Studies of Prosody in Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders

Pragmatics and Prosody in High-Functioning Speakers with Autism Spectrum Disorders

Purpose

This study will examine two abilities that are known to be the most troublesome aspects of communication in high functioning individuals with ASD who speak — their ability to use and understand prosody and their ability to follow the rules of conversation, known as 'pragmatics' — in children from 9-17 with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASDs) who speak in full sentences.

Prosody refers to the 'tone of voice,' used to convey emphasis and feeling in speech. Studying how people with ASD perceive and use prosody will make important contributions to our understanding of the core features of their communicative deficits and to designing intervention programs that can improve their ability to partake in the emotional and interpersonal meanings of language.

Pragmatics refers to the ability to manage turns and topics in conversation, to choose the most polite and appropriate way to express an intention, to adjust speech style to the characteristics of the listener, and to judge correctly what a listener already knows and wants to know, in order to convey just the right amount of information for the conversational context. The study will use a structured interview format to quantify pragmatic errors. The information derived from this study will be used to develop a valid and reliable assessment tool for describing pragmatic function in ASD. In addition, in 2007-08, an experimental treatment program will be developed to attempt to improve the conversational skills of children who participate.

What is the purpose of this study?

Criteria for participation

• Ages 9 through 17
• Regularly uses sentences that have at least four words
• Fluent use of language as the primary means of communication

We are looking for three groups of participants:

1. Children and adolescents with a documented history of high-functioning autism, high-functioning PDD-NOS, or Asperger's Syndrome OR
2. Children with language or learning disabilities who are in the correct school grade for their age OR
3. Children with typical development who are in the correct school grade for their age

Contacts

To Participate:

Erin MacDonnell
(203) 737-3439
erin.macdonnell@yale.edu

For More Information:

Lauren Berkovits
(203) 764-8455 extension 2
lauren.berkovits@yale.edu