title: Listening preferences in regard to speech in four children with developmental disabilities.
abstract: In a previous experimental study of children's listening responses in regard to speech sounds, autistic children showed preferential patterns which were in sharp contrast to a group of mentally-handicapped and normally-developing children. The present study reports the data obtained for four children whose clinical diagnosis (1) became available only some time after the study was carried out, and/or (2) differed from previously recorded clinical impressions. The results obtained support previous findings according to which a lack of attraction to speech sounds appears to be a feature of young autistic children's overall disregard to people. The present technique is discussed as a viable method to examine experimentally young autistic children's social unresponsiveness.
authors.affiliation: LSE, London.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Klin
mesh_terms: D000161:Acoustic Stimulation; D001288:Attention / Q000502:physiology; D001321:Autistic Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003142:Communication; D002658:Developmental Disabilities / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010775:Photic Stimulation; D012920:Social Behavior Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D013067:Speech Perception / Q000502:physiology*; D014705:Verbal Behavior