Recognition of the Psychoneurological State of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders Based on Speech Signals: Acoustic and Perceptual Characteristics

Abstract

Recognition by adults of the psychoneurological state of children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD), n = 35, and typically developing (TD) children, n = 47, aged 5–14 years, was studied. A perceptual analysis was carried out, in which adult native Russian speakers (auditors) took part, n = 206. For perceptual analysis, test sequences (audio tests) were created containing words and phrases of children with ASD and TD children, selected from spontaneous speech recordings. The auditors were faced with the problem of determining the psychoneurological state of a child based on auditory perception: typical–atypical development. A spectrographic analysis of the speech material of children with ASD and TD children was carried out. The phrases of children with ASD are characterized by a lower speech rate compared to the phrases of TD children, as well as fewer words, longer duration of stressed and unstressed vowels in words, higher values of the frequency of the fundamental tone in the phrase, word, and stressed and unstressed vowels.