Brief Report: Predicting Social Skills from Semantic, Syntactic, and Pragmatic Language Among Young Children with Autism
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BRIEF REPORT
Brief Report: Predicting Social Skills from Semantic, Syntactic, and Pragmatic Language Among Young Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder Sarah Levinson1 · Abbey Eisenhower1 · Hillary Hurst Bush2 · Alice S. Carter1 · Jan Blacher3
© Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2020
Abstract The language and social skill deficits associated with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) warrant further study. Existing research has focused on the contributions of pragmatic language to social skills, with little attention to other aspects of language. We examined the associations across three language domains (semantics, syntax, and pragmatics) and their relations to parent- and teacher-rated social skills among children with ASD. When parent-reported language skills were considered simultaneously, only semantics significantly predicted children’s social skills. For teacher-reported language skills, all three language domains predicted children’s social skills, but none made unique contributions above and beyond one another. Further research should consider the impact of social context on language expectations and interventions targeting semantic language on children’s development of social skills. Keywords Autism spectrum disorder · ASD · Young children · Semantic · Syntax · Pragmatic · Language skills · Grammar · Vocabulary · Social skills Considerable research documents that many individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) struggle with varying degrees of language related deficits, which in turn, interfere with the acquisition of critical adaptive and social skills (Durkin et al. 2012). The impact of language deficits to social skills in ASD has been well examined, with most work focused on the contribution of pragmatics (Gillespie-Lynch et al. 2011; Reichow and Volkmar 2010). Few studies have examined other language domains such as semantics and syntax. A more complete picture of language deficits may inform intervention development, and as such, has implications for promoting optimal functioning for people with ASD. We examine associations among semantic, syntactic,
* Sarah Levinson [email protected] 1
Department of Psychology, University of Massachusetts Boston, 100 Morrissey Blvd, Boston, MA 02125, USA
2
Massachusetts General Hospital & Harvard Medical School, 275 Cambridge St, Boston, MA 02114, USA
3
Department of Psychology, University of California, Riverside, 900 University Ave, Riverside, CA 92521, USA
and pragmatic language and subsequent social skills in young children with ASD.
Language Skills in ASD Many individuals with ASD struggle with language performance, especially, with pragmatic language; however, language deficits in ASD are highly variable and specific (Anderson et al. 2007; Eigsti et al. 2011; Shattuck et al. 2007). For example, some children with ASD exhibit language skills that within functional limits and are equivalent to their same-age peers (Weismer and Kover 2015), while 25–30% remain minimally verbal throughout the lifespan (Anderso
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