Effect of Parallel Talk on the Language and Interactional Skills of Preschoolers with Cochlear Implants and Hearing Aids

Children with profound congenital hearing loss often do not have the same prelinguistic opportunities for social and verbal interaction as their peers with typical hearing [14]. Consequently, language and social skills may be challenging for this group, even after they are provided with amplification or a cochlear implant. This pilot study examined the effectiveness of using a parallel talk intervention to increase the language and interactional skills of three preschoolers with deafnesss. Results revealed that all participants increased verbal turn-taking and that two of the three increased initiated and responded vocal/verbal comments, and initiated and responded nonverbal responses during a 5-minute play session in which parallel talk was utilized. Additionally, all children displayed some generalization in the two types of generalization probes employed. Implications for facilitating the communication of preschoolers with communication and social delays are discussed.