Cordier Reinie, Munro Natalie, Wilkes-Gillan Sarah, Docking Kimberley
James Cook University, Townsville, QLD, Australia.
Int J Speech Lang Pathol. 2013 Aug;15(4):416-28. doi: 10.3109/17549507.2012.713395. Epub 2012 Sep 14.
Children with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) commonly experience significant pragmatic language deficits which put them at risk of developing emotional and social difficulties. This study aimed to examine the pragmatic language exhibited in a peer-to-peer interaction between the children with ADHD and their playmates following a pilot play-based intervention. Participants were children (aged 5-11 years) diagnosed as having ADHD (n = 14) and their self-selected typically-developing playmate. Pragmatic language was measured using the Pragmatic Protocol (PP) and the Structured Multidimensional Assessment Profiles (S-MAPs). Children's structural language was also screened and compared against their pragmatic language skills pre-post play-based intervention. The pragmatic language of children with ADHD improved significantly from pre-post intervention as measured by both the PP and S-MAPs. Both children with and without structural language difficulties improved significantly from pre- to post-intervention using S-MAPs; only children with structural language difficulties improved significantly using PP. The findings support the notion that pragmatic skills may improve following a play-based intervention that is characterized by didactic social interaction. As pragmatic language is a complex construct, it is proposed that clinicians and researchers reconsider the working definition of pragmatic language and the operationalization thereof in assessments.
患有注意力缺陷多动障碍（ADHD）的儿童通常存在明显的语用语言缺陷，这使他们面临出现情绪和社交困难的风险。本研究旨在考察在一项基于游戏的试点干预后，ADHD儿童与其玩伴在同伴互动中所表现出的语用语言。参与者为被诊断患有ADHD的儿童（5 - 11岁，n = 14）及其自行选择的发育正常的玩伴。使用语用协议（PP）和结构化多维度评估概况（S - MAPs）来测量语用语言。还对儿童的结构语言进行了筛查，并将其与基于游戏的干预前后的语用语言技能进行比较。通过PP和S - MAPs测量，ADHD儿童的语用语言在干预前后有显著改善。使用S - MAPs测量，有和没有结构语言困难的儿童在干预前后均有显著改善；只有有结构语言困难的儿童使用PP时有显著改善。这些发现支持了这样一种观点，即通过以说教式社交互动为特征的基于游戏的干预，语用技能可能会得到提高。由于语用语言是一个复杂的概念，建议临床医生和研究人员重新考虑语用语言的工作定义及其在评估中的操作化。
