title: Use of context in pragmatic language comprehension by children with Asperger syndrome or high-functioning autism.
abstract: Utilizing relevance theory, this study investigated the ability of children with Asperger syndrome (AS) and high-functioning autism (HFA) to use context when answering questions and when giving explanations for their correct answers. Three groups participated in this study: younger AS/HFA group (age 7-9, n=16), older AS/HFA group (age 10-12, n=23) and a normally functioning control group (age 7-9, n=23). The results indicated that the younger AS/HFA group did less well when answering contextually demanding questions compared to the control group, and the performance of the older AS/HFA group fell in between the younger AS/HFA group and the control group. Both AS/HFA groups had difficulties explaining their correct answers, suggesting that they are not always aware of how they have derived answers from the context.
authors.affiliation: Department of Finnish, Information Studies and Logopedics, University of Oulu, PO Box 1000, FIN-90014, Oulu, Finland. soile.loukusa@oulu.fi
authors.forename: Soile
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Loukusa
authors.forename: Eeva
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Leinonen
authors.forename: Sanna
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kuusikko
authors.forename: Katja
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Jussila
authors.forename: Marja-Leena
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Mattila
authors.forename: Nuala
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Ryder
authors.forename: Hanna
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ebeling
authors.forename: Irma
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Moilanen
mesh_terms: D001076:Aptitude; D020817:Asperger Syndrome / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D001245:Association Learning; D001288:Attention; D001321:Autistic Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D002648:Child; D032882:Comprehension; D004644:Emotions; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007360:Intelligence; D007805:Language Development Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D008297:Male; D011939:Mental Recall; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual; D018187:Personal Construct Theory; D011340:Problem Solving; D012660:Semantics; D013067:Speech Perception; D014705:Verbal Behavior