School of Communication Science and Disorders (SCSD) doctoral candidates Miguel Garcia-Salas and Michelle Torres-Chavarro had their research, “Morphological Complexity in Writing: Implications for Writing Quality and Patterns of Change,” accepted for publication in the American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology. Their study was co-authored by Drs. Carla Wood (SCSD) and Chris Schatschneider (FSU Psychology).

“Our study delves into the relationship between the use of morphologically complex words (MCWs) in writing – words with derivational morphemes like prefixes and suffixes – and teachers’ evaluations of writing quality,” said Torres-Chavarro. The research project examined the writing of a diverse group of 824 fifth-grade students.

Their main finding was the positive correlation between students’ use of MCWs in their writing and their teachers’ ratings of writing quality, highlighting the importance of sophisticated word use in creating high-quality writing. They also found a change over time in MCW student usage over the course of a school year, with a notably lower progression for multilingual learners and students with developmental language disorders.

“We all have an interest in morphology and its development, specifically for students from diverse linguistic backgrounds and so that curiosity drove the initiation of this project,” said Garcia-Salas. “Dr. Wood’s expertise in morphology and Dr. Schatschneider’s expertise in statistical methods were pivotal throughout this research project, really complementing each other and allowing Michelle and I the ability to both learn from them and contribute to the project’s completion.”

“Our decision to focus on MCWs stems from the growing evidence that morphological knowledge skills significantly influence vocabulary, reading outcomes, and most recently, writing proficiency,” said Torres-Chavarro, “My time at SCSD honed my research and analytical skills, which have proven invaluable in my current work. Additionally, the interdisciplinary nature of the program fostered adaptability and a holistic perspective – essential qualities in navigating the complexities of conducting research.”

The students look forward to seeing the real-world impact of their research and continue to contribute to their field by further exploring morphologically complex word use.