What risk factors for Developmental Language Disorder can tell us about the neurobiological mechanisms of language development

Tessel Boerma; Sita Ter Haar; Rachida Ganga; Frank Wijnen; Elma Blom; Corette J Wierenga

doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105398

What risk factors for Developmental Language Disorder can tell us about the neurobiological mechanisms of language development

Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 2023 Nov:154:105398. doi: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105398. Epub 2023 Sep 21.

Authors

Tessel Boerma¹, Sita Ter Haar², Rachida Ganga¹, Frank Wijnen¹, Elma Blom³, Corette J Wierenga⁴

Affiliations

¹ Institute for Language Sciences, Department of Languages, Literature and Communication, Utrecht University, Utrecht, the Netherlands.
² Institute for Language Sciences, Department of Languages, Literature and Communication, Utrecht University, Utrecht, the Netherlands; Cognitive Neurobiology and Helmholtz Institute, Department of Psychology, Utrecht University/Translational Neuroscience, University Medical Center Utrecht, the Netherlands.
³ Department of Development and Education of youth in Diverse Societies (DEEDS), Utrecht University, Utrecht, the Netherlands; Department of Language and Culture, The Arctic University of Norway UiT, Tromsø, Norway. Electronic address: W.B.T.Blom@uu.nl.
⁴ Biology Department, Faculty of Science, Utrecht University, the Netherlands; Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, Nijmegen, the Netherlands. Electronic address: corette.wierenga@donders.ru.nl.

PMID: 37741516
DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105398

Abstract

Language is a complex multidimensional cognitive system that is connected to many neurocognitive capacities. The development of language is therefore strongly intertwined with the development of these capacities and their neurobiological substrates. Consequently, language problems, for example those of children with Developmental Language Disorder (DLD), are explained by a variety of etiological pathways and each of these pathways will be associated with specific risk factors. In this review, we attempt to link previously described factors that may interfere with language development to putative underlying neurobiological mechanisms of language development, hoping to uncover openings for future therapeutical approaches or interventions that can help children to optimally develop their language skills.

Keywords: Developmental language disorder; Language development; Neurobiological mechanisms.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Child
Humans
Language Development
Language Development Disorders* / etiology
Language Development Disorders* / psychology
Risk Factors