People diagnosed with anautism spectrum disorder(ASD) can have a wide range of verbal abilities. Some may be entirelynonverbal, some may have limited useful speech, and some may speak fluently and intelligibly. Yet challenges with language and communication are hallmark autism traits.
When a person’s verbal abilities are limited, they may sound and behave differently than theirneurotypicalpeers. It can make it hard to communicate—to express ideas appropriately so that others understand them. Depending on theirlevel of support needs, an autistic child can improve their verbal and communication skills with therapies designed to address these challenges.
This article discusses the ways in which it can be hard for autistic kids to express ideas appropriately so that others understand them. It offers information about some of the therapies used to help autistic people to communicate.
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Speech and Language in Autism
Common characteristics of speech and language among autistic children include:
When autistic children are not able to respond when others speak to them, or to their own names, they are sometimes mistakenly thought to have a hearing problem.
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Communication Problems
Verbal skills are only one aspect of effective communication. Body language—such as hand gestures, body stance, and making eye contact—conveys to others whether someone is joking or being serious, or angry or happy.
All of the skills involved with social communication presuppose an understanding of complex social expectations, coupled with an ability to self-modulate based on that understanding. Autistic people don’t always have those abilities.
Sometimes, autistic people with low support needs find themselves frustrated when their attempts to communicate are met with blank stares or laughter. They may also be mistaken as rude. This is due to:
Autistic people often find it challenging to “see” another’s perspective. This inability to put yourself in someone else’s shoes is often referred to as a lack of “theory of mind.”
If your child’s healthcare provider suspects autism, they will likely refer you to a speech-language pathologist, who will perform a comprehensive evaluation of your child’s ability to communicate and will then come up with an appropriate treatment program.
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Addressing Speech and Communication Skills
Speech-language therapy focuses not only on correct pronunciation, but also on intonation, back-and-forth conversation, and other aspects of pragmatic speech. Social skills therapy may involve role-playing exercises and group activities that require practicing collaboration, sharing, and related skills.
Ideally, treatment should begin during the preschool years, when language development occurs. Generally, autistic kids respond well to highly-structured, specialized programs. Parents and those involved in the care of these children should integrate treatment strategies so they become part of the child’s daily life.
Summary
Communication difficulties are a key trait of autism, though they vary depending on the individual and their diagnosis. Some autistic people are nonverbal. Others develop language skills, although often these skills develop or are expressed in aneurodivergentway.
Speech is a factor, with many autistic people finding it hard to modulate speech or understand the patterns of prosody and eye contact. Just as challenging can be the things autistic people talk about, with the repetition of echolalia a common feature.
Speech therapy and other interventions can help autistic kids to develop language and communication skills. Contact your healthcare provider with any concerns about autism, the earlier the better, in order to ensure an accurate diagnosis and treatment.
3 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.AutismNational Institute on Deafness and Other Hearing Disorders.Autism Spectrum Disorder: Communication in Children.Brignell A, Chenausky KV, Song H, Zhu J, Suo C, Morgan AT.Communication interventions for autism spectrum disorder in minimally verbal children. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2018 Nov 5;11(11):CD012324. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD012324.pub2Additional ReadingAdams, C.The Social Communication Intervention Project: a randomized controlled trial of the effectiveness of speech and language therapy for school-age children who have pragmatic and social communication problems with or without autism spectrum disorder. Int J Lang Commun Disord. 2012 May-Jun;47(3):233-44. doi: 10.1111/j.1460-6984.2011.00146.x.Tierney, CD et al.‘Look at me when I am talking to you’: evidence and assessment of social pragmatics interventions for children with autism and social communication disorders. Curr Opin Pediatr. 2014 Apr;26(2):259-64. doi: 10.1097/MOP.0000000000000075.
3 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.AutismNational Institute on Deafness and Other Hearing Disorders.Autism Spectrum Disorder: Communication in Children.Brignell A, Chenausky KV, Song H, Zhu J, Suo C, Morgan AT.Communication interventions for autism spectrum disorder in minimally verbal children. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2018 Nov 5;11(11):CD012324. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD012324.pub2Additional ReadingAdams, C.The Social Communication Intervention Project: a randomized controlled trial of the effectiveness of speech and language therapy for school-age children who have pragmatic and social communication problems with or without autism spectrum disorder. Int J Lang Commun Disord. 2012 May-Jun;47(3):233-44. doi: 10.1111/j.1460-6984.2011.00146.x.Tierney, CD et al.‘Look at me when I am talking to you’: evidence and assessment of social pragmatics interventions for children with autism and social communication disorders. Curr Opin Pediatr. 2014 Apr;26(2):259-64. doi: 10.1097/MOP.0000000000000075.
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.AutismNational Institute on Deafness and Other Hearing Disorders.Autism Spectrum Disorder: Communication in Children.Brignell A, Chenausky KV, Song H, Zhu J, Suo C, Morgan AT.Communication interventions for autism spectrum disorder in minimally verbal children. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2018 Nov 5;11(11):CD012324. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD012324.pub2
American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.Autism
National Institute on Deafness and Other Hearing Disorders.Autism Spectrum Disorder: Communication in Children.
Brignell A, Chenausky KV, Song H, Zhu J, Suo C, Morgan AT.Communication interventions for autism spectrum disorder in minimally verbal children. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2018 Nov 5;11(11):CD012324. doi: 10.1002/14651858.CD012324.pub2
Adams, C.The Social Communication Intervention Project: a randomized controlled trial of the effectiveness of speech and language therapy for school-age children who have pragmatic and social communication problems with or without autism spectrum disorder. Int J Lang Commun Disord. 2012 May-Jun;47(3):233-44. doi: 10.1111/j.1460-6984.2011.00146.x.Tierney, CD et al.‘Look at me when I am talking to you’: evidence and assessment of social pragmatics interventions for children with autism and social communication disorders. Curr Opin Pediatr. 2014 Apr;26(2):259-64. doi: 10.1097/MOP.0000000000000075.
Adams, C.The Social Communication Intervention Project: a randomized controlled trial of the effectiveness of speech and language therapy for school-age children who have pragmatic and social communication problems with or without autism spectrum disorder. Int J Lang Commun Disord. 2012 May-Jun;47(3):233-44. doi: 10.1111/j.1460-6984.2011.00146.x.
Tierney, CD et al.‘Look at me when I am talking to you’: evidence and assessment of social pragmatics interventions for children with autism and social communication disorders. Curr Opin Pediatr. 2014 Apr;26(2):259-64. doi: 10.1097/MOP.0000000000000075.
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