# Assessment of Speech Sound Disorders in Latino Preschoolers: An Evidence Based Procedure

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA · 2020 · $585,010

## Abstract

Abstract
Bilingual children are often misdiagnosed as having a speech disorder when they truly exhibit
normal development. In addition, speech-language pathologists (SLP) are avoiding the
assessment of bilingual children due to the lack of knowledge and resources necessary for best
practice with this population. Misdiagnosis of speech sound disorders in this population has
long-term emotional, financial, and educational costs. Misdiagnosis of speech disorders in
bilingual children can be prevented if we acquire more information on what constitutes normal
and disordered speech development in the bilingual population. The current research is
designed to validate a model of speech sound production in bilinguals to frame a screening tool
for Latino preschoolers. Due to differences in speech production found in bilingual preschoolers
(Fabiano-Smith & Goldstein, 2010a; 2010b; Fabiano-Smith & Barlow, 2010), an assessment
procedure that evaluates the speech of bilingual preschoolers that takes into account both
English and Spanish is necessary to prevent misdiagnosis of speech sound disorders. The
Specific Aims of the proposed research are to (1) to validate our model of speech sound
production in bilinguals, the PRIMIR 2 model and (2) to improve the existing version of the
assessment procedure utilized in Phase 1 of our research using Item Response and Classical
Test Theory approaches to reliability. Bilingual children with typical and disordered development
will be compared to their English-speaking peers on measures of speech sound ability. Children
will produce sounds in single words and their productions will be phonetically transcribed. Child
productions will be examined, in both English and Spanish and across both languages, on
common diagnostic measures used for monolingual children. Mixed effects regression models
will be used to identify between-language interaction in bilingual speech and the Receiver
Operating Characteristic Curve (ROC) will be used to determine sensitivity and specificity of the
diagnostic measures examined. Item Response Theory (IRT) will be used to identify a set of test
items that are sensitive and specific to bilingual children with suspected speech sound
disorders. Findings will lead to a characterization of typical and disordered speech sound
development in bilingual children and diagnostic guidelines for speech-language pathologists to
use in the differential diagnosis of speech difference from speech disorder. These findings will
reduce diagnostic error in the identification of speech sound disorders in this population,
reducing health disparities for Latino children.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9994977
- **Project number:** 5R01DC016624-03
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA
- **Principal Investigator:** LEAH Catherine FABIANO
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $585,010
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2018-09-01 → 2023-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9994977

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9994977, Assessment of Speech Sound Disorders in Latino Preschoolers: An Evidence Based Procedure (5R01DC016624-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9994977. Licensed CC0.

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