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Language and memory abilities of internationally adopted children from China: evidence for early age effects*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 October 2013

AUDREY DELCENSERIE  and
FRED GENESEE
AUDREY DELCENSERIE*
Affiliation:
McGill University
FRED GENESEE
Affiliation:
McGill University
*
Address for correspondence: Audrey Delcenserie, Department of Psychology, McGill University, Stewart Biology Building, 1205 Dr Penfield Avenue, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, H3A 1B1. e-mail: [email protected]
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Abstract

The goal of the present study was to examine if internationally adopted (IA) children from China (M = 10;8) adopted by French-speaking families exhibit lags in verbal memory in addition to lags in verbal abilities documented in previous studies (Gauthier & Genesee, 2011). Tests assessing verbal and non-verbal memory, language, non-verbal cognitive ability, and socio-emotional development were administered to thirty adoptees. Their results were compared to those of thirty non-adopted monolingual French-speaking children matched on age, gender, and socioeconomic status. The IA children scored significantly lower than the controls on language, verbal short-term memory, verbal working memory, and verbal long-term memory. No group differences were found on non-verbal memory, non-verbal cognitive ability, and socio-emotional development, suggesting language-specific difficulties. Despite extended exposure to French, adoptees may experience language difficulties due to limitations in verbal memory, possibly as a result of their delayed exposure to that language and/or attrition of the birth language.

Type
Articles
Information
Journal of Child Language , Volume 41 , Issue 6 , November 2014 , pp. 1195 - 1223
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2013 

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Footnotes

[*]

The authors would like to thank Dr Kenneth Hyltenstam (Stockholm University) and Dr Erika Hoff (Florida Atlantic University) for their assistance in designing this study.

References

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