Lexical Knowledge and Lexical Use in Autism

Overview

Journal J Autism Dev Disord

Publisher Springer

Date 2006 Aug 10

PMID 16897402

Citations 17

Authors

Michael R Perkins

Sushie Dobbinson

Jill Boucher

Simone Bol

Paul Bloom

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

One aspect of autistic language that has been infrequently researched is vocabulary and the conceptual knowledge underpinning individual words or word types. In this descriptive study we investigate anomalous vocabulary use in a 70,000-word corpus of conversational autistic language and examine evidence that concept formation, and hence vocabulary, is abnormal in autism. Particular attention is paid to the expression of artifact and temporal concepts which some believe may develop abnormally in autism. Little evidence is found of anomalous use of artifact terms, though errors with temporal (and also spatial) expressions are relatively common. We discuss why this may be and consider several potential explanations for why underlying lexical knowledge in autism may not necessarily be reflected in lexical use.

Citing Articles

Creating a diagnostic assessment model for autism spectrum disorder by differentiating lexicogrammatical choices through machine learning.

Kato S, Hanawa K, Saito M, Nakamura K PLoS One. 2024; 19(9):e0311209.

PMID: 39331681 PMC: 11432897. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0311209.

Defining the Characteristics of Story Production of Autistic Children: A Multilevel Analysis.

Adornetti I, Chiera A, Altavilla D, Deriu V, Marini A, Gobbo M J Autism Dev Disord. 2023; 54(10):3759-3776.

PMID: 37653117 PMC: 11461702. DOI: 10.1007/s10803-023-06096-2.

The relevance of words and the language/communication divide.

Carston R Front Psychol. 2023; 14:1187343.

PMID: 37575430 PMC: 10419294. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1187343.

Spatial Language and Cognition in Autistic Preschoolers.

Prescott K, Crespo K, Weismer S J Autism Dev Disord. 2023; 54(4):1376-1388.

PMID: 36637595 PMC: 10338643. DOI: 10.1007/s10803-022-05883-7.

Conventions for unconventional language: Revisiting a framework for spoken language features in autism.

Luyster R, Zane E, Wisman Weil L Autism Dev Lang Impair. 2022; 7:23969415221105472.

PMID: 36382068 PMC: 9620674. DOI: 10.1177/23969415221105472.

References

Dobbinson S, Perkins M, Boucher J . Structural patterns in conversations with a woman who has autism. J Commun Disord. 1998; 31(2):113-33; quiz 133-4. DOI: 10.1016/s0021-9924(97)00085-3. View

Kemler Nelson D, Frankenfield A, Morris C, Blair E . Young children's use of functional information to categorize artifacts: three factors that matter. Cognition. 2000; 77(2):133-68. DOI: 10.1016/s0010-0277(00)00097-4. View

Tager-Flusberg H . The conceptual basis for referential word meaning in children with autism. Child Dev. 1985; 56(5):1167-78. DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-8624.1985.tb00185.x. View

Dobbinson S, Perkins M, Boucher J . The interactional significance of formulas in autistic language. Clin Linguist Phon. 2003; 17(4-5):299-307. DOI: 10.1080/0269920031000080046. View

Hobson R, Lee A . Emotion-related and abstract concepts in autistic people: evidence from the British Picture Vocabulary Scale. J Autism Dev Disord. 1989; 19(4):601-23. DOI: 10.1007/BF02212860. View

Weist R . Temporal and spatial concepts in child language: conventional and configurational. J Psycholinguist Res. 2002; 31(3):195-210. DOI: 10.1023/a:1015522711549. View

Bartolucci G, Pierce S, Streiner D . Cross-sectional studies of grammatical morphemes in autistic and mentally retarded children. J Autism Dev Disord. 1980; 10(1):39-50. DOI: 10.1007/BF02408431. View

Ungerer J, Sigman M . Categorization skills and receptive language development in autistic children. J Autism Dev Disord. 1987; 17(1):3-16. DOI: 10.1007/BF01487256. View

Kjelgaard M, Tager-Flusberg H . An Investigation of Language Impairment in Autism: Implications for Genetic Subgroups. Lang Cogn Process. 2006; 16(2-3):287-308. PMC: 1460015. DOI: 10.1080/01690960042000058. View

10.

Bloom P . Intention, history, and artifact concepts. Cognition. 1996; 60(1):1-29. DOI: 10.1016/0010-0277(95)00699-0. View

11.

Diesendruck G, Markson L, Bloom P . Children's reliance on creator's intent in extending names for artifacts. Psychol Sci. 2003; 14(2):164-8. DOI: 10.1111/1467-9280.t01-1-01436. View

12.

Baron-Cohen S, Leslie A, Frith U . Does the autistic child have a "theory of mind"?. Cognition. 1985; 21(1):37-46. DOI: 10.1016/0010-0277(85)90022-8. View

13.

Baron-Cohen S, Baldwin D, Crowson M . Do children with autism use the speaker's direction of gaze strategy to crack the code of language?. Child Dev. 1997; 68(1):48-57. View

14.

Tager-Flusberg H . Basic level and superordinate level categorization by autistic, mentally retarded, and normal children. J Exp Child Psychol. 1985; 40(3):450-69. DOI: 10.1016/0022-0965(85)90077-3. View

15.

Gelman S, Bloom P . Young children are sensitive to how an object was created when deciding what to name it. Cognition. 2000; 76(2):91-103. DOI: 10.1016/s0010-0277(00)00071-8. View

16.

Williams T . Brief report: vocabulary development in an autistic boy. J Autism Dev Disord. 1993; 23(1):185-91. DOI: 10.1007/BF01066427. View

17.

Prizant B . Language acquisition and communicative behavior in autism: toward an understanding of the "whole" of it. J Speech Hear Disord. 1983; 48(3):296-307. DOI: 10.1044/jshd.4803.296. View