Sub-analyses of the shortened nonword repetition task (NWR-S) compared with the nonword repetition task (NWR) per study group: children with specific language impairment (SLI), reading impairment (RI), both SLI and RI, and two control groups (le Clercq et al., 2017)

"Purpose: The purpose of this research note was to validate a simplified version of the Dutch nonword repetition task (NWR; Rispens & Baker, 2012). The NWR was shortened and scoring was transformed to correct/incorrect nonwords, resulting in the shortened NWR (NWR-S).

Method: NWR-S and NWR performance were compared in the previously published data set of Rispens and Baker (2012; N = 88), who compared NWR performance in 5 participant groups: specific language impairment (SLI), reading impairment (RI), both SLI and RI, one control group matched on chronological age, and one control group matched on language age.

Results: Analyses of variance showed that children with SLI + RI performed significantly worse than other participant groups in NWR-S, just as in NWR. Logistic regression analyses showed that both tasks can predict an SLI + RI outcome. NWR-S holds a sensitivity of 82.6% and a specificity of 95.4% in identifying children with SLI + RI. The sensitivity of the original NWR is 87.0% with a specificity of 87.7%.

Conclusions: As the original NWR, the NWR-S comprising a subset of 22 nonwords scored with a simplified scoring system can identify children with combined SLI and RI while saving a significant amount of the needed assessment time."

Supplemental Material S1. Correlation plot for NWR-S compared with NWR in children with SLI + RI (n = 23), r = .716, p < .001.

Supplemental Material S2. Correlation plot for NWR-S compared with NWR in children with SLI (n = 10), r = .750, p = .013.

Supplemental Material S3. Correlation plot for NWR-S compared with NWR in children with RI (n = 14), r = .856, p < .001.

Supplemental Material S4. Correlation plot for NWR-S compared with NWR in children with CA TD (n = 25), r = .792, p < .001.

Supplemental Material S5. Correlation plot for NWR-S compared with NWR in children with LA TD (n = 16), r = .852, p < .001.

le Clercq, C. M. P., van der Schroeff, M. P., Rispens, J. E., Ruytjens, L., Goedegebure, A., van Ingen, G., & Franken, M.-C. (2017). Shortened nonword repetition task (NWR-S): A simple, quick, and less expensive outcome to identify children with combined specific language and reading impairment. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 60, 2241–2248. https://doi.org/10.1044/2017_JSLHR-L-16-0060