Recent
advances in audiological early intervention and hearing technologies have
significantly improved access to spoken language for children with hearing
loss (CwHL), but many CwHL require additional support to match the language
development of their peers with normal hearing (PwNH). Programmes such as It
Takes Two to Talk®, the Hanen Program® and Talking Matters focus on
supporting parents to enhance children’s language development in natural
environments. Analysis of response types has become a significant trend,
facilitated by technological developments like Language ENvironment Analysis
(LENA®), which provides uninterrupted recordings and automated calculations
of adult–child interactions. This research examined three child language
measures, child vocalisation counts, total number of words, and mean length
of utterance, comparing CwHL and PwNH. Transcribed excerpts of LENA
recordings were coded to determine caregivers’ use of ‘high-level’ responses
in exchanges with their children and were correlated with child language
outcomes. The results confirm the crucial role of caregiver response types in
enhancing child language outcomes and exemplify the bidirectional
relationship of caregiver-child interactions. The findings add to the
literature to suggest that families and educators would benefit from guidance
and coaching to acquire and apply high-level response types during natural
spoken language interactions with CwHL.
