Instructions to attend to an observed action increase imitation in autistic adults.

Gowen et al. (2020) asked autistic and non-autistic adults to copy a simple hand action. Half the group heard the usual ‘do as I do.’ The other half first heard ‘watch closely.’ Then the researchers scored how closely each person matched the model.

The study used a quasi-experimental design in a quiet lab room. Participants saw the action once and then repeated it right away.

Without the extra cue, autistic adults copied the action less accurately than their peers. After the words ‘watch closely,’ their scores jumped to the same level as the non-autistic group.

The single sentence was enough to erase the group difference.

Espanola Aguirre et al. (2019) showed that both autistic and typical learners master object actions first, then body, then vocal, then facial. Emma’s team built on that sequence by adding a quick attention prompt at the start.

Izadi-Najafabadi et al. (2015) found that explicit verbal instructions hurt motor learning in autistic children. That sounds like the opposite of Emma’s result. The gap is age and task: Sara’s kids had to talk themselves through a brand-new sequence, while Emma’s adults only had to notice what they saw. Less talk, better outcome.

Sharp et al. (2010) and Geurts et al. (2008) both report that autistic people move like controls when cues are clear. Emma adds the practical cue: a plain ‘watch closely’ is all the clarity needed.

You can fold this prompt into any imitation program. Before you model a life skill—tying shoes, signing a receipt, loading the dishwasher—pause and say ‘watch closely.’ It costs one second and levels the playing field for adult learners. No extra visuals, no lengthy rules, just the cue. Try it during vocational or social-skills sessions this week and see if the copy-cat step gets cleaner.