Daily living skills in adolescents with and without (developmental) language disorder, measured using the WHEEL OF INDEPENDENCETM framework

Burridge, D., Hughes, L. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0790-0012, Titterington, J., Dawson, N. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0790-0012 and Ebbels, S. (2024) Daily living skills in adolescents with and without (developmental) language disorder, measured using the WHEEL OF INDEPENDENCETM framework. British Journal of Occupational Therapy, 87 (12). pp. 742-752. ISSN 1477-6006 doi: 10.1177/03080226241280732

Abstract/Summary

Introduction: Developing daily living skills (DLS), such as self-care, cooking and managing money, is a key priority for adolescents with special educational needs. Previous studies investigated the emergence of DLS in young people with a range of neurodevelopmental conditions. However, none focused on adolescents with language disorders (LD), including developmental language disorder (DLD). Method: Two groups of 16-year-olds participated in this study: a typically developing (TD) group (n=88) and a (D)LD group (n=78), which was subdivided into participants with co-occurring motor difficulties (n=56) versus typical motor development (n=22). Data were collected using the WHEEL OF INDEPENDENCE™ framework, a DLS measurement tool. Between-group comparisons assessed whether there were significant differences in DLS between TD and (D)LD participants and between those with and without motor difficulties within the (D)LD group. Results: Findings revealed that TD participants had significantly better DLS than the (D)LD group. Within the (D)LD group, participants with motor difficulties showed marginally significantly lower DLS than those without. Conclusion: Adolescents with (D)LD experience challenges developing their DLS, compared to TD peers. This may be compounded if they have co-occurring motor difficulties. Further research could inform understanding of the mechanisms underlying these differences in order to develop tailored and effective interventions.

Item Type	Article
URI	https://reading-clone.eprints-hosting.org/id/eprint/121209
Identification Number/DOI	10.1177/03080226241280732
Refereed	Yes
Divisions	Life Sciences > School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences > Department of Clinical Language Sciences
Publisher	College of Occupational Therapists
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