Understanding the Predictive Factors and the Neurocognitive Basis of Developmental Language Disorder

The present research project can be divided into four main data collection steps. The first step concerns families' recruitment through a principle of population-based screening. Parents and/or caregivers of children aged from 0 to 18 months will be asked to complete a screening questionnaire that aims to evaluate families' general risk profile associated with the development of DLD. A subsample of at-risk and control families will be selected based on the screening phase for longitudinal follow-up. The second step consists of the investigation of the neural correlates of DLD by using a natural-sleep MRI protocol in infants of 6 to 12 months old. The third step concerns the evaluation of predictive factors leading to DLD using indirect measures based on digital assessment of language development, parental and environmental characteristics (i.e., parents will have to fill in online questionnaires every 6 months during a 3-year timeframe). This step will also be dedicated to the development of an application that aims at evaluating early development of language and communication (i.e., LANCOM app). Finally, the fourth step comprises additional in-depth investigation of DLD's predictive factors, by means of direct measures, including individual cognitive and behavioral assessment, as well as an automated analysis of the child's language environment using the Language ENvironment Analysis digital language processor recording device (LENA®). Data collection for this last step will take place once a year over the whole project's timeframe.