Janne von Koss Torkildsen

• Hällström, Elin; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Sahlén, Birgitta; Falck, Andreas; Lyxell, Björn & Wass, Malin (2026). The Relationship Between Morphological Knowledge and Decoding Ability for Swedish Children with Typical Reading Development and Children with Reading Difficulties. Scientific Studies of Reading. ISSN 1088-8438. p. 20–20. doi: 10.1080/10888438.2026.2718137. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Purpose This study investigated the contribution of morphological knowledge (MK) to decoding of multimorphemic words in Swedish children at an early stage of reading development. Method Participants were 299 children in Grade 2 (ages 8–9), including 185 with typical reading development (TRD) and 114 with reading difficulties (RD) (girls n = 156). Children were recruited from 12 schools varying in socioeconomic status and included both first-language (L1) and second-language (L2) learners of Swedish. Mixed-effects linear regression models with random intercepts for school examined the contribution of MK while controlling for working memory, rapid automatized naming, nonword repetition, and general word reading skills. Results For the full sample and TRD group, MK uniquely and significantly predicted decoding of multimorphemic words. Specifically, the ability to manipulate the morphological structure of words was a significant predictor. For children with RD, MK was not a significant predictor, whereas working memory significantly predicted decoding in addition to word reading skills. Conclusion These findings suggest that MK plays a significant role in decoding in Swedish – a semi-transparent orthography with rich morphology – particularly after children have mastered basic grapheme–phoneme correspondences.

• Reddy, Akhila Srinivas; Gelder, Marleen van; Olstad, Emilie Willoch; Gervin, Kristina; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss & Nordeng, Hedvig Marie Egeland (2025). Prevalence of Neurodevelopmental Disorders in Families of Women Taking Psychotropic Medication During Pregnancy. Paediatric and Perinatal Epidemiology. ISSN 0269-5022. 40(1), p. 97–108. doi: 10.1111/ppe.70075. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Background Familial and environmental factors contribute to neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs). Prenatal psychotropic exposure may influence the risk of NDDs in children. As these medications are prescribed to women with mental disorders, which are genetically and environmentally linked to NDDs, accounting for familial confounding is essential when studying medication safety in pregnancy. Objectives To compare the prevalence of NDDs in pregnant women using psychotropics, their partners, and their previous children, with those not using these medications. Methods We included data from the most recent pregnancy of Norwegian women with mental disorders who gave birth between 2010 and 2018, using Norwegian registries. Maternal psychotropic use included antidepressants, antipsychotics, anxiolytics, hypnotics, and sedatives, as recorded in the Norwegian Prescription Database. NDDs were identified using ICD-10 codes for intellectual disabilities, language/scholastic disorders, pervasive developmental disorders, and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorders (ADHD) from the Norwegian Patient Registry. Modified Poisson regression estimated crude and adjusted relative risks (aRRs) for the association between psychotropic use and family history of NDDs. Results The study included 27,638 women. Among psychotropic users, NDDs prevalence was 9.6% in women, 5.4% in partners, and 10.0% in previous children, compared to 5.7%, 4.6%, and 8.0% in non-users, respectively. ADHD was the most prevalent NDD. Psychotropic use in pregnancy was associated with any NDD, particularly ADHD, in the women [any NDD aRR 1.77 (95% CI 1.60, 1.95); ADHD aRR 1.79 (95% CI 1.61, 1.98)], previous children [any NDD aRR 1.25 (95% CI 1.07, 1.47); ADHD aRR 1.26 (95% CI 1.02, 1.54)], and partners [any NDD aRR 1.21 (95% CI 1.06, 1.37); ADHD aRR 1.22 (95% CI 1.07, 1.39)]. Conclusions Prenatal psychotropic use was associated with a higher prevalence of NDDs in mothers and their previous children, highlighting the need to account for familial neurodevelopmental patterns to distinguish the effects of psychotropics from underlying genetic or familial factors.

• Krogsrud, Stine Kleppe; Nordeng, Hedvig Marie Egeland; Roe, James Michael; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Wood, Mollie Elizabeth & Ystrøm, Eivind (2025). Associations between prenatal paracetamol exposure and brain development from ages 4–16: A longitudinal MRI study. Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience. ISSN 1878-9293. 78. doi: 10.1016/j.dcn.2025.101667. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Research has raised concerns regarding the potential impact of prenatal paracetamol exposure on fetal neurodevelopment. This is the first longitudinal study to investigate whether such exposure is related to structural brain development and cognitive abilities during childhood and adolescence. The sample includes 447 children aged 4.1–16.2 years with 905 MRI scans. The study is based on The Norwegian Mother, Father and Child Study (MoBa), and uses data from the Medical Birth Registry of Norway. The exposure variable is mothers’ self-reported use of paracetamol from prenatal and postnatal questionnaires. Among 447 children (229 girls; mean age 8.38 years), 193 (43.2 %) were prenatally exposed. Days of exposure range from 1 to 128 (mean 8.2). Vertex-wise linear mixed effect models showed that exposed children (n = 193; 393 scans) had slightly smaller cortical surface area and volume in some regions compared to non-exposed children. These results were seemingly driven by long-term exposed children (≥14 days in utero; n = 35; 72 scans, and exposed in all three trimesters, n = 21; 44 scans). However, group differences in brain structure were small with largely overlapping distributions, and the observational design and risk of unmeasured confounding preclude causal inference. Thus, the clinical significance remains uncertain. For cognitive abilities, results were reassuring showing no significant effect of prenatal paracetamol exposure on working memory capacity or IQ scores.

• Hällström, Elin; Sahlén, Birgitta; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Hallenbrant, Kristina; Tamakloe, Angela & Lyxell, Björn [Show all 7 contributors for this article] (2025). Morphological knowledge as a predictor of receptive vocabulary for Swedish L1 and L2 school-aged children. Language Awareness. ISSN 0965-8416. doi: 10.1080/09658416.2025.2565316. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The aim of this study was to assess to what extent receptive vocabulary could be explained by morphological knowledge, language majority/minority background and socioeconomic status (SES) for Swedish 8–11-year-old children. A total of 89 children participated, of whom n = 47 were L1 speakers (language majority) and n = 42 were L2 speakers (language minority). Morphological knowledge (MK) was assessed in a cloze test where children chose appropriate derivational affixes (suffixes and prefixes) for gap sentences presented in picture contexts. Receptive vocabulary was assessed using a norm-referenced standardized multiple-choice test. The results showed that morphological knowledge and receptive vocabulary were strongly correlated, and that MK significantly predicted receptive vocabulary outcomes, even when controlling for SES and L1/L2. The results indicated that SES could better explain the variance in receptive vocabulary than L1/L2 background. L2 students from higher SES outperformed L2 students from lower SES in both MK and receptive vocabulary, indicating that SES was more strongly associated with morphological knowledge and receptive vocabulary than L1/L2 background.

• Jønsberg, Andrea Chanell; Hovland, Tine; Busch, Tobias; Wie, Ona Bø & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2025). Language Interventions for School-Aged Children Who Are d/Deaf and Hard of Hearing: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research. ISSN 1092-4388. 68(5), p. 2634–2655. doi: 10.1044/2025_JSLHR-24-00456. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Purpose: The main aim of the systematic review and meta-analysis was to evaluate the effectiveness of language interventions for school-aged children who are d/Deaf and hard of hearing (DHH). We focused on studies targeting meaning-based aspects of language, such as vocabulary, grammar, and narrative skills. We included randomized controlled trials and quasi-experiments with a control group and a pre–post design. A secondary aim was to describe the characteristics of effective interventions identified in the systematic review. Method: The review was preregistered in PROSPERO (ID CRD42021236085). We searched 10 academic databases for peer-reviewed journal articles reporting language interventions for children who are DHH aged 6–12 years. We assessed the quality of included studies using Critical Appraisal Skills Programme checklists. A meta-analysis was conducted on the overall effect of interventions. In addition, we calculated separate effect sizes for vocabulary and morphosyntactic knowledge. Results: We identified 14 studies totaling 794 children. Quality assessment revealed concerns of risk of bias in most studies because study characteristics were not comprehensively reported. The meta-analyses of language interventions revealed a large main effect of g = 0.79. Subdomain analyses revealed similar effects for morphosyntactic knowledge g = 0.81 and vocabulary g = 0.71. Conclusions: Few high-quality studies examine the effects of language interventions for children who are DHH. However, the studies that exist reveal robust effects, especially for morphosyntactic abilities. Intervention approaches were diverse, and the largest intervention effects were found in studies with a randomized controlled design and near-transfer outcome measures closely aligned with the intervention content. Future studies should adhere to established guidelines for reporting results from controlled experimental study designs.

• Reddy, Akhila Srinivas; Fawad, Fatima; Leite, Mila Apostolova; Olstad, Emilie Willoch; Gervin, Kristina & Kanduri, Chakravarthi [Show all 11 contributors for this article] (2025). Prenatal exposure to psychotropics and analgesics on cognitive, linguistic and educational outcomes – a scoping review with focus on validity and reliability of outcome measures. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth. 25. doi: 10.1186/s12884-025-07235-6. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Objective To provide an overview of the observational studies on child’s cognitive, linguistic, and educational outcomes following prenatal exposure to psychotropics and analgesics, including reporting of outcome measure validity and reliability. Study design We searched four databases, MEDLINE, Embase, PsycINFO, and PubMed from inception to September 2023. We included all original studies involving participants less than 18 years old, who were prenatally exposed to psychotropics and/or analgesics with cognitive, linguistic, and/or educational outcomes and excluded those lacking comparison groups. Results 80 studies were identified. Most studies (47%) focused on the effects of prenatal exposure to antiepileptics on child cognition. Valproate was consistently associated with an increased risk of neurodevelopmental disorders, whereas the results for other medications were sparse and conflicting. Neurodevelopmental outcomes were measured by psychometric assessments in 71 studies and by diagnostic codes in health care registries in nine studies. Only 33 of the 71 studies (46.5%) using psychometric measures mentioned the psychometric properties of the instruments used. In studies using diagnostic outcome measures, only one study reported positive predictive values and performed a sensitivity analysis to address outcome misclassification. Conclusion Except for valproate, there is a concerning lack of studies on the impact of prenatal exposure to psychotropics and analgesics on cognitive, linguistic, and educational outcomes with existing studies yielding inconsistent findings. Regardless of whether psychometric measures or diagnostic codes were used, most studies lacked a robust assessment of outcome measures, which threatens their validity and interpretability. Future studies on long-term prenatal medication safety need to focus on the accuracy of neurodevelopmental outcome measures.

• Kristensen, Jarl Kleppe; Andersson, Björn; Bratlie, Siri Steffensen & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2023). Dimensionality of Morphological Knowledge—Evidence from Norwegian Third Graders. Reading Research Quarterly. ISSN 0034-0553. doi: 10.1002/rrq.497. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Abstract This study aimed to determine the dimensionality of morphological knowledge by examining different sources of variance. According to the Morphological Pathways Framework ( Levesque et al., Journal of Research in Reading, 44, 10–26, 2021 ), morphological awareness, morphological analysis and morphological decoding are related, but distinct dimensions of morphological knowledge. However, multidimensionality might also stem from construct‐irrelevant variance due to methodological artifacts. We assessed 612 Norwegian third graders on five measures of morphological knowledge and one measure of general vocabulary. Fitting a series of confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) models, we evaluated the dimensionality of morphological knowledge both within and across the five tests. Furthermore, we fitted three structural equation models (SEMs) to explore how different conceptualizations affect the relationship between morphological knowledge and general vocabulary: a five‐factor model, a bifactor model, and a higher‐order model representing morphological awareness, morphological analysis and morphological decoding. CFAs supported a multidimensional view of morphological knowledge and highlighted the need to account for construct‐irrelevant variance. SEM analyses further illustrated that construct‐irrelevant variance introduces a confounding element to the relations between morphological knowledge and vocabulary in the test‐specific five‐factor model, as only the bifactor and higher‐order models separate between construct‐relevant variance and variance due to methodological artifacts. The bifactor model is useful for separating sources of variance, especially during test development. For research purposes, however, we recommend conceptualizing morphological knowledge in line with Levesque et al., Journal of Research in Reading, 44, 10–26, 2021 , to increase knowledge of morphological dimensions and their relations to other areas of literacy.

• Håkansson, Gisela Anne-Marie; Williams, Emily Wanda; Karlsen, Jannicke & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2023). What Characterizes the Productive Morphosyntax of Norwegian Children with Developmental Language Disorder? Journal of Child Language. ISSN 0305-0009. 51(4), p. 776–799. doi: 10.1017/S0305000922000484. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Abstract Little is known about the productive morphosyntax of Norwegian children with developmental language disorder (DLD). The current study examined morphosyntax in Norwegian-speaking children with DLD ( n =19) and a control group that was pairwise matched for age, gender, and intelligence quotient (IQ; n = 19). The children’s sentence repetitions were studied through the lens of Processability Theory. The group differences were largest for grammatical structures at the latest developmental stage of the processability hierarchy. The Norwegian subordinate clause word order, belonging to the latest stage of the processability hierarchy, stood out as particularly challenging for children with DLD. Only 2 children with DLD but 16 children in the control group produced a subordinate clause with subordinate clause word order. Categorization of children’s errors revealed that children with DLD made more errors of all types (addition, omission, substitution, inflection and word order) but especially errors of omission and inflection.

• Kristensen, Jarl Kleppe; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss & Andersson, Björn (2023). Repeated mistakes in app-based language learning: Persistence and relation to learning gains. Computers & Education. ISSN 0360-1315. 210. doi: 10.1016/j.compedu.2023.104966. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Over the past decade, there has been an enormous upsurge in the use of educational apps in primary schools. However, few studies have examined how children interact with these apps and how their interaction patterns relate to learning outcomes. An interaction pattern that is potentially detrimental to learning is repeated mistakes, defined as making the same mistake more than once when answering a task. With interaction data from an eight-week digital vocabulary intervention, we examined 1) whether the propensity to make repeated mistakes changes across app sessions, and 2) how repeated mistakes relate to children's prior knowledge and their learning gains from the intervention. Our sample consisted of 363 Norwegian second graders who worked with the vocabulary app in a randomized controlled trial. Using growth curve modeling and confirmatory factor analyses, we found that the propensity to repeat mistakes remained stable over time. Furthermore, a structural equation model showed that repeated mistakes related negatively to both pre-test and post-test scores. A substantial proportion of the total effect of prior knowledge on learning gains was mediated by the propensity to repeat mistakes. Children who made more repeated mistakes had lower expected learning gains across all levels of prior knowledge. We suggest that the propensity to repeat mistakes may pose a double threat to learning by diminishing exposure to relevant content, and amplifying the exposure to incorrect input. Considering the stability of mistake repetition, it is crucial to identify students with a high propensity to repeat mistakes and help them break the pattern to support learning. App developers can help this process by implementing automatic detection and feedback.

• Rødvik, Arne Kirkhorn; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Wie, Ona Bø; Tvete, Ole; Skaug, Ingebjørg & Silvola, Juha Tapio (2023). Consonant and vowel confusions in well-performing adult cochlear implant users, measured with a nonsense syllable repetition test. International Journal of Audiology. ISSN 1499-2027. doi: 10.1080/14992027.2023.2177893. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Objective The study’s objective was to identify consonant and vowel confusions in cochlear implant (CI) users, using a nonsense syllable repetition test. Design In this cross-sectional study, participants repeated recorded mono- and bisyllabic nonsense words and real-word monosyllables in an open-set design. Study sample Twenty-eight Norwegian-speaking, well-performing adult CI users (13 unilateral and 15 bilateral), using implants from Cochlear, Med-El and Advanced Bionics, and a reference group of 20 listeners with normal hearing participated. Results For the CI users, consonants were confused more often than vowels (58% versus 71% correct). Voiced consonants were confused more often than unvoiced (54% versus 64% correct). Voiced stops were often repeated as unvoiced, whereas unvoiced stops were never repeated as voiced. The nasals were repeated correctly in one third of the cases and confused with other nasals in one third of the cases. The real-word monosyllable score was significantly higher than the nonsense syllable score (76% versus 63% correct). Conclusions The study revealed a general devoicing bias for the stops and a high confusion rate of nasals with other nasals, which suggests that the low-frequency coding in CIs is insufficient. Furthermore, the nonsense syllable test exposed more perception errors than the real word test.

• Haukedal, Christiane; Wie, Ona Bø; Schauber, Stefan & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2023). Children With Developmental Language Disorder Have Lower Quality of Life Than Children With Typical Development and Children With Cochlear Implants. Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research. ISSN 1092-4388. 66(10), p. 3988–4008. doi: 10.1044/2023_JSLHR-22-00742. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine quality of life (QOL) and its relation to language skills in children with developmental language disorder (DLD). This was examined by comparing QOL to a control group of children with typical development (TD), as well as children with cochlear implants (CIs), who potentially struggle with language for language, although for a different reason than children with DLD. Method: Two groups of children, a group with TD (n = 29) and a group of children with CIs (n = 29), were matched to the DLD group (n = 29) on chronological age, gender, nonverbal IQ, and parental educational level through a propensity matching procedure. A third group consisting of children with CIs was also matched to the DLD group but additionally matched on language abilities. QOL scores were compared across groups, and the association between language skills and QOL was examined in the DLD group. Result: The DLD group was reported by parents to have statistically significantly poorer QOL scores than peers with TD or CIs. When controlling for language skills, either statistically or through an additional CI group matched on language abilities, there were no statistically significant differences in QOL scores across groups. In the DLD group, language skills explained 16% of the variation in QOL. Conclusion: DLD is associated with the children's overall QOL, and the degree of reduced QOL relates to the severity of the language impairment.

• Haukedal, Christiane Lingås; Wie, Ona Bø; Schauber, Stefan; Lyxell, Björn; Fitzpatrick, Elizabeth & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2022). Social communication and quality of life in children using hearing aids. International Journal of Pediatric Otorhinolaryngology. ISSN 0165-5876. 152(152), p. 1–11. doi: 10.1016/j.ijporl.2021.111000. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Objectives This study compared the parent-reported structural language and social communication skills—measured with the Children's Communication Checklist-2 (CCC-2)—and health-related quality of life (HR-QOL)—measured with the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (PedsQL)—of children who use hearing aids (HAs) and their typical-hearing (TH) peers. Design The participants were 88 children (age range of 5; 6 to 13; 1 (years; months)) and their parents: 45 children with bilateral moderate to severe hearing loss using HAs who had no additional disabilities and 43 children with typical hearing. The groups were matched based on chronological age, gender, nonverbal IQ, and parental education level. The parents completed questionnaires related to their children's communication skills, including subdomains structural language and social communication, and HR-QOL. Results The HA group had significantly poorer overall communication skills than the TH group (r = 0.49). The children in the HA group scored significantly lower than the TH group on both structural language (r = 0.37) and social communication (r = 0.41). Half of the children in the HA group had overall communication scores that either indicated concern or required further investigation according to the instrument's manual. In terms of psychosocial functioning, which was measured as HR-QOL, the subdomain school functioning was the main driver of the difference between groups, with the HA group being at least twice as likely (OR = 2.52) as the TH group to have poor HR-QOL in the school domain. Better parent-reported social communication was associated with better parent-reported psychosocial functioning in the children using HAs—even when background variables were taken into account. Conclusion The results suggest that traditional assessments and interventions targeting structural aspects of language may overlook social communication difficulties in children with HAs, even those with no additional disabilities. As school functioning stood out as the most problematic domain for children with HAs, efforts to improve the well-being of these children should focus on this area.

• Bratlie, Siri Steffensen; Brinchmann, Ellen Irén; Melby-Lervåg, Monica & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2022). Morphology—A Gateway to Advanced Language: Meta-Analysis of Morphological Knowledge in Language-Minority Children. Review of Educational Research. ISSN 0034-6543. doi: 10.3102/00346543211073186. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Knowledge about the smallest meaningful units of language, morphemes, is crucial for vocabulary and reading comprehension. This meta-analysis of 43 studies examined differences in morphological knowledge in the societal language between language-minority and language-majority children. There was a moderate to large mean group difference in morphological knowledge in favor of the language-majority children. Studies that examined inflectional knowledge (walk–walked, rose–roses) reported larger differences than studies that examined knowledge of derivations (coexist, serious) and compounds (bluebird, highlight). Studies that used oral tests and tests of expressive language reported larger differences than studies that used written tests and tests of receptive language. These findings show that morphology is an area of weakness in language-minority children. Paired with the evidence that morphological instruction improves general language ability and reading comprehension, the results suggest that morphology could be an essential component in language interventions for language-minority children.

• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Bratlie, Siri Steffensen; Kristensen, Jarl Kleppe; Gustafsson, Jan-Eric; Lyster, Solveig Alma Halaas & Snow, Catherine [Show all 12 contributors for this article] (2021). App-based morphological training produces lasting effects on word knowledge in primary school children: A randomized controlled trial. Journal of Educational Psychology. ISSN 0022-0663. p. 1–23. doi: 10.1037/edu0000688. Full text in Research Archive
• Bratlie, Siri Steffensen; Gustafsson, Jan-Eric & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2021). Effectiveness of a Classroom-Implemented, App-Based Morphology Program for Language-Minority Students: Examining Latent Language-Literacy Profiles and Contextual Factors as Moderators. Reading Research Quarterly. ISSN 0034-0553. doi: 10.1002/rrq.447. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Language-minority students constitute a heterogeneous group, both in terms of skills in the majority language and contextual factors, such as language use at home and socioeconomic status. These characteristics may interact with the effectiveness of language instruction programs. This study investigated whether the effectiveness of a digital morphology program conducted in mainstream classrooms differed between Norwegian second-grade language-minority students (n = 188) and language-majority students (n = 521). Further, the study examined language-minority students’ latent language-literacy skill profiles. Specifically, it investigated how the skill profiles related to the students’ initial morphological word knowledge and the immediate and long-term effects of the program. Intention-to-treat analyses showed positive effects of the program on morphological word knowledge at posttest (d = 0.30) and 6-month follow-up (d = 0.27), with no evidence of group differences in program effects. For the language-minority students, a latent profile model with three language-literacy profiles emerged. All three profiles had low vocabulary compared to the full sample but differed in reading and spelling. There were significant differences between the three profiles in initial morphological word knowledge. However, the program effects were not associated with the language-literacy profiles or contextual factors. Findings suggest that language-minority students can benefit from classroom-implemented language instruction programs on an equal level as language-majority peers.

• Akselberg, Eira Troneng; Karlsen, Jannicke; Valand, Stian Barbo & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2021). Hvor godt kan CELF-4 og CCC-2 identifisere utviklingsmessige språkforstyrrelser? Norsk tidsskrift for logopedi. ISSN 0332-7256. 2(2), p. 8–17. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Vi vet lite om hvor nøyaktig norske kartleggingsverktøy identifiserer hvilke barn som har, og hvilke barn som ikke har, språkforstyrrelser. I denne studien undersøkte vi sensitiviteten og spesifisiteten til språktesten CELF-4 og spørreskjemaet CCC- 2. Utvalget besto av 21 barn i alderen 5 til 12 år med påviste utviklingsmessige språkforstyrrelser og 21 barn med typisk utvikling som var parvis matchet med barna med språkforstyrrelser på alder, kjønn og non-verbal IQ. Resultatene viste at CELF-4 møtte anbefalte verdier for både spesifisitet og sensitivitet, mens CCC-2 kun identifiserte to tredeler av deltakerne med utviklingsmessige språkforstyrrelser. En justering av terskelverdien for CCC-2 økte sensitiviteten betydelig uten å påvirke spesifisiteten. Den skandinaviske versjonen av CELF-4 ser derfor ut til å være godt egnet til identifisering av utviklingsmessige språkforstyrrelser i en norsk kontekst. Våre resultater tyder også på at CCC-2 ikke bør brukes alene til å avgjøre om barn med mistanke om utviklingsmessige språkforstyrrelser skal utredes videre.

• Wie, Ona Bø; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Schauber, Stefan Kilian; Busch, Tobias & Litovsky, Ruth (2020). Long-term language development in children with early simultaneous bilateral cochlear implants. Ear and Hearing. ISSN 0196-0202. 41(5), p. 1294–1305. doi: 10.1097/AUD.0000000000000851. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Objectives: This longitudinal study followed the language development of children who received the combination of early (5 to 18 months) and simultaneous bilateral cochlear implants (CIs) throughout the first 6 years after implantation. It examined the trajectories of their language development and identified factors associated with language outcomes. Design: Participants were 21 Norwegian children who received bilateral CIs between the ages of 5 and 18 mo and 21 children with normal hearing (NH) who were matched to the children with CIs on age, sex, and maternal education. The language skills of these two groups were compared at 10 time points (3, 6, 9, 12, 18, 24, 36, 48, 60, and 72 months after implantation) using parent reports and standardized measures of general language skills, vocabulary, and grammar. In addition, assessments were made of the effects of age at CI activation, speech recognition abilities, and mothers’ education on language outcomes 6 years after implantation. Results: During the first 4 years after implantation, the gap in general expressive and receptive language abilities between children with CIs and children with NH gradually closed. While at the initial five to six assessments (3 to 36 months after implantation), significant differences between children with CIs and children with NH were observed; at 4 years after implantation, there were no longer any significant group differences in general language skills and most children with CIs achieved scores within 1 SD of the tests’ normative means. From 2 to 3 years after implantation onward, expressive vocabulary and receptive grammar skills of children with CIs were similar to those of the reference group. However, from 4 years after implantation until the end of the observation period, 6 years after implantation, expressive grammar skills of children with CIs were lower than those of children with NH. In addition, a gap in receptive vocabulary appeared and grew increasingly larger from 4 to 6 years postimplantation. At the final assessment, the children with CIs had an average receptive vocabulary score around 1 SD below the normative mean. Regression analysis indicated that the children’s language outcomes at 6 years after implantation were related to their speech recognition skills, age at CI activation, and maternal education. Conclusions: In the first 4 years after implantation, the language performance of children with CIs became increasingly similar to that of their NH peers. However, between 4 and 6 years after implantation, there were indications of challenges with certain aspects of language, specifically receptive vocabulary and expressive grammar. Because these challenges first appeared after the 4-year assessment, the findings underline the importance of long-term language intervention to increase the chances of a continued language development comparable to that of NH peers. They also indicate that there is a need for comprehensive longitudinal studies of the language development of children with CIs beyond 4 years after implantation.

• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Arciuli, Joanne & Wie, Ona Bø (2019). Individual differences in statistical learning predict children's reading ability in a semi-transparent orthography. Learning and Individual Differences. ISSN 1041-6080. 69, p. 60–68. doi: 10.1016/j.lindif.2018.11.003. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Learning to read is a milestone in a child's life, and reading ability is a strong predictor of academic outcomes. Some studies have revealed that individual differences in the capacity for implicit statistical learning are linked with children's reading skills in English, which has a deep orthography, but we do not know whether the same relation is found in semi-transparent orthographies such as Norwegian. Additionally, the relative contribution of statistical learning alongside other cognitive measures known to be related to reading has not been examined. This study of sixty-five Norwegian school children (M=10.3 years) found that performance on an independent statistical learning task predicted a small, but unique amount of variance in reading ability in Norwegian, even when a number of other reading-related cognitive skills were taken into account. This suggests that children's implicit learning of statistical regularities is associated with proficiency with written language in a semitransparent orthography such as Norwegian.

• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Hitchins, Abigail; Myhrum, Marte & Wie, Ona Bø (2019). Speech-in-Noise Perception in Children With Cochlear Implants, Hearing Aids, Developmental Language Disorder and Typical Development: The Effects of Linguistic and Cognitive Abilities. Frontiers in Psychology. 10. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.02530. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Children with hearing loss, and those with language disorders, can have excellent speech recognition in quiet, but still experience unique challenges when listening to speech in noisy environments. However, little is known about how speech-in-noise perception relates to individual differences in cognitive and linguistic abilities in these children. The present study used the Norwegian version of the Hearing in Noise Test (HINT) to investigate speech-in-noise perception in 175 children aged 5.5-12.9 years, including children with cochlear implants (CI, n = 64), hearing aids (HA, n= 37), developmental language disorder (DLD, n = 16) and typical development (TD, n= 58). Further, the study examined whether general language ability, verbal memory span, nonverbal IQ and speech perception of monosyllables and sentences in quiet were predictors of performance on the HINT. To allow comparisons across ages, scores derived from age-based norms were used for the HINT and the tests of language and cognition. There were significant differences in speech-in-noise perception between all the groups except between the HA and DLD groups, with the CI group requiring the highest signal-to-noise ratios (i.e. poorest performance) and the TD group requiring the lowest signal-to-noise ratios. For the full sample, language ability explained significant variance in HINT performance beyond speech perception in quiet. Follow-up analyses for the separate groups revealed that language ability was a significant predictor of HINT performance for children with CI, HA and DLD, but not for children with TD. Memory span and IQ did not predict variance in speech-in-noise perception when language ability and speech perception in quiet were taken into account. The finding of a robust relation between speech-in-noise perception and general language skills in all three clinical groups call for further investigation into the mechanisms that underlie this association.

• Rygvold, Anne-Lise; Garmann, Nina Gram; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss & Næss, Kari-Anne Bottegaard (2019). Språkforstyrrelser hos barn, Spesialpedagogikk. Cappelen Damm Akademisk. ISSN 9788202592059. p. 301–337. Full text in Research Archive
• Borgström, Kristina; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Sahlén, Birgitta & Lindgren, Magnus (2019). Brain Measures of Toddlers’ Shape Recognition Predict Language and Cognitive Skills at 6–7 Years. Frontiers in Psychology. 10, p. 1–13. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01945. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  While a number of studies have found that an improvement in object shape recognition is associated with language growth in infants and toddlers, no published studies have investigated the longitudinal relation between early shape recognition, and language abilities in later childhood. An electrophysiological measure of semantic processing (the N400) was used to assess shape recognition and general object recognition in a naming context in 20-month-olds. The measures of shape recognition strongly predicted language and cognitive abilities at 6–7 years even after controlling for toddler vocabulary size. The electrophysiological measures of general object recognition were not related to future language or cognitive abilities. These results suggest that early shape recognition abilities may play a role in language acquisition and influence even long-term language outcomes.

• Garmann, Nina Gram; Romøren, Anna Sara Hexeberg; Flygstad, Nina; Milder, Nina; Pedersen, Ingrid & Simonsen, Hanne Gram [Show all 7 contributors for this article] (2019). Språkkartlegging i norske barnehager -en pilotundersøkelse av foreldres og barnehageansattes rapportering av norsktalende tre-åringers språkferdigheter ved hjelp av CDI III. RASK: Internationalt tidsskrift for sprog og kommunikation. ISSN 0909-8976. 49, p. 87–103. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Language assessment in Norwegian kindergartens - a pilot study of parents' and ECEC staff's reports on Norwegian-speaking three-year-olds using CDI III

• Rødvik, Arne Kirkhorn; Tvete, Ole; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Wie, Ona Bø; Skaug, Ingebjørg & Silvola, Juha Tapio (2019). Consonant and Vowel Confusions in Well-Performing Children and Adolescents With Cochlear Implants, Measured by a Nonsense Syllable Repetition Test. Frontiers in Psychology. 10, p. 1–17. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2019.01813. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Although the majority of early implanted, profoundly deaf children with cochlear implants (CIs), will develop correct pronunciation if they receive adequate oral language stimulation, many of them have difficulties with perceiving minute details of speech. The main aim of this study is to measure the confusion of consonants and vowels in well-performing children and adolescents with CIs. The study also aims to investigate how age at onset of severe to profound deafness influences perception. The participants are 36 children and adolescents with CIs (18 girls), with a mean (SD) age of 11.6 (3.0) years (range: 5.9–16.0 years). Twenty-nine of them are prelingually deaf and seven are postlingually deaf. Two reference groups of normal-hearing (NH) 6- and 13-year-olds are included. Consonant and vowel perception is measured by repetition of 16 bisyllabic vowel-consonant-vowel nonsense words and nine monosyllabic consonant-vowel-consonant nonsense words in an open-set design. For the participants with CIs, consonants were mostly confused with consonants with the same voicing and manner, and the mean (SD) voiced consonant repetition score, 63.9 (10.6)%, was considerably lower than the mean (SD) unvoiced consonant score, 76.9 (9.3)%. There was a devoicing bias for the stops; unvoiced stops were confused with other unvoiced stops and not with voiced stops, and voiced stops were confused with both unvoiced stops and other voiced stops. The mean (SD) vowel repetition score was 85.2 (10.6)% and there was a bias in the confusions of [i:] and [y:]; [y:] was perceived as [i:] twice as often as [y:] was repeated correctly. Subgroup analyses showed no statistically significant differences between the consonant scores for pre- and postlingually deaf participants. For the NH participants, the consonant repetition scores were substantially higher and the difference between voiced and unvoiced consonant repetition scores considerably lower than for the participants with CIs. The participants with CIs obtained scores close to ceiling on vowels and real-word monosyllables, but their perception was substantially lower for voiced consonants. This may partly be related to limitations in the CI technology for the transmission of low-frequency sounds, such as insertion depth of the electrode and ability to convey temporal information.

• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Arciuli, Joanne; Haukedal, Christiane Lingås & Wie, Ona Bø (2018). Does a lack of auditory experience affect sequential learning? Cognition. ISSN 0010-0277. 170, p. 123–129. doi: 10.1016/j.cognition.2017.09.017. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  To understand the interaction between sensory experiences and cognition, it is critical to investigate the possibility that deprivation in one sensory modality might affect cognition in other modalities. Here we are concerned with the hypothesis that early experience with sound is vital to the development of domain-general sequential processing skills. In line with this hypothesis, a seminal empirical study found that prelingually deaf children had impaired sequence learning in the visual modality. In order to assess the limits of this hypothesis, the current study employed a different visual sequence learning task in an investigation of prelingually deaf children with cochlear implants and normal hearing children. Results showed statistically significant learning in each of the two groups, and no significant difference in the amount of learning between groups. Moreover, there was no association between the age at which the child received their implant (and thus access to electric hearing) and their performance on the sequential learning task. We discuss key differences between our study and the previous study, and argue that the field must reconsider claims about domain-general cognitive impairment resulting from early auditory deprivation.

• Helland, Turid; Morken, Frøydis; Bless, Josef J; Valderhaug, Hanna Valkvæ; Eiken, Monica & Helland, Wenche A [Show all 7 contributors for this article] (2018). Auditive training effects from a dichotic listening app in children with dyslexia. Dyslexia. ISSN 1076-9242. 24, p. 336–356. doi: 10.1002/dys.1600. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Dichotic listening (DL) taps information on the brain's lan-guage laterality, processing, and attention. Research hasshown that DL responses in dyslexia deviate from the typi-cal pattern. Here, effects of DL training and its correspon-dence to rapid naming (RAN) and digit span (DS) in typicalchildren and children with dyslexia were assessed. Threegroups of third graders participated: two training groups,control training (CT) and dyslexia training (DT), and a controlgroup that received no training (control no training, CnT). Alltook part in testing pretraining and posttraining. DL mea-sures were on laterality, response scores, and attention.The three groups showed different response patterns:minor changes in CnT, change in all measures in CT, andsome changes in DT. RAN and DS scores correlated signifi-cantly with some of the DL measures, especially with theattention scores. Our findings support arguments that brainarchitecture for language in dyslexia is lateralised in thesame way as in children without dyslexia. However, theability to modulate attention during DL is weaker in dyslexiathan in typically developing children. A training‐inducednormalisation of lateralisation was observed in free recallin the dyslexia group, which suggests that DL training maybe a promising intervention approach.

• Haukedal, Christiane Lingås; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Lyxell, Björn & Wie, Ona Bø (2018). Parents' perception of health-related quality of life in children with cochlear implants: The impact of language skills and hearing. Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research. ISSN 1092-4388. 61(8), p. 2084–2098. doi: 10.1044/2018_JSLHR-H-17-0278. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Purpose: The study compared how parents of children with cochlear implants (CIs) and parents of children with normal hearing perceive their children's health-related quality of life (HR-QOL). Method: The sample consisted of 186 Norwegian-speaking children in the age span of 5;0–12;11 (years;months): 106 children with CIs (53% boys, 47% girls) and 80 children with normal hearing (44% boys, 56% girls). No children had known additional disabilities affecting language, cognitive development, or HR-QOL. Parents completed the generic questionnaire Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (Varni, Seid, & Kurtin, 2001), whereas children completed a test battery measuring different aspects of language and hearing. Results: Parents of children with CIs reported statistically significantly poorer HR-QOL in their children, on Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory total score and the subdomains social functioning and school functioning. Roughly 50% of parents of children with CIs reported HR-QOL levels (total score) within normal limits. No significant differences between groups emerged on the physical health and emotional functioning subscales. For the children in the group with CIs, better speech perception in everyday situations was associated with higher proxy-ratings of HR-QOL. Better spoken language skills were weakly to moderately associated with higher HR-QOL. Conclusions: The findings suggest that the social and school situation is not yet resolved satisfactorily for children with CIs. Habilitation focusing on spoken language skills and better sound environment may improve social interactions with peers and overall school functioning.

• Rødvik, Arne Kirkhorn; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Wie, Ona Bø; Storaker, Marit Aarvaag & Silvola, Juha Tapio (2018). Consonant and vowel identification in cochlear implant users measured by nonsense words: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Speech, Language and Hearing Research. ISSN 1092-4388. 61(4), p. 1023–1050. doi: 10.1044/2018_JSLHR-H-16-0463. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Purpose The purpose of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to establish a baseline of the vowel and consonant identification scores in prelingually and postlingually deaf users of multichannel cochlear implants (CIs) tested with consonant–vowel–consonant and vowel–consonant–vowel nonsense syllables. Method Six electronic databases were searched for peer-reviewed articles reporting consonant and vowel identification scores in CI users measured by nonsense words. Relevant studies were independently assessed and screened by 2 reviewers. Consonant and vowel identification scores were presented in forest plots and compared between studies in a meta-analysis. Results Forty-seven articles with 50 studies, including 647 participants, thereof 581 postlingually deaf and 66 prelingually deaf, met the inclusion criteria of this study. The mean performance on vowel identification tasks for the postlingually deaf CI users was 76.8% (N = 5), which was higher than the mean performance for the prelingually deaf CI users (67.7%; N = 1). The mean performance on consonant identification tasks for the postlingually deaf CI users was higher (58.4%; N = 44) than for the prelingually deaf CI users (46.7%; N = 6). The most common consonant confusions were found between those with same manner of articulation (/k/ as /t/, /m/ as /n/, and /p/ as /t/). Conclusions The mean performance on consonant identification tasks for the prelingually and postlingually deaf CI users was found. There were no statistically significant differences between the scores for prelingually and postlingually deaf CI users. The consonants that were incorrectly identified were typically confused with other consonants with the same acoustic properties, namely, voicing, duration, nasality, and silent gaps. A univariate metaregression model, although not statistically significant, indicated that duration of implant use in postlingually deaf adults predict a substantial portion of their consonant identification ability. As there is no ceiling effect, a nonsense syllable identification test may be a useful addition to the standard test battery in audiology clinics when assessing the speech perception of CI users.

• Borgström, Kristina; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss & Lindgren, Magnus (2016). Visual event-related potentials to novel objects predict rapid word learning ability in 20-month-olds. Developmental Neuropsychology. ISSN 8756-5641. 41(5-8), p. 308–323. doi: 10.1080/87565641.2016.1243111. Full text in Research Archive
• Katsos, Napoleon; Cummins, Chris; Ezeizabarrena, Maria-José; Gavarró, Anna; Kraljević, Jelena Kuvač & Hrzica, Gordana [Show all 56 contributors for this article] (2016). Cross-linguistic patterns in the acquisition of quantifiers. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (PNAS). ISSN 0027-8424. 113(33), p. 9244–9249. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1601341113. Full text in Research Archive
• Garmann, Nina Gram & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2016). Barns språkutvikling de tre første årene. In Enger, Hans-Olav; Knoph, Monica I. Norvik; Kristoffersen, Kristian Emil & Lind, Marianne (Ed.), Helt fabelaktig! Festskrift til Hanne Gram Simonsen på 70-årsdagen. Novus Forlag. ISSN 9788270998593. p. 45–64. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Morken, Frøydis; Helland, Wenche A & Helland, Turid (2015). The dynamics of narrative writing in primary grade children: Writing process factors predict story quality. Reading and writing. ISSN 0922-4777. 29, p. 529–554. doi: 10.1007/s11145-015-9618-4. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  In this study of third grade school children, we investigated the association between writing process measures recorded with key stroke logging and the final written product. Moreover, we examined the cognitive predictors of writing process and product measures. Analyses of key strokes showed that while most children spontaneously made local online revisions while writing, few revised previously written text. Children with good reading and spelling abilities made more online revisions than their peers. Two process factors, transcription fluency and online revision activity, contributed to explaining variance in narrative macrostructural quality and story length. As for cognitive predictors, spelling was the only factor that gave a unique contribution to explaining variance in writing process factors. Better spelling was associated with more revisions and faster transcription. The results show that developing writers’ ability to make online revisions in creative writing tasks is related to both the quality of the final written product and to individual literacy skills. More generally, the findings indicate that investigations of the dynamics of the writing process may provide insights into the factors that contribute to creative writing during early stages of literacy.

• Bless, Josef J; Westerhausen, Rene; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Gudmundsen, Magne; Kompus, Kristiina & Hugdahl, Kenneth (2015). Laterality across languages: Results from a global dichotic listening study using a smartphone application. Laterality: Asymmetries of Body, Brain and Cognition. ISSN 1357-650X. 20(4), p. 434–452. doi: 10.1080/1357650X.2014.997245. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Left-hemispheric language dominance has been suggested by observations in patients with brain damages as early as the 19th century, and has since been confirmed by modern behavioural and brain imaging techniques. Nevertheless, most of these studies have been conducted in small samples with predominantly Anglo-American background, thus limiting generalization and possible differences between cultural and linguistic backgrounds may be obscured. To overcome this limitation, we conducted a global dichotic listening experiment using a smartphone application for remote data collection. The results from over 4,000 participants with more than 60 different language backgrounds showed that left-hemispheric language dominance is indeed a general phenomenon. However, the degree of lateralization appears to be modulated by linguistic background. These results suggest that more emphasis should be placed on cultural/linguistic specificities of psychological phenomena and on the need to collect more diverse samples.

• Borgström, Kristina; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss & Lindgren, Magnus (2015). Substantial gains in word learning ability between 20 and 24 months: A longitudinal ERP study. Brain and Language. ISSN 0093-934X. 149, p. 33–45. doi: 10.1016/j.bandl.2015.07.002. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This longitudinal ERP study investigated changes in children’s ability to map novel words to novel objects during the dynamic period of vocabulary growth between 20 and 24 months. During this four-month period the children on average tripled their productive vocabulary, an increase which was coupled with changes in the N400 effect to pseudoword-referent associations. Moreover, productive vocabulary size was related to the dynamics of semantic processing during novel word learning. In children with large productive vocabularies, the N400 amplitude was linearly reduced during the five experimental learning trials, consistent with the repetition effect typically seen in adults, while in children with smaller vocabularies the N400 attenuation did not appear until the end of the learning phase. Vocabulary size was related only to modulation of the N400 to pseudowords, not to real words. These findings demonstrate a remarkable development of fast mapping ability between 20 and 24 months.

• Borgström, Kristina; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss & Lindgren, Magnus (2015). Event-related potentials during word mapping to object shape predict toddlers’ vocabulary size. Frontiers in Psychology. 6. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00143. Full text in Research Archive

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• Horst, Jessica & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2019). International Handbook of Language Acquisition. Routledge. ISBN 9781138087217. 592 p. Full text in Research Archive

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• Wandem, Fredrik Solli & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2026). Kort forklart: Hva er egentlig perspektivtaking? Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Perspektivtaking handler om noe av det mest grunnleggende i menneskelige relasjoner: å forstå at andre mennesker kan oppleve verden annerledes enn oss selv og så forsøke å ta dette perspektivet. Men hvorfor er denne evnen så viktig?

• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Hagelund, Silje & Knoph, Rebecca (2026). What Does My Reader Need? Demonstrations of Audience Awareness in Sixth-Graders’ Written LEGO Instructions. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Hagelund, Silje; Knoph, Rebecca; Jerijærvi, Camilla Bøen & Lervåg, Arne (2026). Gender differences in self-reported audience awareness in middle schoolers’ argumentative writing. Full text in Research Archive
• Knoph, Rebecca; Hagelund, Silje & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2026). What Does My Reader Need? Audience Awareness in SixthGraders’ Written LEGO Instructions. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Purpose: Audience awareness is central to effective writing, requiring writers to anticipate readers’ needs and misunderstandings (Bereiter & Scardamalia, 1987; Hayes, 2012). Failures to support and consider readers have contributed to catastrophic consequences, including fatal radiation explosions linked to technical instructions that failed to anticipate user interpretation (Leveson & Turner, 1993). This study examines how Norwegian sixth-grade students demonstrate audience awareness through reader supports when writing LEGO-based procedural texts for real readers (though low-stakes), and whether these demonstrations differ by writer gender.Method: Seventy sixth-grade students wrote instructions for a specific peer to build a six-piece LEGO figure using only the written instructions, ensuring genuine communication. Three researchers independently coded texts for reader supports indicating audience awareness using a deductively-developed, inductively-refined rubric with seven categories: reader connection, adaptation, emphasis, sequential markers, figurative language, goals, and action support. Patterns of reader support use were compared by author gender using frequency counts and qualitative ex‐ amples.Results: Sixth-grade writers demonstrated audience awareness in procedural writing. Sequence markers were almost always present, and action support appeared in over half of essays, whereas reader-oriented supports (e.g., reader connection and goal orientation) appeared in only about one third. Girls produced substan‐ tially more reader supports than boys, with more than four times as many reader connection instances and twice as many adaptation, action support, and goal orientation instances. Discussion: Authentic, hands-on writing tasks can elicit clear demonstrations of audience awareness through reader supports, even in relatively short procedur‐ al texts (approximately 100 words). Despite the task being designed to align with boys’ LEGO-building interests and spatial reasoning strengths, girls more consistently and flexibly supported their readers. These findings suggest gender differences in how young writers conceptualize and enact audience awareness, underscoring the need for instructional approaches that explicitly support students in anticipating and responding to readers’ needs.

• Knoph, Rebecca; Hagelund, Silje & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2026). Writing Quality on a LEGO-Based Procedural Writing Task: Gender Differences in Analytic Traits. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  INTRODUCTION: Young writers demonstrate substantial potential for composing texts, and measures of cognit‐ ive capacity related to writing show no gender differences (Bourke & Adams, 2012). Despite this, boys often report lower motivation for school-based writing and greater difficulty with transcription and text production (Olinghouse, 2008), and girls consistently outperform boys on writing assessments (Kim, 2017). These differ‐ ences may be partly genre- and topic-related, as girls more often prefer narrative texts and boys factual or expository materials (McGeown, 2016). This study therefore examined gender differences in writing quality on a hands-on procedural task designed to broaden engagement and explicitly specify audience and pur‐ pose.METHODS: Seventy Norwegian sixth-grade students viewed an image of a six-piece LEGO figure and wrote instructions so a peer could rebuild the figure without the image. Texts were then rated using the six subdimensions of the 6+1 Traits framework (Culham, 2003).RESULTS: Girls outperformed boys on all dimen‐ sions except Word Choice, with the most robust gender difference observed for Voice (Hedges’ g=0.83). Smaller but underpowered gender differences were observed for remaining traits (0.15-0.48). All subscores were strongly correlated with total score (rs=.67-.94), and the correlational structure was equivalent between genders. Girls produced longer texts than boys (d = 0.48), and word count was moderately related to writing quality (rs=.38-.64). Adjusting for word count partially attenuated gender differences (38-71%), though controlling for word count may remove substantively meaningful variance, as word count likely reflects underlying differences in fluency and task engagement.CONCLUSIONS: Overall, gender differences in writing persisted even on the hands-on task de‐ signed to broaden engagement. Specifically, girls continued to outperform boys in expressive voice even after adjusting for word count, suggesting that while engaging task design is important, it may be insufficient to reduce gender differences in writing quality and potentially a focus on expressive voice for instruction, particularly for boys.

• Hagelund, Silje; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss & Lervåg, Arne (2026). Perspective-taking and writing motivation on writing quality. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  A conference presentation about our study, where we examine whether writing motivation and perspective-taking correlate with 7th grade argumentative writing quality after accounting for foundational language skills. Specifically, we investigate how self-reported perspective-taking and writing motivation relate to three dimensions of argumentative writing: writing conventions (WC), language complexity (LC), and argumentative skills and audience awareness (AAW) when we account for oral language (vocabulary, listening comprehension), reading-related skills (reading comprehension, word decoding), and transcriptional skills (spelling, transcription).

• Hagelund, Silje; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss & Lervåg, Arne (2026). Can perspective-taking and writing motivation predict argumentative writing skills beyond reading comprehension and decoding in 7th-grade students? Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  A conference poster with results from our study examining how writing motivation and perspective-taking correlate with aspects of argumentative writing quality in 7th grade after accounting for foundational language skills.

• Blikstad-Balas, Marte; Solheim, Oddny Judith; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss & Bjermeland, Monica (2026). Lese- og skrivekrise? Dette vet vi funker! doi: https:/tv.plaii.no/arendalsuka/live/torvscenen. Full text in Research Archive
• Falck, Andreas; Kristensen, Jarl Kleppe; Grothe, Amund & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2026). Does digital collaboration enhance vocabulary learning? The role of “leading” and “advising” in collaborative exchanges. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Purpose Morphological knowledge, the understanding of how words can consist of multiple meaningful parts, is a predictor of vocabulary and reading comprehension. Individualized morphology interventions have been shown to improve morphological knowledge, but it is unclear whether collaboration provides additional benefits. This study examined whether collaboration supports morphological learning in third graders, and whether specific collaborative roles (leading vs. advising) differentially affect learning. We also explored whether effects of collaboration interact with children’s reading and attention-control skills. Methods A total of 192 Norwegian third-graders played the digital morphology learning game ‘Captain Morph’ in three within-subject conditions, across six 40-minute sessions: individually, or collaboratively in either a leading or an advising role. Morphological learning was assessed through receptive and productive measures pre- and post-training. In addition, children were tested with the Test of Word Reading Efficiency, and teachers rated the children’s ability to control attention on a six-item scale. Results Children’s knowledge of morphology improved on all measures and in all conditions. Contrary to our expectations, the advising role produced the most learning, while the leading role produced the least. This pattern was accentuated for children who scored lower on either attention control or reading, with these two scores contributing independently to the differences. Moreover, children with problems controlling attention had a distinct learning advantage from playing individually. Conclusions Collaboration is not always beneficial for learning: learning gains depend on the role taken and on individual differences. These findings suggest that digital morphology interventions should be adapted to the learners’ cognitive profiles to maximize gains.

• Næss, Kari-Anne Bottegård; Garmann, Nina Gram; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss & Ingvaldsen, Sissel (2025). Språkforstyrrelse hos barn. In Befring, Edvard (Eds.), Spesialpedagogikk. Cappelen Damm Akademisk. ISSN 9788202839888. p. 336–378. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Spesialpedagogikk, som er det mest omfattende og allsidige verket om spesialpedagogikk i Norge, kommer nå i sin 7. utgave. Bokas fire deler omhandler disse temaene:Spesialpedagogikkens identitet som et mangfoldig lærings- og verdifag: faglige perspektiver og forståelsesmåter, etikk, opplæringsrettigheter, historiske grunntrekk og spesialpedagogisk kompetanseutvikling. Spesialpedagogiske grunnleggende arbeidsoppgaver: inkludering, kartlegging, forebygging, den spesialpedagogiske tiltakskjeden og samarbeid med foreldre, PPT og andre. Spesialpedagogiske støtte- og hjelpetiltak for en mangfoldig målgruppe: kommunikasjons- og språkforstyrrelser, lese- og skrivevansker, matematikkvansker, utviklingshemming, hørsels- og synsvansker, fysisk-motoriske funksjonshemminger, psykososial sårbarhet, migrasjonsrelaterte vansker, autisme og barn og unge med stort læringspotensial. Spesialpedagogikk i barnehage og skole: barnehage, grunnskole, videregående opplæring og skolelivsmestring. Boka retter seg primært til bachelor- og masterstudenter i spesialpedagogikk og studenter i lærerutdanningene, men er også velegnet i pedagogikk-, sosial- og helsefagene. Forfatterne er rekruttert fra de fremste studie- og forskningsmiljøene i Norge.

• Falck, Andreas; Kristensen, Jarl Kleppe; Grothe, Amund & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2025). Does digital collaboration enhance vocabulary learning? The role of “leading” and “advising” in collaborative exchanges. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Is collaboration a useful tool for language learning in third graders, and if so, why? Here, we employ an app-based vocabulary learning program to investigate whether collaboration is more effective for learning vocabulary compared to working alone, and to provide insights into which aspects of a collaborative exchange may promote learning. To this end, we use an adaptation of the language learning app Captain Morph, designed to support vocabulary acquisition for primary grade students by training morphology. The app trains derivational affixes, such as “-ist” in cyclist or “re-” in reuse, by exposing children to tasks about how such affixes change the meaning of words (e.g. “cycle” vs “cyclist”). In a recent randomized controlled trial with 717 Norwegian second graders, the app demonstrated durable effects on word knowledge, including untrained words containing trained morphemes. For the present study, we expanded the single-player version of Captain Morph to include a multiplayer mode. In this mode, students collaborate on solving morphological tasks while alternating roles as “game leader” and “game advisor” in an experimentally controlled fashion. This setup allows investigation of whether collaboration yields better learning outcomes than working alone, as well as effects of different roles in the collaboration. Do students learn more from solving a collaborative task when having a leading role, or when giving advice to others’ solutions? We present preliminary data from a withinsubject experiment including approximately 190 Norwegian third graders, in which we investigated whether being either the leader or advisor in a collaborative exchange enhanced learning compared to solo play. We also investigated whether the potential added value of collaboration (compared to solo play) differed between students who score lower or higher on language or attention measures. Outcome measures included both receptive and productive vocabulary on three sets of test items: trained words, untrained words including trained morphemes, and newly invented words including trained morphemes (e.g. “If ‘over-sing’ was a word, what would it mean?”). On the group level, students improved between pre- and posttest on all measures. When it comes to the effectiveness of collaboration and of the different roles of leader and advisor, results were mixed: collaboration was not always more effective than solo play, and the advisor role seemed the most effective for learning (counter to our initial expectations). However, rich process data collected by the app (still being analyzed at the time of abstract submission) may provide additional insights on the circumstances under which a collaborative setting improves learning.

• Falck, Andreas; Hartveit, Charlotte Trosby; Heimli, Amalie Skrefsrud & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2025). Measuring patterns of agreement and disagreement during app-based collaborative learning. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Kristensen, Jarl Kleppe; Grothe, Amund & Falck, Andreas (2025). Captain Morph: an app-based morphology intervention. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Falck, Andreas; Grothe, Amund; Kristensen, Jarl Kleppe; Karlsen, Jannicke & Monsrud, May-Britt [Show all 7 contributors for this article] (2025). Seminar for lærere og skoleledere om Kaptein Morf. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Kristensen, Jarl Kleppe; Grothe, Amund & Falck, Andreas (2025). Enhancing Vocabulary through Morphological Training: Insights from Two App-Based Interventions​. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Kristensen, Jarl Kleppe; Grothe, Amund & Falck, Andreas (2025). The Captain Morph vocabulary app – single and multiplayer modes [app demo]. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Kristensen, Jarl Kleppe; Grothe, Amund & Falck, Andreas (2025). Enhancing Vocabulary Learning with Captain Morph: A Single player and Multiplayer Morphology App. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2025). Læringsprosesser med digitale læremidler: Det gode, det dårlige og veien videre. Full text in Research Archive
• Falck, Andreas & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2024). An educational multiplayer game as a tool for studying effects of collaboration on language learning. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2024). Morfologi som en inngangsport til ordforråd, lesing og staving. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2023). Morphology - a gateway to advanced language. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2023). A digital morphology-based vocabulary intervention: From a randomized controlled trial to a social innovation. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2023). Språklige utfordringer og livskvalitet hos norske barn med DLD. Full text in Research Archive
• Fargier, Raphael Stephane; Falck, Andreas; Hovland, Tine; Bayar, Hakan & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2022). The influence of contextual variability on word learning: does the type of variability matter? Full text in Research Archive
• Fargier, Raphael Stephane; Falck, Andreas; Hovland, Tine; Bayar, Hakan & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2022). The influence of contextual variability on word learning: does the type of variability matter? Full text in Research Archive
• Falck, Andreas & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2022). The Leader Learns it All? Adapting the “Captain Morph” tablet game to investigate learning consequences of leading and following attention. Full text in Research Archive
• Rødvik, Arne Kirkhorn; Tvete, Ole; Skaug, Ingebjørg; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Wie, Ona Bø & Silvola, Juha Tapio (2022). Consonant and Vowel Confusions in Well-Performing Children and Adolescents With Cochlear Implants, Measured by a Nonsense-Word Repetition Test. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2022). Morfologi og språktiltak. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2021). The vocabulary learning challenge: How can morphology help? Full text in Research Archive
• Fargier, Raphael Stephane & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2021). The influence of contextual variability on word learning: does the type of variability matter? Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss & Morken, Frøydis (2021). Språkutvikling. In Tamnes, Christian Krog (Eds.), Nevrokognitiv utviklingspsykologi. Gyldendal Akademisk. ISSN 9788205533387. p. 56–92. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss & Bratlie, Siri Steffensen (2021). Kaptein Morf og minoritetsspråklige elever. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Bratlie, Siri Steffensen; Kristensen, Jarl Kleppe; Gustafsson, Jan-Eric; Lyster, Solveig Alma Halaas & Snow, Catherine [Show all 12 contributors for this article] (2021). App-based morphological training produces lasting effects on word knowledge in primary school children. Full text in Research Archive
• Bratlie, Siri Steffensen; Gustafsson, Jan-Eric & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2021). Latent language-literacy profiles among Norwegian language-minority students. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Purpose This study examined whether there are subgroups of Norwegian language-minority (LM) students that have distinct latent profiles in the domain of lexical knowledge, such as orthographic, phonological, and semantic skills. The latent profile approach may reveal distinct relationships between different linguistic and literacy skills (e.g., uneven profiles). Methods The analyses focused on a group of 186 LM students in Norway who were part of a larger sample of second graders (N = 717). Latent profile analysis was based on seven indicators that together capture orthographic, phonological, and semantic word knowledge as well as general ability. The profiles for LM students were compared to mean scores for the full sample. Results The LM students’ language-literacy skills were best described by three distinct latent profiles: one prevalent profile encompassing about two-thirds of the sample (“below average vocabulary, average literacy”) and two profiles that each encompassed a sixth of the sample (“low vocabulary, low literacy” and “low average vocabulary, high literacy”). The profiles were rank-ordered according to achievement across measures, but characterized by lower-than-average vocabulary compared to the full sample. The differences between the three latent profiles were largest in spelling accuracy and reading fluency. Conclusions Distinct language-literacy profiles among LM students were identified based on features of lexical knowledge. Few of the LM students had profiles characterized by low reading-fluency skills. Our findings indicate that most LM students benefit from regular instruction in code-related reading skills, but that effective instruction in the semantic elements of language is needed for LM students.

• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2020). Kaptein Morf: et digitalt ordforrådstiltak for barn i småskolen. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Bratlie, Siri Steffensen; Hagtvet, Bente Eriksen; Lyster, Solveig-Alma Halaas; Kristensen, Jarl Kleppe & Næss, Kari-Anne Bottegaard [Show all 10 contributors for this article] (2019). Kaptein Morf: A digital morphology-based vocabulary intervention for primary school children. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2019). Kaptein Morf: et digitalt ordforrådstiltak for barn i småskolen. Full text in Research Archive
• Bratlie, Siri Steffensen; Brinchmann, Ellen Iren; Melby-Lervåg, Monica & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2019). Morphological Knowledge of Children with Language Minority Backgrounds and Monolingual children: A Meta-Analysis. Full text in Research Archive
• Bratlie, Siri Steffensen; Brinchmann, Ellen Iren; Melby-Lervåg, Monica & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2019). Morphological knowledge in language minority children compared with monolingual children: A meta-analysis. Full text in Research Archive
• Rødvik, Arne Kirkhorn; Tvete, Ole; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Wie, Ona Bø; Skaug, Ingebjørg & Silvola, Juha Tapio (2019). Perception of speech features compared for two groups of cochlear implant stimulation strategies. Full text in Research Archive
• Garmann, Nina Gram; Romøren, Anna Sara Hexeberg; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Hansen, Pernille & Simonsen, Hanne Gram (2018). Screening for language delay using Norwegian CDI III. Full text in Research Archive
• Garmann, Nina Gram; Romøren, Anna Sara Hexeberg; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Hansen, Pernille; Simonsen, Hanne Gram & Pedersen, Ingrid (2018). Norwegian CDI III. Full text in Research Archive
• Garmann, Nina Gram; Romøren, Anna Sara Hexeberg; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Hansen, Pernille; Simonsen, Hanne Gram & Pedersen, Ingrid (2018). Norsk CDI III. Full text in Research Archive
• Rødvik, Arne Kirkhorn; Skaug, Ingebjørg; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Tvete, Ole; Perold, Jennifer & Wie, Ona Bø [Show all 7 contributors for this article] (2018). Can consonant and vowel perception in well-performing Afrikaans- and Norwegian-speaking cochlear implant users be assessed by a cross-linguistic nonsense syllable repetition test? Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2018). Utvikling av ordforråd hos barn: fra hjernebølger til intervensjon. Full text in Research Archive
• Helland, Turid; Valderhaug, Hanne; Eiken, Monica; Bless, Josef J; Helland, Wenche A & Morken, Frøydis [Show all 7 contributors for this article] (2018). Auditive training effect in dyslexia using a dichotic listening paradigm. Full text in Research Archive
• Mårtensson, Johan; Arciuli, Joanne; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Szczepankiewicz, Filip; Westen, Danielle van & Nilsson, Markus [Show all 7 contributors for this article] (2017). White matter microstructure and statistical learning in the auditory and visual modalities. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Arciuli, Joanne & Wie, Ona Bø (2017). Statistical learning in two groups of children with different causes for their language impairment. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Hagtvet, Bente Eriksen; Bratlie, Siri Steffensen; Jarl, Kristensen; Valberg, Åsrun Edvardsen & Røe-Indregård, Hanne [Show all 9 contributors for this article] (2017). Learning Morphology with a Software App: the Effect of Input Variability. Full text in Research Archive
• Garmann, Nina Gram; Romøren, Anna Sara Hexeberg; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Simonsen, Hanne Gram; Flygstad, Nina & Gullvik, Marthe [Show all 8 contributors for this article] (2017). Assessing language skills in Norwegian kindergartens: Piloting CDI III in Norwegian. Full text in Research Archive
• Rødvik, Arne Kirkhorn; Tvete, Ole; Wie, Ona Bø; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Skaug, Ingebjørg & Silvola, Juha Tapio (2017). Consonant and vowel repetition in children with cochlear implants measured by a nonsense syllable hearing test. Full text in Research Archive
• Garmann, Nina Gram; Romøren, Anna Sara Hexeberg; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss & Simonsen, Hanne Gram (2017). Norsk CDI III - en pilot. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Wie, Ona Bø & Haukedal, Christiane Lingås (2016). Language abilities in children with moderate hearing impairment. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Arciuli, Joanne; Haukedal, Christiane Lingås & Wie, Ona Bø (2016). Intact visual statistical learning in children with cochlear implants. Full text in Research Archive
• Haukedal, Christiane Lingås; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss & Wie, Ona Bø (2016). Quality of life in children who received cochlear implanted before the age of two. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Wie, Ona Bø & Arciuli, Joanne (2016). Statistical Learning in children with specific Language impairment. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss & Wie, Ona Bø (2016). Språkferdigheter hos barn med moderat hørselstap. Full text in Research Archive
• Borgström, Kristina & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2016). Tidig ordinlärning, vad vet vi och varför är det viktigt? Full text in Research Archive
• Garmann, Nina Gram; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Simonsen, Hanne Gram; Holm, Elisabeth; Romøren, Anna Sara Hexeberg & Hansen, Pernille (2016). CDI III - a progress report. Full text in Research Archive
• Garmann, Nina Gram; Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Simonsen, Hanne Gram; Holm, Elisabeth; Romøren, Anna Sara Hexeberg & Hansen, Pernille (2016). The development of CDI III in Norwegian. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Hagtvet, Bente Eriksen; Lyster, Solveig-Alma Halaas; Næss, Kari-Anne Bottegaard & Wie, Ona Bø (2015). Hvordan kan vi best fremme ordlæring? Presentasjon av et nytt intervensjonsprosjekt for 6- og 7-åringer med typisk og atypisk utvikling. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Arciuli, Joanne; Haukedal, Christiane Lingås & Wie, Ona Bø (2015). Visual Statistical Learning in children With Language impairment and children With hearing loss. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2015). Ny studie beskriver hva som skjer i hjernen når toåringen lærer nye ord. [Internet]. http://www.uv.uio.no/isp/forskning/aktuelt/aktuelle-saker/20. Full text in Research Archive
• Torkildsen, Janne von Koss; Arciuli, Joanne; Haukedal, Christiane Lingås; Gismarvik, Marit Enny & Wie, Ona Bø (2015). Statistical Learning in typically developing children, children with specific language impairment and children with hearing loss. Full text in Research Archive
• Garmann, Nina Gram; Hansen, Pernille; Simonsen, Hanne Gram; Thurmann-Moe, Anne Cathrine & Torkildsen, Janne von Koss (2015). CDI short form, CDI III and CLT. Full text in Research Archive

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