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This study is an in-depth examination of word categories (verbs: lexical vs. grammatical, nouns, pronouns, adverbs, adjectives) produced by individuals with Down syndrome (DS) during narrative storytelling. Previous research has documented verb production deficits in DS relative to typical development (TD). Our study expands upon prior work by also including a comparison group with mixed-etiology intellectual disability (ID). We examined group differences (DS n=41, TD n=29, ID n=23) in rates of use of each word category (relative to total number of words produced) during oral narration of a wordless picture book. Participants with DS used significantly fewer verbs, pronouns, and adverbs than participants with TD, and marginally fewer verbs than those with ID. Within verb types, participants with DS used significantly fewer lexical verbs than participants with TD, and marginally fewer than those with ID. No group differences were found for grammatical verbs. Results are consistent with and extend previous research indicating delays in verb production by individuals with DS. Syndrome-specificity and clinical implications will be discussed. NIH-funded by R01HD055345 (PI: Conners) and U54HD079125 (PI: Abbeduto). |
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