ArticleBMJ open2024
Impact of developmental language disorders on mental health and well-being across the lifespan: a qualitative study including the perspectives of UK adults with DLD and Australian speech-language therapists.
Article in BMJ open, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 papers.
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Who cites it
11 citing papers in PubMed.
- Caregiver Views of Communication Barriers Within Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services: Children With and Without Speech, Language and Communication Needs (SLCN).Clinical child psychology and psychiatry · 2026Article
- Vocabulary Breadth and Depth in Adults With Developmental Language Disorder.Journal of speech, language, and hearing research : JSLHR · 2026Article
- Hidden Communication Needs in Higher Education: A Scoping Review of Developmental Communication Disorders, Mental Health, and Academic Participation.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Psychoemotional Profiles in Reading Comprehension Among Students with Typical Development, Learning Disabilities, and Developmental Language Disorder.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Quality of Life in Children with Developmental Language Disorder.Children (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Initial evidence of altered functional network connectivity in children with developmental language disorder.Brain and language · 2025Article
- Willingness to Communicate, L2 Self-Confidence, and Academic Self-Concept: A Mixed-Methods Study of Vietnamese University Students in the UK.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Article
- Communication and Psychosocial Functioning in Children With Tourette Syndrome: Parent-Reported Measures.International journal of language & communication disordersArticle
- "Disconnected From Everyone and Everything Around Them": A Mixed Method Study to Explore the Perspectives of Children With Language Difficulties and Their Caregivers On Mental Health Concerns and Mental Health Support.International journal of language & communication disordersArticle
- Who are Adults with Developmental Language Disorder? Profiles from the Engage with Developmental Language Disorder Project.Autism & developmental language impairmentsArticle
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Authors and funding
5 authors.
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Abstract
objectiveThis study aims to explore the educational, occupational and socioemotional experiences of people with developmental language disorder (DLD) across the lifespan to gain insight into risk and protective factors for mental health.
designQualitative analysis of focus groups and written submissions. Data were combined and analysed using Braun and Clarke's reflexive thematic analysis approach within a critical realist framework.
settingSoutheast England and Western Australia.
participantsSix adults with DLD from England and five speech-language therapists from Western Australia participated in focus groups and/or contributed written responses to the research team.
resultsWe developed four themes: 'perspectives on diagnosis and living with an invisible disability' explores participants' perspectives on diagnosis, the difficulty getting a diagnosis and perceptions of DLD as widely misunderstood; 'school struggles and self-esteem from past to present' details school experiences and their impact on mental health; 'DLD across the lifespan' explores DLD in adulthood with a focus on workplace difficulties, emotional well-being and mental health; 'A sense of belonging: communication, connection and support' provides a lived experience account into the social participation difficulties of adults with DLD and the importance of social support. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: Adults with DLD may experience poor self-esteem, anxiety and depression. These mental health concerns may result from (a) exhaustion due to masking/compensating for neurodevelopmental differences, (b) loneliness and/or disempowerment due to difficulties with social interaction and (c) adverse experiences such as bullying, discrimination and a lack of appropriate accommodation at school and in the workplace. A lack of awareness and support for people with DLD from health, education and employment providers was also seen as a contributing factor to poor mental health. Diagnosis may serve a protective function for mental health via self-understanding, self-esteem and self-advocacy.
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