Phonological difficulties in children with autism: An overview

The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview and update of speech sound production difficulties in children with autism. Historically, relatively little attention has been given to speech sound production abilities in these children. Several possible reasons for the paucity of research on this topic are offered in this paper, including methodological issues. Results of earlier research showed articulatory behavior to be delayed, resembling sound production of younger typically developing children. Findings of more recent studies have shown specific phonological patterns, including typical and atypical phonological processes in some of these children. Other findings suggest that the articulatory/phonological skills in these children are relatively intact. Thus, there are conflicting results in the literature, and at this time, the fundamental speech sound behavior in these children is still not fully understood. Recent preliminary findings suggest that some children with autism who present with more severe global language impairment may also exhibit more severe phonological difficulties. Current research overall suggests that at least a subgroup of children with autism may exhibit both typical as well as atypical phonological processes, disturbances in prosody, and limited consonant inventories. Clinical implications are provided, including assessment and treatment suggestions, particularly with regards to the influence of speech sound production difficulties on overall intelligibility. Suggestions for future research are also offered.