Auditory specialization in deaf children. Aural and cognitive interactions.
Hemispheric specialization in the brain has become a focus of study in recent years in an effort to better understand language acquisition and use in deaf children. To test the hypothesis that better-ear hearing acuity in severely hearing-impaired children will interact differentially with cognitive performance because of hemispheric influence, 27 children with bilateral, severe to profound hearing loss were divided into two comparison groups and a control group and were given a series of cognitive tasks of increasing difficulty. The authors conclude that hemispheric interactions may take place and affect cognitive performance in ways predictable from hemispheric-specialization theory and hearing ability. We offer suggestions for the focus of future research on this question.
Rittenhouse
R K
RK
University of Arkansas at Little Rock.
Kenyon
P L
PL
Healy
S
S
D001307:Auditory Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology*; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology; D003638:Deafness; D007839:Functional Laterality / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007804:Language Development; D007807:Language Tests; D007858:Learning; D011340:Problem Solving; D012813:Sign Language