Language processing involves associating spoken or written language with meaning and action. It is dependent on the brain’s ability to process auditory and visual input, and any deficits in these systems can lead to language processing difficulties. The exact processes involved in language processing are still unknown.
Speech is the association of spoken sounds and written symbols with meaningful concepts or actions. Language processing refers to the mental abilities needed to see or hear language and then associate the appropriate person, thing, place, concept, question, or action that is being communicated. In short, through language processing, humans understand when and how to respond to written or spoken communication. Because much of the brain and its functions remain a mystery to modern science, the exact chemical and physical processes involved in language processing are unknown.
Doctors and researchers theorize that language processing is entirely a function of the brain, meaning that the brain handles all aspects of language processing. While the actual processing may indeed be conducted entirely within the confines of the human brain, other systems provide crucial inputs needed to enable language processing and understanding. With this in mind, it could be argued that language processing is dependent on channeling the flow of information from the auditory and visual input systems to the brain. The actual processing of language may take place in the brain, but without systems to collect and channel information, no language processing would be required.
Due to the symbiotic nature of the auditory systems and the brain’s ability to process language, speech and auditory processing are commonly referred to concurrently and, in some cases, considered interchangeable. Processing spoken language and acquiring the appropriate understanding of sounds and syllables requires auditory processing skills. Any delay or deficit in auditory processing skills results in delayed or ineffective language processing. In other words, if a person is unable to hear and process auditory input correctly, then of course language processing for spoken words would also be difficult. The two processes are highly dependent on each other, but in fact remain separate concepts and systems.
Written language, like spoken language, also requires the same mental processing capabilities, in terms of neurological function. Of course, no auditory processing is needed for written language. Instead, properly functioning visual skills are required. In language processing for written communications, the brain must interpret visual symbols, then immediately associate those symbols with an appropriate meaning and, when justified, with an appropriate response. Any gaps, delays, or deficits in the visual system can contribute to language processing difficulties.
Research into how auditory and visual input systems send information to the brain for processing is still inconclusive. Scientists understand that the brain’s visual cortex receives visual inputs and the auditory cortex receives sound inputs. What remains unknown is whether the visual and auditory cortex use the same or different pathways to send information for language processing.
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