Cross-Linguistic Evidence for Genetic Dysphasia

The data show conclusively that the affected subjects cannot accomplish some very simple and fundamental language tasks such as judging that a sentence is grammatically correct or being able to supply a plural or past form for a new word. The pattern of errors shows that these subjects cannot construct a normal abstract grammar but instead have to rely on compensatory strategies such as memory and explicit rule use to produce language. Psychoneurological tests show that though some of the subjects have other problems ranging from axial balance to mild cognitive impairments, these other problems affect only a small proportion of them and therefore cannot be the cause of the language disorder. There is good evidence from epidemiological and DNA studies that this language disorder is related to a genetic variant that runs in families. Some aspects of the ability to build grammar therefore seem to be innate. This publication is of special interest to students and researchers in communication sciences and disorders, language pathology and neurolinguistics.