Language Abilities in Monolingual- and Bilingual- Exposed Children with Autism or Other Developmental Disorders

Overview

Journal Res Autism Spectr Disord

Publisher Elsevier

Date 2019 Mar 27

PMID 30911329

Citations 13

Authors

Yael G Dai

Jeffrey D Burke

Letitia Naigles

Inge-Marie Eigsti

Deborah A Fein

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Background: Parents and providers are sometimes concerned that exposure to two languages will impair language acquisition in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) or other developmental disorders (DD). However, research to date suggests that language milestones and abilities are unaffected by this exposure. The current study explored language abilities in toddlers with ASD or DD exposed to one versus multiple languages, prior to intervention. To our knowledge, this is the largest investigation of language learning in bilingual-exposed (BE) children with ASD.

Methods: Participants were 388 children evaluated as part of a larger study on the early detection of ASD. Parents were asked to list all languages that primary caretakers use to communicate with their child. One hundred six BE children (57 ASD, 49 DD) were compared to 282 monolingual-exposed (ME) children (176 ASD, 106 DD). The Mullen Scales of Early Learning assessed nonverbal and verbal abilities. Multiple regression was used to evaluate the relationship of BE to language abilities, beyond the influence of nonverbal cognitive abilities, diagnosis, and socioeconomic status.

Results: Results showed greater language impairment in ASD than DD, but no main effect for language exposure group nor any interaction of language group by diagnosis. Results remained consistent after controlling for socioeconomic status.

Conclusion: This study suggests that bilingual caregivers can communicate with their children in both languages without adverse effects on their children's language functioning.

Citing Articles

Effects of bilingual language exposure on toddlers with autism spectrum disorder.

Phillips S, Yanchik A, Jung H, Vietze P, Lax L Front Psychol. 2025; 15:1412339.

PMID: 39759414 PMC: 11695126. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1412339.

Parent-led Communication Therapy for Young Bilingual Autistic Children: A Scoping Review.

Oudet S, Howard K, Gilhuber C, Robert M, Zimmerli J, Katsos N J Autism Dev Disord. 2024; .

PMID: 39127972 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-024-06478-0.

Should Parents Only Use One Language with Their Autistic Children? The Relations Between Multilingualism, Children's Social Skills, and Parent-Child Communication.

Franco M, Costa A J Autism Dev Disord. 2024; .

PMID: 38809475 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-024-06347-w.

Bilingualism, Executive Function, and the Brain: Implications for Autism.

Romero C, Uddin L Neurobiol Lang (Camb). 2023; 2(4):513-531.

PMID: 37214624 PMC: 10158561. DOI: 10.1162/nol_a_00057.

Early years autism and bilingualism: An interpretative phenomenological analysis of parent perceptions during lockdown.

Oudet S, Howard K, Durrleman S Autism Dev Lang Impair. 2022; 7:23969415221138704.

PMID: 36438162 PMC: 9685147. DOI: 10.1177/23969415221138704.

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