Assessment Tool for Children's Impairments in Spontaneo*

描述（申请人提供）：应申请人的要求，（FRA-DC-05-001）为了适应或发展可用于表征语言障碍行为表型的语言测量，我们项目的目标是设计一种量化语用学使用的工具，句法和语义在自发语言的儿童从2至10岁谁被怀疑有语言障碍。我们将整合发展心理语言学，言语病理学和心理测量学的知识，设计一种超越传统语言能力测量的工具，以用户友好，可靠的方式评估与不同语言和发展障碍相关的语言习得和使用过程，提供从学龄前到学龄儿童的连续性测量。基于自闭症诊断观察计划（ADOS）中使用的自然观察框架，我们将创建一个工具，特别关注评估更广泛的语言障碍儿童群体的自发语言使用，包括替代版本，以衡量英语和西班牙语的进展和版本。提出了三个发展阶段：1）通过咨询一组心理语言学家和一组社区“消费者”，包括语言病理学家、特殊教育教师和家长，确定该工具所涵盖的语言的主要组成部分，2）转录来自两个地点的两组2 - 10岁儿童的分层样本的100个现有ADOS录像带并编码30个现有ADOS录像带（密歇根大学和波士顿大学），那些患有a）自闭症以外的发育迟缓或语言障碍的人，以及B）患有自闭症谱系障碍的人，以评估语言的哪些方面在ADOS模块2和3中的现有背景下容易观察和编码，以及3）新仪器的试点测试，包括额外的任务和一系列新的代码，以评估新措施的可行性和心理测量特性。公共卫生意义：在这个计划中，我们会设计一个新的评估工具，以评估有语言障碍的儿童的语用、句法和语义。该工具将提供测量儿童语言使用困难的严重程度的方法，可用于研究各种神经生物学因素之间的关系。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): In response to a request for applications (FRA-DC-05-001) for the adaptation or development of language measures that can be used in the characterization of the behavioral phenotypes of language disorders, the goal of our project is to design an instrument that quantifies the use of pragmatics, syntax and semantics in the spontaneous language of children from 2 to 10 years who are suspected of having a language disorder. We will integrate knowledge from developmental psycholinguistics, speech pathology, and psychometrics to design an instrument that moves beyond traditional measures of language ability to assess processes that underlie language acquisition and use associated with different language and developmental disorders in a user-friendly, reliable way that provides continuity of measurement from preschool age to school age children. Building on the framework of naturalistic observations used in the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS), we will create an instrument with a specific focus on assessing spontaneous language use in a broader population of children with language impairments, including alternate versions in order to measure progress and versions in both English and Spanish. Three phases of development are proposed: 1) Identification of major components of language to be covered by the instrument through consultation with a group of psycholinguists and a group of community "consumers" including speech pathologists, special education teachers and parents, 2) Transcription of 100 and coding of 30 existing ADOS videotapes of stratified samples of two groups of 2 - 10 year-old children from two sites (University of Michigan and Boston University), those with a) developmental delays or language impairments other than autism, and b) those with autism spectrum disorders, to assess what aspects of language are easily observable and codable during existing contexts in the ADOS Modules 2 and 3 and 3) Pilot testing of the new instrument, including additional tasks and a range of new codes, in order to assess the feasibility and psychometric properties of the new measure. Public Health Significance: In the project, a new assessment tool to evaluate the pragmatics, syntax and semantics of children with language impairments will be designed and pilot tested. The tool will provide ways of measuring the severity of children's difficulties in language use that can be employed in studies of the relationship between various neurobiological factors.