The 10-Word Auditory Verbal Learning Test and Vocabulary Performance in 4-and 5-Year-Old Children

Background: Understanding the different factors that determine vocabuladevelopment in young children is essential for the diagnosis and rehabilitaof language disorders in children. Language development is closely related other cognitive processes such as auditory verbal learning and memory. research focuses on the development of a novel auditory verbal learning (AVLT) for 4-and 5-year-old children within the Dutch population. This new is an adaptation of the common AVLT for both older children and adults, uincluding a list of 15 words. Considering the lower attention span and liexecutive functioning in young children, the word list of this new instrumereduced to 10 words. Besides, a second recognition form has been develto improve the ability to distinguish between possible underlying learning memory deficits. Method: Ninety-five preschool children (ages 4;0–5;12 [years;months]) wetested with this new AVLT 10-word test for kids (10WT-K), yielding diffmeasures of verbal auditory memory. Forty-eight of 95 children received a ognition task with semantically unrelated items, and 47 of 95 received a renition task with semantically related items. Three additional language skills assessed to establish test validation: receptive and expressive vocabulary formance and nonword repetition. Outcome of the 10WT-K was related scores on the language measures. Results: Positive correlations were found between the total score of the 10Wand all three aforementioned language skills. We found no correlations betwfrequency of error types (intrusions and repetitions) and language measures. thermore, children who were administered the recognition list with semanticrelated items showed fewer correct answers and more false-positive and fanegative responses than children who received a recognition list with semantiunrelated items. Conclusions: The 10WT-K for young children can be used to (a) measure dent aspects of auditory verbal learning and memory, (b) clarify the natupossible verbal learning difficulties, and (c) identify a possible nature of guage disorders. The word recognition task tested with semantically relaitems provides a more accurate measurement of individual differences, namin distinguishing retrieval and storage abilities. The significant relation fobetween auditory verbal short-term memory capacity and vocabulary perfmance in preschool children is a first step toward establishing test validity.</p

The 10-Word Auditory Verbal Learning Test and Vocabulary Performance in 4-and 5-Year-Old Children

Background: Understanding the different factors that determine vocabuladevelopment in young children is essential for the diagnosis and rehabilitaof language disorders in children. Language development is closely related other cognitive processes such as auditory verbal learning and memory. research focuses on the development of a novel auditory verbal learning (AVLT) for 4-and 5-year-old children within the Dutch population. This new is an adaptation of the common AVLT for both older children and adults, uincluding a list of 15 words. Considering the lower attention span and liexecutive functioning in young children, the word list of this new instrumereduced to 10 words. Besides, a second recognition form has been develto improve the ability to distinguish between possible underlying learning memory deficits. Method: Ninety-five preschool children (ages 4;0–5;12 [years;months]) wetested with this new AVLT 10-word test for kids (10WT-K), yielding diffmeasures of verbal auditory memory. Forty-eight of 95 children received a ognition task with semantically unrelated items, and 47 of 95 received a renition task with semantically related items. Three additional language skills assessed to establish test validation: receptive and expressive vocabulary formance and nonword repetition. Outcome of the 10WT-K was related scores on the language measures. Results: Positive correlations were found between the total score of the 10Wand all three aforementioned language skills. We found no correlations betwfrequency of error types (intrusions and repetitions) and language measures. thermore, children who were administered the recognition list with semanticrelated items showed fewer correct answers and more false-positive and fanegative responses than children who received a recognition list with semantiunrelated items. Conclusions: The 10WT-K for young children can be used to (a) measure dent aspects of auditory verbal learning and memory, (b) clarify the natupossible verbal learning difficulties, and (c) identify a possible nature of guage disorders. The word recognition task tested with semantically relaitems provides a more accurate measurement of individual differences, namin distinguishing retrieval and storage abilities. The significant relation fobetween auditory verbal short-term memory capacity and vocabulary perfmance in preschool children is a first step toward establishing test validity.</p