in order to enhance insight regarding what oral language input is associated with good communication outcomes. Method A systematic review was conducted using keywords in 3 electronic databases: Scopus, PubMed, and Google Scholar. Keywords were related to language input, language outcomes, and HL. Titles and abstracts were screened independently, and full-text manuscripts meeting inclusion criteria were extracted. An appraisal checklist was used to evaluate the methodological quality of studies as poor, good, or excellent. Results After removing duplicates, 1,545 study results were extracted, with 27 eligible for full-text review. After the appraisal, 8 studies were included in this systematic review. Differences in the amount of language input between children with and without HL were noted. Conversational exchanges, open-ended questions, expansions, recast, and parallel talk were positively associated with stronger receptive and expressive language scores. The quality of evidence was not assessed as excellent for any of the included studies. Conclusions This systematic review reveals low-level evidence from 8 studies that specific language inputs (amount and style) are optimal for oral language outcomes in children with HL. Limitations were identified as sample selection bias, lack of information on control of confounders and assessment protocols, and limited duration of observation/recordings. Future research should address these limitations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nuzhat Sultana
- Division of Speech and Hearing Sciences, Faculty of Education, The University of Hong Kong, China
| | - Lena L N Wong
- Division of Speech and Hearing Sciences, Faculty of Education, The University of Hong Kong, China
| | - Suzanne C Purdy
- School of Psychology, The University of Auckland, New Zealand
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Orena AJ, Byers-Heinlein K, Polka L. Reliability of the Language Environment Analysis Recording System in Analyzing French-English Bilingual Speech. JOURNAL OF SPEECH, LANGUAGE, AND HEARING RESEARCH : JSLHR 2019; 62:2491-2500. [PMID: 31194915 DOI: 10.1044/2019_jslhr-l-18-0342] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Purpose This study examined the utility of the Language ENvironment Analysis (LENA) recording system for investigating the language input to bilingual infants. Method Twenty-one French-English bilingual families with a 10-month-old infant participated in this study. Using the LENA recording system, each family contributed 3 full days of recordings within a 1-month period. A portion of these recordings (945 minutes) were manually transcribed, and the word counts from these transcriptions were compared against the LENA-generated adult word counts. Results Data analyses reveal that the LENA algorithms were reliable in counting words in both Canadian English and Canadian French, even when both languages are present in the same recording. While the LENA system tended to underestimate the amount of speech in the recordings, there was a strong correlation between the LENA-generated and human-transcribed adult word counts for each language. Importantly, this relationship holds when accounting for different-gendered and different-accented speech. Conclusions The LENA recording system is a reliable tool for estimating word counts, even for bilingual input. Special considerations and limitations for using the LENA recording system in a bilingual population are discussed. These results open up possibilities for investigating caregiver talk to bilingual infants in more detail.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adriel John Orena
- School of Communication Sciences & Disorders, McGill University, Montréal, Quebec, Canada
- Centre for Research in Brain, Language and Music, Montréal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Krista Byers-Heinlein
- School of Communication Sciences & Disorders, McGill University, Montréal, Quebec, Canada
- Centre for Research in Brain, Language and Music, Montréal, Quebec, Canada
- Department of Psychology, Concordia University, Montréal, Quebec, Canada
- Centre for Research in Human Development, Montréal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Linda Polka
- School of Communication Sciences & Disorders, McGill University, Montréal, Quebec, Canada
- Centre for Research in Brain, Language and Music, Montréal, Quebec, Canada
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Ganek H, Nixon S, Smyth R, Eriks-Brophy A. A Cross-cultural Mixed Methods Investigation of Language Socialization Practices. JOURNAL OF DEAF STUDIES AND DEAF EDUCATION 2019; 24:128-141. [PMID: 30597063 DOI: 10.1093/deafed/eny037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2018] [Revised: 11/08/2018] [Accepted: 11/15/2018] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
This embedded mixed methods study explores how cultural differences in language socialization practices influence parent-child verbal interactions. The Language ENvironment Analysis (LENA) System audio recorded families of children who are and are not deaf and hard of hearing in Canada and Vietnam. Software automatically calculated an average conversational turn count. Canadian families participated in more turns than Vietnamese families regardless of hearing status. Interviews with the children's caregivers provided context for these results. Within Vietnamese families, the language socialization practice "Intelligence" results in reduced opportunities for turn-taking, while the Canadian focus on creating personal "Identity" encouraged them. "Intelligence" encompasses Vietnamese participants' desire to ensure their children are learning and "Identity" expresses the Canadian participants' appeal to encourage individuality in their children. The findings suggest directions for the adaptation of intervention. It is the first known study to incorporate LENA results into a mixed methods design.
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