What is it about?
Young children notice differences in how their peers talk, and these differences can affect friendship choices and other social judgments. In this study, young children rated talkers who spoke typically more positively and preferred them as friends more often than talkers with disordered speech, especially as they got older. Children were also less likely to choose talkers whose speech was harder to understand, showing that speech differences can shape social experiences early in life.
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Why is it important?
This work shows that speech sound disorders can affect children’s social experiences as early as preschool. Understanding when and how these biases emerge can help clinicians, educators, and families better support children with speech sound disorders and promote more inclusive peer interactions.
Perspectives
As a former school-based practitioner, conducting this study was important to me, as there is a great lack of clarity on social impacts as eligibility criteria for students with communication disorders, especially at the building and district levels. Understanding that there are social consequences even in the preschool years may help clinicians advocate for the consideration of social impacts when making eligibility decisions.
Malachi Henry
Indiana University Bloomington
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Let's Be Friends: Peer Perceptions of Disordered Speech in Preschool and Early School-Aged Children, American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, December 2025, American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA),
DOI: 10.1044/2025_ajslp-25-00093.
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