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Varying Language Register According to Listener Needs in Speakers with Autism Spectrum Disorder

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Abstract

The ability to adjust language register, or style, according to listener needs was assessed in 38 high-functioning children and adolescents with ASD. Participants were asked to explain the process of going to a restaurant to a series of listeners who varied in linguistic competence. Results showed that participants with ASD spontaneously simplified their language based on a listener’s appearance and a brief introduction, but were not as adept at that adjustment as matched controls. Further stylistic adjustments were produced following increasingly specific prompts.

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Acknowledgments

We gratefully acknowledge the financial support of the Alberta Heritage Fund for Medical Research (20000903) and the hospitality and cooperation of the children and families who participated. The first author especially thanks Autumn Sorenson and Camille Gregoret-Quinn for superb organizational skills as project co-ordinators, for seamless orchestration of a myriad of details, and for transcription, coding and reliability checks. Tracey Moore and Tracy Kennedy provided invaluable assistance in coding and data entry. Portions of this paper were previously presented at the International Meeting for Autism Research, Boston, Massachusetts, 2005.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Speech Pathology and Audiology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada, T6G 2G4

    Joanne Volden

  2. Occupational Therapy, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada

    Joyce Magill-Evans

  3. Pediatrics, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada

    Keith Goulden

  4. Pediatrics, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada

    Margaret Clarke

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  1. Joanne Volden
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  2. Joyce Magill-Evans
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  3. Keith Goulden
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  4. Margaret Clarke
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Correspondence to Joanne Volden.

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Volden, J., Magill-Evans, J., Goulden, K. et al. Varying Language Register According to Listener Needs in Speakers with Autism Spectrum Disorder. J Autism Dev Disord 37, 1139–1154 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-006-0256-1

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