The purpose of this scoping review was to evaluate what kind of work about language in SMS is already represented in the literature. Once we have this knowledge base, we can ask questions about what information is not here. Then we can plan studies that specifically address these gaps. This poster presents some preliminary findings from the review.

1) About half of the published literature on SMS and language are case reports. Usually in these case reports, they simply say, “the patient had delayed speech” with no further detail. This indicates that there is much more to be learned about SMS and language.

2) The studies that report data on speech and language in SMS often report other cognitive and behavioral measures as well. Figure 2 shows how many studies reported on each of the domains on the X axis. Many studies that discuss language or communication in SMS also discuss behavior, social skills, and nonverbal cognition. These domains may be closely linked in SMS.

3) Right now, there are not many recommendations for speech-language therapy that are specific to SMS. This is not to say that speech-language-pathologists (SLPs) cannot treat people with SMS. They certainly can, and do! However, a better understanding of the language profile may help SLPs design more focused and effective language interventions for people with SMS.

As always, feel free to email me with questions at liner004@umn.edu

In this study, we investigated how syntactic skill changed over time in adolescent boys with fragile X syndrome (FXS) and Down syndrome (DS). We asked whether our data suggests a plateau in syntactic growth during the adolescent years in these groups, or if the rate of change in syntactic skill continues throughout adolescence. We also investigated whether the participants’ nonverbal cognition or their mothers’ IQ affected the rate of change in syntactic skill.

We used AICc values to rank a set of candidate models, which we hypothesized by observing the residuals of the raw data and by using domain knowledge from the literature, by likelihood.

We found that the models with the most empirical evidence suggest that syntactic skill continues to change throughout adolescence in boys with FXS and DS (no plateau in growth). We also found that nonverbal cognition does affect the rate of growth in all groups and all measures, though the role of maternal IQ is less clear.

The role of maternal IQ as well as results from subcategories on the IPSyn will be explored further in an upcoming paper (check back here for updates!)

As always, feel free to email me with questions at liner004@umn.edu

In this study, we continued our investigation of how syntactic skill changes over time in adolescent boys with fragile X syndrome (FXS) and Down syndrome (DS). As in part I, we asked whether our data suggests a plateau in syntactic growth during the adolescent years in these groups, or if the rate of change in syntactic skill continues throughout adolescence. We also investigated whether the participants’ nonverbal cognition affected the rate of change in syntactic skill. In this presentation, we zoomed in on the data from the standardized language assessments and directly compared groups to one another.

In all figures, the group with DS is represented by a yellow, dotted line. The group with FXS is represented by a red, dashed line, and the group who is TD is represented by a black, solid line.

We found that the models with the most empirical evidence suggest that syntactic skill continues to change throughout adolescence in boys with FXS and DS (no plateau in growth). We also found that nonverbal cognition does affect the rate of growth in all groups and all measures.

However, notice that for the group with DS and the group with FXS, the change is negative in some cases (Figure 1: DS, Figure 3, FXS). And in other cases, the positive change is barely noticeable (Figure 2, FXS). Even though this is not the change we necessarily want to see, it’s still change! We interpret this to mean that it may be worth working on syntactic skills in speech-language-therapy sessions for boys with FXS or DS, even though for many people syntax is as advanced as possible by this age. Continued support in this area may scaffold any skills that the clients already have, support improvement, and prevent decline.

As always, feel free to email me with questions at liner004@umn.edu

In the final part of this study, we again asked whether syntactic skill changes over time in adolescent boys with fragile X syndrome (FXS) and Down syndrome (DS). As before, we asked whether our data suggests a plateau in syntactic growth during the adolescent years in these groups, or if the rate of change in syntactic skill continues throughout adolescence. We also investigated whether the participants’ nonverbal cognition affected the rate of change in syntactic skill. In this presentation, we concentrated on the data from the conversational language measures and directly compared groups to one another.

In all figures, the group with DS is represented by a yellow, dotted line. The group with FXS is represented by a red, dashed line, and the group who is TD is represented by a black, solid line.

We found that the models with the most empirical evidence suggest that conversational syntax continues to change throughout adolescence in boys with FXS and DS (no plateau in growth). We also found that nonverbal cognition does affect the rate of growth in all groups and all measures.

As in part II, however, there are some data that show a pattern that we don’t necessarily want to see, but nonetheless indicate that syntactic skill is changing. Speech-language pathologists may want to consider taking this data into account for adolescent clients with DS or FXS. Even though the development of syntactic skill is complete for many people at this age, these data indicate that continued support in this area may be extremely helpful for people with FXS or DS.

As always, feel free to email me with questions at liner004@umn.edu