PURPOSE: to evaluate the social skills and pragmatic communication in children with Specific Language Impairment. METHOD: this study involved 18 children between seven and nine year old, with half (n = 9) being the Experimental Group (EG) and the other half (n = 9) the Control Group CG. Both groups were comprised of three girls and six boys. Children were evaluated as for pragmatic abilities through a spontaneous speech footage. Then, recorded in structured situations of interaction with an unfamiliar adult female. Responses were classified in categories and grouped in Adequate Response (AR) and Inadequate Responses (IR), always according to the communicative context established. RESULTS: it was observed that the greater is the limitation in pragmatic abilities, initiative and performance are worst in interpersonal relationships. There was a significant difference between EG and CG, indicating that the EG had underperformed the CG in both pragmatic and social skills. CONCLUSION: we stress out the importance of developing methods regarding intervention that seek to improve the aspects of speech, language, and interpersonal relationships.
Communication; Language Development; Child Language; Interpersonal Relations
