“Oh! I forgot the voice”: Comparing drawings of talking by children with and without speech sound disorder

Abstract

Recognition that children's views should be respected has increased since the United Nations’ publication of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. This study explored whether preschool children's drawings and descriptions of themselves “talking to someone” differed for children with speech sound disorder (SSD) compared to children with typically developing speech. Participants were 78 children matched for age and sex and divided into two groups (SSD and Typical) based on percentage of consonants correct on the Diagnostic Evaluation of Articulation and Phonology. The SSD group was significantly more likely to self-report some difficulty talking but did not differ from the Typical group on how they felt about their talking or on developmental maturity for drawing human figures. Analyses applying a focal points approach showed a significant difference in participants’ portrayal of “body parts” but no difference for “facial expressions,” “talking and listening,” “relationships and connections” (number of people and conversational partner/s) and “sense of self.” Children with SSD were more likely to accentuate ears in their drawings, while typically developing children were more likely to accentuate hands. In sum, drawing and describing “talking” did not differentiate SSD and typically developing children, but enabled understanding of how individual children conceptualize and represent communication with others.