Autism and Developmental Language Impairments最新文献

{"title":"Communicative Skills Assessment Scale: Contributions to the Validation of Autism Spectrum Disorder.","authors":"Diana Oliveira, Marisa Lousada, Daniela Figueiredo","doi":"10.1177/23969415251362626","DOIUrl":"10.1177/23969415251362626","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and aims: </strong>Speech-language pathologists actively participate in the assessment of pragmatics in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). However, in Portugal, there is a shortage of valid and reliable instruments to assess this domain in detail. Therefore, it was deemed relevant to help validate the <i>Escala de Avaliação de Competências Comunicativas</i> (EAC) (Communicative Skills Assessment Scale) in this population.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A cross-sectional, descriptive correlational study was conducted. The sample included 97 children, aged between 4 and 7 years and 11 months, diagnosed with ASD with European Portuguese as their native language. As an exclusion criterion, the co-occurrence of intellectual developmental disorder was defined. The internal consistency of the EAC was analyzed through the calculation of Cronbach's alpha and test-retest reliability through the calculation of the intraclass correlation coefficient. Convergent validity was also analyzed using Spearman's correlation coefficient.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The EAC presented a high internal consistency value, with a Cronbach's alpha of 0.956. The test-retest reliability analysis (n = 27) revealed good stability in the participants' responses at both assessment moments, with ICC values varying between 0.642 and 0.842. In the study of convergent validity, statistically significant correlations were observed between the EAC total score and the two scales of the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire-Portuguese Version (SDQ-Por): relationship problems with colleagues (r_s = -0.273; <i>p</i> < .01) and prosocial behavior (r_s = 0.606; <i>p</i> < .01).</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>The EAC presents good reliability and validity for children with ASD, suggesting its adequacy as a research and clinical tool for testing pragmatics within this population.</p><p><strong>Implications: </strong>This study will improve clinical decision making regarding ASD and guide future research.</p>","PeriodicalId":36716,"journal":{"name":"Autism and Developmental Language Impairments","volume":"10 ","pages":"23969415251362626"},"PeriodicalIF":3.4,"publicationDate":"2025-07-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12304631/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144745297","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"To What Extent Can Statistical Learning Explain Language Profiles in Autism? Methodological and Theoretical Challenges.","authors":"Charlotte Dumont, Emma Peri, Arnaud Destrebecqz, Mikhail Kissine","doi":"10.1177/23969415251347878","DOIUrl":"10.1177/23969415251347878","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and aims: </strong>Language development in autism varies widely, from fluently verbal to minimally verbal individuals, with socio-communicative difficulties often cited as key explanatory factors. Statistical learning (SL)-the ability to detect regularities in language-has also emerged as a potential contributor to language acquisition in autism. However, SL research in autism has predominantly focused on verbally fluent individuals, leaving non- and minimally verbal populations underexplored. This study aimed to examine the predictive roles of joint attention and statistical learning, specifically nonadjacent dependency learning, on expressive vocabulary and morphosyntactic outcomes in autistic children.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Participants included 40 autistic children aged 5-8 years with diverse linguistic profiles, ranging from verbally fluent to minimally verbal, and 40 non-autistic children. Joint attention was assessed during a semi-structured play protocol, which also provided naturalistic language samples for analysis. Measures of expressive vocabulary and morphosyntax were derived from the number of different words and verb flexions produced, respectively. Sensitivity to nonadjacent dependencies was evaluated through an artificial language learning task.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Neither joint attention nor sensitivity to nonadjacent dependencies predicted expressive vocabulary or morphosyntactic skills in autistic children. Response to joint attention scores were significantly lower in autistic children than in non-autistic children but higher than in previous research. This may be due to the less structured and, therefore, more ecologically valid context in which joint attention was assessed (free play), in conjunction with age and maturation factors. Regarding the SL task, both autistic and non-autistic children demonstrated sensitivity to nonadjacent dependencies. Most interestingly perhaps, only 15 autistic children completed the SL task, with non-verbal cognitive abilities significantly predicting task completion.</p><p><strong>Conclusions and implications: </strong>This study highlights the complexity of investigating the role of statistical learning in language development in autism. It underscores the limitations of behavioral SL paradigms for minimally verbal children. Future research should prioritize developing more ecologically valid and accessible paradigms to accurately assess statistical learning in minimally verbal children, thereby clarifying the role SL may play in language acquisition in autism.</p>","PeriodicalId":36716,"journal":{"name":"Autism and Developmental Language Impairments","volume":"10 ","pages":"23969415251347878"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-07-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12276524/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144676051","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The Lived Experiences of Autistic Mothers: A Systematic Review and Thematic Synthesis of Qualitative Evidence.","authors":"Deanne Christie Lockington, Fiona Gullon-Scott","doi":"10.1177/23969415251343850","DOIUrl":"10.1177/23969415251343850","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Increasingly, research has explored autistic mothers' experiences of motherhood. However, understanding is largely based on single studies. Existing syntheses of qualitative and quantitative research are highly specific, focusing on pregnancy, sensory, infant feeding, and perinatal periods. Thus, a review taking a broader perspective which encapsulates autistic mothers' experiences beyond early motherhood is warranted.</p><p><strong>Aims: </strong>To systematically identify, appraise, and synthesize existing qualitative research on autistic mothers' experiences of motherhood to enrich understanding, and guide future research and practice.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A systematic review following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA), and a qualitative synthesis of extant peer-reviewed qualitative studies and grey literature sources using Thomas and Harden Thematic Synthesis. Methodological rigor was assessed using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme (CASP) checklist.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Three themes representing the collective experiences and perspectives of 629 autistic mothers from 23 primary studies were developed: \"The Embodied Autistic Experience of Motherhood,\" \"Navigating the Non-Autistic World as an 'Other' Mother\" and \"Recalibrating Identities.\"</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Autistic mothers report having unique autistic strengths and prioritizing their children. However, their experiences of motherhood are largely colored by autism-specific and identity-related challenges, and adverse experiences related to systemic, structural, and societal othering, specifically, from feeling policed, pathologized and overpowered by professionals. This translates into an increased prevalence of psychological difficulties and need for support. Further research, professional training, systemic changes, and societal awareness are urgently needed to inform understanding and support.</p>","PeriodicalId":36716,"journal":{"name":"Autism and Developmental Language Impairments","volume":"10 ","pages":"23969415251343850"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-07-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12246537/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144627358","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"\"There is Nowhere Else That I'd Rather be Than with Them\": Parents' Positive Experiences Parenting Autistic Children.","authors":"Melanie Heyworth, Catherine McMahon, Diana Weiting Tan, Elizabeth Pellicano","doi":"10.1177/23969415251357222","DOIUrl":"10.1177/23969415251357222","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and aims: </strong>A significant body of research focuses on the negative outcomes of parenting Autistic children, particularly when parents identify as non-Autistic. Less attention has been paid to the experiences of Autistic parents of Autistic children, and even less to the positive or fulfilling elements of parenting Autistic children, regardless of parent neurotype. This study therefore asked: What do parents value about their Autistic children, and what characterizes parents' positive relationships with their Autistic children?</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Here, 40 Autistic and 40 non-Autistic parents completed semistructured interviews to understand better their positive experiences of parenting Autistic children. We analyzed participant responses using reflexive thematic analysis, using an inductive approach.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>We identified five themes: parenting is both challenging and enjoyable and \"there's the good and the bad and the highs and the lows\" (theme 1); parents value time with their Autistic children and \"there is nowhere else that I'd rather be than with them\" (theme 2); parents value their Autistic child's personality and \"just love watching her be who she is\" (theme 3); parenting Autistic children is fulfilling and \"I know I must be doing something right\" (theme 4); and collaboration, learning, and acceptance are key to parenting fulfillment so that \"I wouldn't have it any other way\" (theme 5). Overall, parents told us that parenting could be complex and challenging, and that they had good and bad days. But many parents felt happy to parent their Autistic child, and they enjoyed laughing and doing things together with their child. Parents often really liked their Autistic child, who they thought was caring, funny, and interesting, and they described enjoying their child's company, speaking about the qualities and characteristics they valued in their Autistic child. Some parents felt happy when their child needed them. They liked it when they could help their child and make their child feel safe. This made them feel like they were doing a good job as parent. Parents discussed the personal positive impact of experiencing feelings of self-efficacy and the role of Autistic children in their personal growth. Finally, parents thought that it was important to accept their child and that their life would be different than what they imagined. They reflected on the role of acceptance and flexibility in their experiences of joy and fulfillment.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>We show that both Autistic and non-Autistic parents of Autistic children have positive, joyful, and valuable parenting experiences. Our findings have far-reaching implications, including how researchers and practitioners conceptualize parenting Autistic children, and the ways in which parents can be supported to foster such experiences.</p>","PeriodicalId":36716,"journal":{"name":"Autism and Developmental Language Impairments","volume":"10 ","pages":"23969415251357222"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-07-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12284749/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144699752","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Receptive Vocabulary, Phonological Short-Term Memory, Theory of Mind and Oral Inferential Comprehension in French-Speaking Preschoolers With and Without Developmental Language Disorder.","authors":"Pamela Filiatrault-Veilleux, Julia Pichonsky, Chantal Desmarais","doi":"10.1177/23969415251353154","DOIUrl":"10.1177/23969415251353154","url":null,"abstract":"&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Background and aims: &lt;/strong&gt;Inferential comprehension difficulties and their impacts on reading comprehension are well documented in school-aged children with Developmental Language Disorder (DLD). In comparison, fewer studies have been conducted in young children with DLD prior to their formal schooling journey. In addition, the contribution of linguistic and cognitive skills to oral inferential comprehension abilities in preschoolers, notably receptive vocabulary, phonological short-term memory, and theory of mind (ToM), requires further investigation. The first aim of this study is to explore how young children presenting with DLD aged 5 to 6 years perform when compared to same-age and younger children presenting with typical language development (TLD) on measures of oral inferential comprehension, receptive vocabulary, ToM, and phonological short-term memory. The second aim is to analyze how these linguistic and cognitive skills contribute to oral inferential comprehension in both DLD and TLD preschool children.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Methods: &lt;/strong&gt;A total of 112 preschool children participated in this study, including 21 (&lt;i&gt;n&lt;/i&gt; = 21) children with DLD aged 5 to 6 years and two TLD groups, 37 (&lt;i&gt;n&lt;/i&gt; = 37) younger children aged 4 to 5 years and 54 (&lt;i&gt;n&lt;/i&gt; = 54) same-age children. A narrative-based oral inferential comprehension task was administered to all children, in addition to measures of receptive vocabulary, phonological short-term memory, and ToM. Analysis of covariance (ANCOVAs) were used to compare performances between the three groups, followed by Pearson correlations and hierarchical regression analyses to examine the contribution of these variables to oral inferential comprehension abilities across the sample.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Results: &lt;/strong&gt;After controlling for level of parental education (LPE) and biological sex, children with DLD performed significantly below the same-age TLD group on all four measures with large effect sizes (&lt;i&gt;p&lt;/i&gt; &lt; .001; &lt;i&gt;η&lt;/i&gt; &lt;sup&gt;2&lt;/sup&gt; = .17-.44). Their performance was comparable to the younger TLD group on measure of oral inferential comprehension (&lt;i&gt;p&lt;/i&gt; = .234), and significantly below on measures of receptive vocabulary (&lt;i&gt;p&lt;/i&gt; = .008), phonological short-term memory (&lt;i&gt;p&lt;/i&gt; &lt; .001), and ToM (&lt;i&gt;p&lt;/i&gt; = .028). Results from the regression analysis indicated that age, LPE, diagnosis condition, receptive vocabulary and ToM accounted for 53% of the total variance in oral inferential comprehension.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Conclusions and implications: &lt;/strong&gt;This study reiterates the early listening comprehension difficulties experienced by preschool children with DLD when compared to children presenting with typical language development. The results also indicate that when controlling for age, LPE and diagnosis condition, children are likely to have better inferential comprehension abilities if they perform well on a measure of ToM. Considering that challenges related to language comp","PeriodicalId":36716,"journal":{"name":"Autism and Developmental Language Impairments","volume":"10 ","pages":"23969415251353154"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-06-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12182632/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144369349","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The Effects of PROsyntax in Children with Developmental Language Disorder and Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Nonrandomized Controlled Trial.","authors":"Mafalda Azevedo, Alexandrina Martins, Tatiana Pereira, Pedro S Couto, Marisa Lousada","doi":"10.1177/23969415251350586","DOIUrl":"10.1177/23969415251350586","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and children with development language disorder (DLD) often experience syntactic impairments. It is of the utmost importance to implement evidence-based intervention at the earliest possible stage to mitigate the adverse effects of these difficulties. Internationally, several programs are supported by scientific evidence. In Portugal, there are currently only two intervention programs, one of which is PROsyntax. However, its effectiveness has not yet been established.</p><p><strong>Aim: </strong>This study aims to determine the effects of PROsyntax on expressive and receptive syntax in preschool-age children with syntactic impairments diagnosed with DLD or ASD.</p><p><strong>Methods and procedures: </strong>This study is a nonrandomized controlled trial with a nonprobabilistic convenience sample. Thirty-one children aged between 3 and 6 years were recruited and allocated into an experimental group (EG, intervention group) (<i>n</i> = 14) and a control group (CG, without intervention) (<i>n</i> = 17). A blind pre- (T1) and postintervention (T2) assessment was conducted using two standardized instruments (SIN:TACS for expression and Subtest 3 of Avaliação da Linguagem Oral (ALO) for comprehension). Children in the EG received intervention with PROsyntax, comprising 24 sessions, biweekly, lasting 1 hr each. The intervention was conducted within the school setting by a speech and language therapist.</p><p><strong>Outcomes and results: </strong>Statistically significant improvements were observed in the EG compared to the CG in both expressive (F_{Time × Group}(1,27) = 293.22; <i>p</i> < .001; η_p ² = 0.92) and receptive (F_{Time × Group}(1,27) = 147.18; <i>p</i> < .001; η_p ² = 0.85) syntax. Large effect sizes were found (SIN:TACS: d = 4.07 (DLD) and d = 11.67 (ASD); ALO: d = 3.29 (DLD) and d = 4.31 (ASD)). Strong correlations between measures were observed at both time points. Postintervention, the CG also received the intervention and showed comparable gains. High satisfaction ratings were reported by both families and early childhood educators.</p><p><strong>Conclusions and implications: </strong>The findings provide preliminary evidence supporting the effects of PROsyntax in improving expressive and receptive syntactic skills in preschool-age children with ASD or DLD. These findings have important implications for clinical practice, suggesting that explicit interventions can yield significant gains in preschool-age children with syntactic impairment. However, the nonrandomized design, small sample size, and absence of long-term follow-up limit the generalizability of results. Further research is needed to confirm these effects and explore differential responses across diagnostic groups.</p>","PeriodicalId":36716,"journal":{"name":"Autism and Developmental Language Impairments","volume":"10 ","pages":"23969415251350586"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-06-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12181704/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144369350","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Narrative production abilities of children with autism.","authors":"Tal Naman, Sveta Fichman, Carmit Altman, Nufar Sukenik","doi":"10.1177/23969415251321824","DOIUrl":"10.1177/23969415251321824","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and aims: </strong>Narrative abilities are crucial for effective communication and social interactions. Children with autism often struggle with narrative production and comprehension due to their unique developmental profiles. This study examines the macrostructure and microstructure narrative skills of Hebrew speaking children with autism compared to age-matched typically developing (TD) children, aiming to uncover specific areas of difficulty and proficiency.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>The study included 64 children aged 6-8 years, divided equally between those diagnosed with autism and TD peers. Participants underwent narrative production tasks involving both fictional and everyday narratives, and modes of generating and retelling. Narrative comprehension was also assessed immediately after each task. Macrostructure analysis examined the organization and structure of the narratives while microstructure analysis focused on linguistic elements such as syntax and word use.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Both groups exhibited comparable overall narrative production and comprehension skills. However, subtle distinctions were noted such that children with autism showed difficulties in creating complex narrative structures and integrating syntactic elements effectively compared to their TD peers. Despite the differences, children with autism demonstrated notable strengths, particularly in the retelling mode, where they sometimes achieved higher scores in the use of function words. Both groups achieved similar scores in narrative comprehension tasks.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>The findings indicate that while children with autism can develop narrative skills comparable to their TD peers, they continue to experience specific challenges that affect their narrative production, particularly in syntactic complexity. Although not always statistically significant, these findings suggest that autistic children possess narrative abilities that emerge under certain conditions, emphasizing the importance of considering varied narrative contexts in assessments.</p><p><strong>Implications: </strong>The study highlights the need for targeted narrative intervention programs that address the specific challenges and strengths faced by children with autism. Educational strategies should focus on enhancing syntactic construction and narrative structure to improve both academic and social communication outcomes.</p>","PeriodicalId":36716,"journal":{"name":"Autism and Developmental Language Impairments","volume":"10 ","pages":"23969415251321824"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-06-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12163273/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144303044","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Differences in Language Impairment Between Developmental Language Disorder and Autism: Insights From Mandarin <i>ba</i> and <i>bei</i> Constructions.","authors":"Chaowei Nie, Yi Esther Su, Stephanie Durrleman, Xiaowei He","doi":"10.1177/23969415251341248","DOIUrl":"10.1177/23969415251341248","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and aims: </strong>Both developmental language disorder (DLD) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are characterized by language and communication deficits, and the extent to which commonalities in syntactic difficulties are shared between DLD and autism plus language impairment (ALI), a subtype of ASD, is a matter of debate. Thus, this study aims to further explore the extent of overlapping vulnerabilities in the syntactic profiles of children with DLD and ALI.</p><p><strong>Method: </strong>We investigated the comprehension and production of two complex syntactic structures, <i>ba</i> constructions and <i>bei</i> constructions in Mandarin by 18 children with DLD (mean age = 5;03) and 17 children with ALI (mean age = 5;05), compared to their 24 typically developing peers matched on chronological age.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The results show that children with DLD and children with ALI differ in the errors committed when producing these two constructions. Specifically, children with DLD are prone to produce ungrammatical responses, use simple sentences, and misuse <i>ba</i>/<i>bei</i> constructions, while children with ALI produce pragmatically inappropriate responses which are scarce in the productions of children with DLD. In addition, the comprehension and production of <i>bei</i> constructions by children with DLD were significantly correlated with their nonverbal working memory (NVWM), while no such correlation was found in the ALI group. Finally, while <i>ba</i> and <i>bei</i> constructions yield higher comprehension than production in the DLD group, only <i>ba</i> constructions showed this pattern in the ALI group.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>These findings suggest that children with DLD and children with ALI do not constitute a continuum of the same language disorder despite their superficial resemblance on performance accuracy.</p><p><strong>Implications: </strong>This study highlights the need for tailored interventions to enhance mastery of <i>ba</i> and <i>bei</i> constructions: for children with DLD, focus on explicit instruction in complex syntax and NVWM training; for children with ALI, emphasize syntactic and pragmatic language development through context-rich activities integrating complex syntax and contextual cues.</p>","PeriodicalId":36716,"journal":{"name":"Autism and Developmental Language Impairments","volume":"10 ","pages":"23969415251341248"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-06-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12149616/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144267457","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The State of Natural Language Sampling in Autism Research: A Scoping Review.","authors":"Samantha N Plate","doi":"10.1177/23969415251341247","DOIUrl":"10.1177/23969415251341247","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and aims: </strong>Caregiver reports and standardized assessments have been the primary methods used to study language development in autism. However, these forms of measurement are often coarse, complicated by floor effects and reporter bias, and limited by the fact that they only capture how children <i>can</i> use language at a single moment in time, rather than how children <i>actually</i> use language during everyday interactions. These limitations have led to recent calls for the use of natural language sampling (NLS) as a fine-grained, developmentally appropriate, and contextually relevant measure of everyday communication. The number of studies using NLS to study language in autism has increased substantially in the last 15 years, resulting in a wide array of sampling methods and measures. Given both the increasing prevalence of NLS methods in the autism literature and the variability in sampling approaches and measures, this scoping review addresses the following questions: 1. What populations have been studied using NLS?2. Which data collection methods are most prevalent in NLS research?3. How are measures of language derived from NLS?</p><p><strong>Method: </strong>Following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines, a search for studies published in the last 15 years across three databases was conducted. After removing duplicates, 4,671 titles and abstracts were screened and 59 papers met inclusion criteria. Sample characteristics, natural language collection methods, and derived measures were extracted and tabled for each study. The most prevalent NLS methods and measures in autism language research are reviewed and the benefits and drawbacks of various methods are discussed.</p><p><strong>Main contribution: </strong>This scoping review highlights subgroups of the autistic population that have been underrepresented in NLS studies-in particular, minimally/nonspeaking school-aged autistic children. This article also examines means to collect a \"naturalistic\" sample of language. Notably, studies did not address whether autistic children exhibit different social communication skills when talking to different types of social partners. Broadly, research has underreported key methodological details, making comparisons across studies difficult.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>This review highlights the appropriate use of NLS across development in autism and makes recommendations for NLS future research.</p><p><strong>Implications: </strong>Additional work is needed to address the gaps described in this article and replicate previous findings to identify patterns of natural language across the literature.</p>","PeriodicalId":36716,"journal":{"name":"Autism and Developmental Language Impairments","volume":"10 ","pages":"23969415251341247"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-05-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12102570/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144143890","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Parents' and Early Childhood Educators' Perceptions after the Implementation of the Pragmatic Intervention Programme (PICP).","authors":"Tatiana Pereira, Ana Margarida Ramalho, Marisa Lousada","doi":"10.1177/23969415251330465","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1177/23969415251330465","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The presence of pragmatic language difficulties can be lifelong for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and developmental language disorder (DLD). Implementing evidence-based practices integrates the best research evidence, the clinical expertise of the professionals delivering the intervention and the perspectives of parents/caregivers. Nevertheless, research on parents' and early childhood educators' perspectives on the perceived effectiveness of pragmatic language interventions is scarce. This study aims to analyse parents' and early childhood educators' perceptions after the implementation of the Pragmatic Intervention Programme (PICP) to preschool-age children with ASD and children with DLD. As a part of a broad research project, a survey was conducted using an adaptation of a satisfaction survey. Data from 72 participants among parents (<i>n</i> = 36) and early childhood educators (<i>n</i> = 36) were collected immediately after the implementation of the PICP. The survey includes 11 statements, individually scored between 1 (<i>totally disagree</i>) and 7 (<i>totally agree</i>). The average score obtained from the parents' perspective about the intervention impact was 6.83 ± 0.29. For early childhood educators, the average score was 6.60 ± 0.49. The results indicate that parents and early childhood educators considered this intervention appropriate and effective for improving the pragmatic language skills of preschool-age children with ASD and DLD.</p>","PeriodicalId":36716,"journal":{"name":"Autism and Developmental Language Impairments","volume":"10 ","pages":"23969415251330465"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-05-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12075966/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144081214","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}