Consensus on Terminology for Describing Child Language Interventions: A Delphi Study

Journal of Speech Language and Hearing Research, vol. 64, pp. 3504–3519

Abstract

Purpose Language intervention for children with language disorder may be effective; however, lack of detailed and consistent terminology for describing language interventions poses barriers for advancement within the field. This study aimed to develop consensus from speech-language pathologists (SLPs) in Australia on a taxonomy with terminology for describing language interventions for school-aged children and investigate SLPs' application of taxonomy terminology when describing child language interventions. Method A taxonomy with terms for describing interventions was developed with reference to contemporary literature and presented to clinicians and researchers with expertise in child language disorders in a three-round Delphi study. We asked Delphi participants to indicate agreement with the taxonomy or propose changes. Application of the taxonomy was investigated by asking participants to use taxonomy terminology to describe interventions presented in two case studies. Results The taxonomy consists of five aspects across which interventions may be described: modality/domain, purpose, delivery, form, and teaching techniques. Consensus on the taxonomy was established in both Round 1 (55 participants) and Round 2 (43 participants), with 100% of SLPs strongly agreeing or agreeing with the overall structure of the taxonomy and at least 87.3% of SLPs strongly agreeing or agreeing with each aspect. In Round 3 (32 participants), consensus was reached on 45/54 taxonomy categories (4/12 of the components) for Case Study 1 and 45/54 taxonomy categories (7/12 of the components) for Case Study 2. Conclusions Consensus on a taxonomy with terminology for describing language interventions represents a significant advancement in the field of child language intervention. Future actions may be needed to facilitate consistent application of taxonomy terms. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.16435290.

Authors 5

1. Deborah Denman corresponding

   Curtin University

   Affiliation as printed

   School of Occupational Therapy, Social Work and Speech Pathology, Faculty of Health Sciences, Curtin University, Perth, Western Australia, Australia

   School of Occupational Therapy, Social Work and Speech Pathology, Faculty of Health Sciences, Curtin University. Address: Kent Street, Perth, Western Australia, 6102, Australia

2. Jae‐Hyun Kim

   Macquarie University

   Affiliation as printed

   Department of Linguistics, Macquarie University, North Ryde, New South Wales, Australia

   Department of Linguistics, Macquarie University. Address: Balaclava Road, North Ryde, New South Wales, 2109, Australia

3. Natalie Munro

   The University of Sydney · Curtin University

   Affiliation as printed

   Sydney School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health, The University of Sydney, Camperdown, New South Wales, Australia

   Faculty of Medicine and Health, Sydney School of Health Sciences, The University of Sydney. Address: East Street, Lidcombe, New South Wales, 2141, Australia

   School of Occupational Therapy, Social Work and Speech Pathology, Faculty of Health Sciences, Curtin University. Address: Kent Street, Perth, Western Australia, 6102, Australia

4. Renée Speyer Aachen Department of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery

   Leiden University · University of Oslo · Curtin University · Leiden University Medical Center

   Affiliation as printed

   Department of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, Leiden University Medical Centre, the Netherlands

   Department of Special Needs Education, University of Oslo, Norway

   School of Occupational Therapy, Social Work and Speech Pathology, Faculty of Health Sciences, Curtin University, Perth, Western Australia, Australia

   Department of Otorhinolaryngology and Head and Neck Surgery, Leiden University Medical Centre. Address: Albinusdreef 2, 2333 ZA Leiden, Netherlands

   Department of Special Needs Education, University of Oslo. Address: Sem Saelands vei 7, 0371 Oslo, Norway

   School of Occupational Therapy, Social Work and Speech Pathology, Faculty of Health Sciences, Curtin University. Address: Kent Street, Perth, Western Australia, 6102, Australia

5. Reinie Cordier

   Curtin University · Northumbria University

   Affiliation as printed

   Department of Social Work, Education and Community Wellbeing, Northumbria University, Newcastle upon Tyne, United Kingdom

   School of Occupational Therapy, Social Work and Speech Pathology, Faculty of Health Sciences, Curtin University, Perth, Western Australia, Australia

   Department of Social Work, Education and Community Wellbeing, Northumbria University. Address: Coach Lane Campus, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, NE7 7XA, United Kingdom

   School of Occupational Therapy, Social Work and Speech Pathology, Faculty of Health Sciences, Curtin University. Address: Kent Street, Perth, Western Australia, 6102, Australia