Using language sample analyses across English dialects: A case-based approach for preschoolers

ABSTRACT

This study compared language samples from typically developing 4-year-olds who spoke African American English (AAE), Jamaican English (JE), or Mainstream American English (MAE) to assess the value of using language sample analysis (LSA) measures for characterising language use across dialects of English. Specific LSA metrics included mean length of utterance (MLU) in morphemes and in words, the Index of Productive Syntax (IPSyn), Developmental Sentence Scoring (DSS) and measures of lexical diversity. Children demonstrated diverse linguistic patterns across dialects, but a Kruskal–Wallis H test did not reveal significant differences in scores obtained through LSA measures. Notably, the IPSyn captured morphosyntactic structures in each category across dialects where prior research has highlighted limitations. This preliminary study uses a case-based approach to illustrate the applicability of LSAs in describing linguistic variations across children who speak different dialects of English. Moreover, the findings from this study underscore the potential use of LSAs in describing linguistic patterns to support the characterisation of communication profiles for culturally and linguistically diverse children.

KEYWORDS:

• Language sample
• IPSyn
• linguistic diversity

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the families, children, and educators whose support made this study possible. We would also like to extend our gratitude to research team members Gabby Matz and Brittany Fletcher for their transcription and coding efforts, to Kereisha Biggs for her support as a research assistant, to our colleagues at the Jamaican Language Unit, and to Professors Laura and Richard Kretschmer for their ongoing support. Lastly, we would especially like to thank Jamie Linert who is a doctoral student at the University of Minnesota for her expert guidance on using CLAN.

Disclosure statement

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

Data availability statement

Data included in this study are not publicly available and may only be shared using a data sharing agreement, and only for parents who consented to do so. For questions, please contact the corresponding author.

Supplementary material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed online at https://doi.org/10.1080/02699206.2024.2374917.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported in part by the NIH – National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders (NIDCD) [7R21DC018170] as well as [5R01DC019337].