For sixty-seven children with ASD (age 1;6 to 5;11), mean Total Vocabulary score on the Language Development Survey (LDS) was 65.3 words; twenty-two children had no reported words; and twenty-one children had 1-49 words. When matched for vocabulary size, children with ASD and children in the LDS normative sample did not differ in semantic category…

This study examined two facets of the use of social cues for early word learning in parent-child dyads, where children had an Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) or were typically developing. In Experiment 1, we investigated word learning and generalization by children with ASD (age range: 3;01-6;02) and typically developing children (age range:…

This study examined relationships between prelinguistic variables from the MacArthur-Bates CDI and the development of language comprehension and production in children with autism. Forty-four children were assessed at baseline and 6, 12, 24, 33 and 53 months later. Growth Curve Modeling was used to examine the extent to which three composite CDI…

Two studies explored the relationship between young children's pragmatic skills and their grammatical development. The studies involved videotaping children with and without autism interacting with their parents at age 1;2 and 2;7. In both studies, pragmatic accomplishments of mutual attention, as well as mother's conversational style, explained…

Naturalistic mother-child speech between autistic, Down's syndrome, or normal children and their mothers was studied to determine whether imitation facilitates grammar acquisition. Spontaneous utterances were longer and contained more advanced grammar than imitation utterances, indicating that imitation does not play a significant role in grammar…