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Biolinguistic Investigations on the Language Faculty
Edited by Anna Maria Di Sciullo
[Linguistik Aktuell/Linguistics Today 235] 2016
► pp. 169–194

A study on an alleged case of Spanish SLI and the founder effect

ORCID logo | Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
| Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona

According to Villanueva et al. (2008), the incidence of Specific Language Impairment in the child population of a Chilean South Pacific island is 35%, five to seven times higher than in the continental population. While this research pinpointed a relationship between the children’s genetic profile and SLI, it failed to provide much detail as regards their linguistic performance. The goal of our research is to start filling this gap through the administration of a series of language tests carried out on the children of the island. The tests are intended to measure areas of linguistic development formerly identified as vulnerable in Spanish SLI and include non-word and sentence repetition, the use of determiners and the production of relative clauses. Our preliminary results show some age effect but no difference between the children of islander ascent and those of continental origin.

Published online: 24 November 2016
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/la.235.08gav
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