Which aspect is often normal in individuals with SLI?

Which aspect is often normal in individuals with SLI?

• A. Nonverbal IQ is often normal.
• B. Hearing ability is typically impaired.
• C. Morphosyntactic skills are severely limited in all contexts.
• D. Social communication is always delayed.

Answer: (A)

Specific Language Impairment involves language difficulties despite otherwise typical cognitive development. Because nonverbal IQ measures thinking that doesn’t rely on language, individuals with SLI commonly score in the normal range on nonverbal IQ tests. That means their overall problem isn’t with general intelligence, but with language skills specifically. Hearing ability is typically normal in SLI, so hearing loss wouldn’t be expected. Morphosyntactic difficulties are common in SLI, but they aren’t necessarily severe or uniform across all contexts. Social communication isn’t required to be delayed for every person with SLI; some show typical social use of language. So the aspect that’s often normal is nonverbal IQ.

Specific Language Impairment involves language difficulties despite otherwise typical cognitive development. Because nonverbal IQ measures thinking that doesn’t rely on language, individuals with SLI commonly score in the normal range on nonverbal IQ tests. That means their overall problem isn’t with general intelligence, but with language skills specifically. Hearing ability is typically normal in SLI, so hearing loss wouldn’t be expected. Morphosyntactic difficulties are common in SLI, but they aren’t necessarily severe or uniform across all contexts. Social communication isn’t required to be delayed for every person with SLI; some show typical social use of language. So the aspect that’s often normal is nonverbal IQ.