Assessing developmental language disorder in bilingual immigrant children : The case of morphological knowledge and executive functions

To diagnose developmental language disorders (DLD) in bilingual immigrant children, gathering information on first (L1) and second (L2) language development is important. When information on L1 development is available through parent interviews only, assessments need to rely more on other types of information. Such information could include examination of different features of the L2, and common co-occurring conditions with DLD, such as low executive functions (EF). Morphology is often considered a clinical marker for DLD in monolingual children, but whether L2 morphology is a good clinical marker for DLD in bilingual immigrant children is debatable. As for EF, EF levels in bilingual children are proposed to be superior to monolinguals. Evidence from two meta-analyses warrants caution in emphasizing low morphological L2 levels and average minus EF levels as potential markers for DLD in bilingual immigrant children. The difference between typical monolingual and bilingual children in EF was trivial and in favor of bilingual children, yet not present after controlling for publication bias. The difference in morphological knowledge was moderate to large and in favor of monolingual children. Practical implications for identification of DLD in immigrant children are discussed.