Replication of a single-case design cross-situational statistically based word learning treatment for late talking children

Abstract

Purpose

Late talking children are at risk of ongoing language impairment. This intervention study replicated and extended research based on cross-situational statistical learning principles.

Method

Three late talking children (age 24–32 months) were enrolled into the concurrent multiple baseline single-case experimental intervention study. The intervention consisted of 16 sessions over eight/nine weeks, including 10–11 pairs of target and control words (three per session). Children heard the target words a minimum of 64 times per session, in sentences with high linguistic variability in varied play activities.

Result

All children increased production of target words and expressive vocabulary, with statistically significant differences between word acquisition in baseline and intervention phases. One of the three children learnt statistically significantly more target words than control words.

Conclusion

The results replicated the findings of previous research for some but not all of the participants, providing individual evidence that this approach has promise as a therapy technique for late talking children.

Keywords:

• Statistical learning
• late talkers
• replication
• treatment
• single-case design

Acknowledgements

The authors thank Dr Stephanie Stokes for her assistance and advise in both trial design and manuscript preparation.

Declaration of interest

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This research was supported by a grant from the Edith Cowan University Collaboration Enhancement Scheme. Emily Hunt is supported by an Australian Government Research Training Scholarship.