DLD in the workplace
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Young people and adults’ experiences of developmental language disorder in the workplace: A life narrative and co-design study
IRAS ID
322247
Contact name
Trisha Greenhalgh
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Oxford
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 0 months, 30 days
Research summary
This project is a DPhil (PhD) study at the University of Oxford, in which the DPhil Student is a research speech and language therapist. Her professional interest is in Developmental Language Disorder (DLD) which often co-exists with reading difficulties (RD). DLD is characterised by persistent difficulties understanding and/or using spoken language, which impact on everyday life. DLD is a common condition with no known cause. Reading difficulties encompass both dyslexia (difficulty reading and spelling words) and reading comprehension difficulties. Both are common in childhood, can persist into adulthood and can impact on educational progress and future employment. This project will use qualitative methods, inviting adult experiencers of DLD to participate in narrative interviews and co-design. The student will firstly, interview a sample of up to 30 adults aged 18-40 with DLD (with or without coexisting RD) to capture their life narratives (especially their experiences of education, training and work). Secondly, she will work with this group of people with DLD to co-design the person-centred support that participants consider most beneficial from a future service. Multiple recruitment strategies will be used to identify potential participants, including via speech and language therapy clinics, wider professional networks, patient support groups/networks, snowballing (where a participant introduces someone they know), posting the study flier on social media (such as Twitter) and via further and higher education establishments. This DPhil study is funded by a Colt Foundation PhD Fellowship.
REC name
East of England - Cambridge South Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
23/EE/0087
Date of REC Opinion
14 Apr 2023
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion