Approximately 7% of children who start primary school in the UK have language difficulties. Children with a diagnosed language disorder have worse mental health compared to those without. Moreover, nearly 40% of children with a speech and language disability have experienced abuse (emotional, physical, & sexual), which is 4 times higher than children with no disability. Despite the serious implications, children with language difficulties often go un-noticed.

The project will identify the pathways that lead depression during adolescence. For example, it may be that children with high genetic risk for language difficulties, who experience childhood abuse, go on to have language difficulties, which then leads to depression during adolescence. If this were to be the case, it would allow for clinical psychologists and speech therapists to work with victims of childhood abuse to improve their language ability with a view to reducing the associated mental health difficulties.

Understanding the role of genetic language risk in the pathways from childhood abuse to depression symptoms in adolescence will inform targeted language based interventions for the most vulnerable children.