On general and specific markers of lexical development in children with autism from 5 to 8 years of age

Delays in language production in children with autism (ASD) are now well known. For parents and clinicians, the possibility of using the first vocal productions as prognostic indications has been tempting. However, such an approach implies questions of predictability and the development of language. To describe and analyze certain relationships between phonological and lexical development with the aim of determining a simple prognostic indicator, 60 children were observed twice, at 5 years of age (T1) and three years later (T2). Linguistic data were obtained in a semi-standardized situation (ADOS-G) and from parents (ADI-R, Item 19), and analyzed with CHILDES. At T1, the sample was distributed into a ‘verbal’ and a ‘non-verbal’ group. From T1 to T2, the sample replicated the four trajectories known from pathological development characterized by stability, progression and regression. A multiple regression analysis for predicting morpheme production at T2 showed that two general markers (CARS and DLS, being ‘risk factors’) and one specific marker (phoneme production, a ‘protection’ factor) were significantly related to lexical development.