The Factors That Impact The Speech Delay In The First Three Years Of A Child’s Life

Abstract

In presence of speech delay, a young learner struggles to develop language according to his age and associated developmental milestones (Al-Fadhli & Al-Bunaian, 2017). This study aims to investigate elements that contribute to delayed speech in children aged between birth to three years old. The researcher narrowed down the purpose to two main questions; First, what are the factors that impact speech delay in the first three years of a child’s development? Second, what are the advantages of early intervention for a child with a speech delay?

The systematic literature review (SLR) gathered all papers that fulfill the research questions, highlighting factors that impact speech delay alongside the advantages of early intervention. Selected studies implemented both qualitative and quantitative, which supports the level of accuracy in revealed data. The researcher reviewed total of 48 articles, eliminating 26 out of them to include 22 studies in the SLR. The study revealed on the factors that affect speech development on both domains; receptive and expressive language, highlighting the environmental and genetic roles on resulting speech delay. It identified that males are more likely to experience speech delay than females, stressing on the impact of healthy environment that emphasize social interaction with children in evolving their speech skills. The study provides recommendations on the importance to investigate further risks that impact children with speech delay and expanding the study by including other aspects associated with speech delay in early ages up to three years.