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1. Language not auditory experience is related to parent‐reported executive functioning in preschool‐aged deaf and hard‐of‐hearing children

   https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.13677  

   Goodwin, Corina; Carrigan, Emily; Walker, Kristin; Coppola, Marie (October 2021, Child Development)

   Abstract Much research has found disrupted executive functioning (EF) in deaf and hard‐of‐hearing (DHH) children; while some theories emphasize the role of auditory deprivation, others posit delayed language experience as the primary cause. This study investigated the role of language and auditory experience in parent‐reported EF for 123 preschool‐aged children (M_age = 60.1 months, 53.7% female, 84.6% White). Comparisons between DHH and typically hearing children exposed to language from birth (spoken or signed) showed no significant differences in EF despite drastic differences in auditory input. Linear models demonstrated that earlier language exposure predicted better EF (β = .061–.341), while earlier auditory exposure did not. Few participants exhibited clinically significant executive dysfunction. Results support theories positing that language, not auditory experience, scaffolds EF development. 

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2. Language experience matters for the emergence of early numerical concepts

   https://doi.org/10.1038/s41539-023-00202-w  

   Santos, Stacee; Brownell, Hiram; Coppola, Marie; Shusterman, Anna; Cordes, Sara (December 2023, npj Science of Learning)

   Abstract Research has shown a link between the acquisition of numerical concepts and language, but exactly how linguistic input matters for numerical development remains unclear. Here, we examine both symbolic (number word knowledge) and non-symbolic (numerical discrimination) numerical abilities in a population in which access to language is limited early in development—oral deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) preschoolers born to hearing parents who do not know a sign language. The oral DHH children demonstrated lower numerical discrimination skills, verbal number knowledge, conceptual understanding of the word “more”, and vocabulary relative to their hearing peers. Importantly, however, analyses revealed that group differences in the numerical tasks, but not vocabulary, disappeared when differences in the amount of time children had had auditory access to spoken language input via hearing technology were taken into account. Results offer insights regarding the role language plays in emerging number concepts. 

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3. Early Access to Sign Language Boosts the Development of Serial Working Memory in Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Children

   https://doi.org/10.3390/bs15070919  

   Terhune-Cotter, Brennan; Dye, Matthew (July 2025, Behavioral Sciences)

   Deaf and hard-of-hearing (DHH) children are often reported to show deficits on working memory (WM) tasks. These deficits are often characterized as contributing to their struggles to acquire spoken language. Here we report a longitudinal study of a large (N = 103) sample of DHH children who acquired American Sign Language (ASL) as their first language. Using an n-back working memory task, we show significant growth in WM performance across the 7–13-year-old age range. Furthermore, we show that children with early access to ASL from their DHH parents demonstrate faster WM growth and that this group difference is mediated by ASL receptive skills. The data suggest the important role of early access to perceivable natural language in promoting typical WM growth during the middle school years. We conclude that the acquisition of a natural visual–gestural language is sufficient to support the development of WM in DHH children. Further research is required to determine how the timing and quality of ASL exposure may play a role, or whether the effects are driven by acquisition-related corollaries, such as parent–child interactions and maternal stress. 

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4. Contribution of Lexical Quality and Sign Language Variables to Reading Comprehension

   https://doi.org/10.1093/deafed/enac018  

   Sehyr, Zed Sevcikova; Emmorey, Karen (July 2022, The Journal of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education)

   Abstract The lexical quality hypothesis proposes that the quality of phonological, orthographic, and semantic representations impacts reading comprehension. In Study 1, we evaluated the contributions of lexical quality to reading comprehension in 97 deaf and 98 hearing adults matched for reading ability. While phonological awareness was a strong predictor for hearing readers, for deaf readers, orthographic precision and semantic knowledge, not phonology, predicted reading comprehension (assessed by two different tests). For deaf readers, the architecture of the reading system adapts by shifting reliance from (coarse-grained) phonological representations to high-quality orthographic and semantic representations. In Study 2, we examined the contribution of American Sign Language (ASL) variables to reading comprehension in 83 deaf adults. Fingerspelling (FS) and ASL comprehension skills predicted reading comprehension. We suggest that FS might reinforce orthographic-to-semantic mappings and that sign language comprehension may serve as a linguistic basis for the development of skilled reading in deaf signers. 

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5. When event knowledge overrides word order in sentence comprehension: Learning a first language after childhood

   https://doi.org/10.1111/desc.13073  

   Cheng, Qi; Mayberry, Rachel_I (January 2021, Developmental Science)

   Abstract Limited language experience in childhood is common among deaf individuals, which prior research has shown to lead to low levels of language processing. Although basic structures such as word order have been found to be resilient to conditions of sparse language input in early life, whether they are robust to conditions of extreme language delay is unknown. The sentence comprehension strategies of post‐childhood, first‐language (L1) learners of American Sign Language (ASL) with at least 9 years of language experience were investigated, in comparison to two control groups of learners with full access to language from birth (deaf native signers and hearing L2 learners who were native English speakers). The results of a sentence‐to‐picture matching experiment show that event knowledge overrides word order for post‐childhood L1 learners, regardless of the animacy of the subject, while both deaf native signers and hearing L2 signers consistently rely on word order to comprehend sentences. Language inaccessibility throughout early childhood impedes the acquisition of even basic word order. Similar to the strategies used by very young children prior to the development of basic sentence structure, post‐childhood L1 learners rely more on context and event knowledge to comprehend sentences. Language experience during childhood is critical to the development of basic sentence structure. 

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