Memory for recent events in autistic children.

Boucher (1981) asked autistic and typical kids to talk about what happened yesterday. The kids were about the same age. The team wrote down how many facts each child could give.

They also tested each child's language level. They wanted to see if talking skill and memory were linked.

The autistic kids named fewer facts about yesterday. Their memories were shorter and less clear.

Within the autism group, the children with richer language gave longer answers. Language level, not autism alone, shaped recall.

Pilgrim et al. (2000) built on this by showing autistic kids remember what peers did better than what they did themselves. Together, the two studies say the memory gap is real and self-focused.

Giesbers et al. (2020) and Gandhi et al. (2022) tracked the same kids decades later. Memory problems persist and speed up with age, so early signs matter.

Price et al. (2025) seems to disagree: autistic adults formed false memories at the same rate as typical adults. The key difference is task type. Boucher (1981) looked at free recall of real events, while Jennifer used word lists that trap people into false memories. Different tools, different answers.

When you assess an autistic learner, poor recall may reflect language limits, not memory limits. Use visual supports, give extra wait time, and check both receptive and expressive scores before labeling a memory deficit. Start sessions by asking about highly preferred, concrete events to boost output.