Communication disorders

risk factors

• seizures 

• disruptions in neurodevelopment

• Partial or full deafness (sensory deprivation)

• stroke, brain injury

• Certain familial genes have been identified (BUT brain dev is based on gene expression interacting with the world around you)

sex differences if present

3-5x more common in males 

onset timing

can occur in isolation, but can occur with other developmental disorders 

• 10-15% of children will experience some speech delay, but 50-80% will be resolved by age 3 

• After 4, clinical evaluation is recommended 

• 1% Stuttering gets resolved by adulthood 

Social (pragmatic) communication and disorder

problems in social use of language. (changing tone, gesturing, using emphasis in volume in speech)

Speech sound disorder:

disorder in the literal production of speech

Child onset fluency disorder (stutter): 

language production are present and often worsened by anxiety/high emotional states 

Language disorder

problems in the acquisition and use of language occurs across different language modalities 

specific language disorder

children have difficulty acquiring language skills, such as understanding and using words and sentences, despite having normal non-verbal intelligence

what is its relationship to IQ?

having a communication disorder does not mean you have a low IQ