Effects of Bilingualism in Short-Term Memory in Individuals with Down Syndrome

Authors

Evelyn I. Pinto-CardonaFollow

Document Type

Thesis

Degree

Master of Speech Language Pathology (MSSLP)

Major/Program

Speech-Language Pathology

First Advisor's Name

Alfredo Ardila

First Advisor's Committee Title

Committee Chair

Second Advisor's Name

Monica Hough

Second Advisor's Committee Title

Committee Member

Third Advisor's Name

Eliane Ramos

Third Advisor's Committee Title

Committee Member

Keywords

Bilingualism, Down Syndrome, Short-Term Memory, DS, STM

Date of Defense

6-29-2017

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to examine the effects of bilingualism in short-term memory (STM) compared to monolingualism with individuals who have Down syndrome. Five tasks were used for STM skills comparison between monolingual and bilingual participants. Sixteen participants between the ages of 13 to 37 were included in this study. Participants were divided based on their language groups. The experimental tasks consisted of non-verbal activities to examine visual (RVDLT) and spatial (Corsi) STM; as well as three verbal STM tasks (RAVLT, WMS, and Digits). The results showed that bilinguals acquired higher overall correct responses, with a significant difference found in visual STM performance and a trend towards significance in verbal logical STM. Thus, the findings of this study support the bilingual advantage theory. This study will enhance understanding in memory capacity of bilingual individuals with Down syndrome for potential implications to put into practice in clinical intervention strategies.

Identifier

FIDC001971

Recommended Citation

Pinto-Cardona, Evelyn I., "Effects of Bilingualism in Short-Term Memory in Individuals with Down Syndrome" (2017). FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 3362.
https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd/3362