Second Language Exposure, Functional Communication, and Executive Function in Children With and Without Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD).
Speaking two languages does not harm—and may slightly help—communication and self-control in autistic children.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Iarocci et al. (2017) asked parents about kids with and without autism.
Some kids heard two languages every day. Others heard only English.
Parents filled out forms on talking skills and everyday self-control.
What they found
Bilingual kids with autism scored just as high on useful talking.
Their self-control scores were even a little better.
No sign that two languages slow anyone down.
How this fits with other research
Boxum et al. (2018) saw the same null result in toddlers.
Sharaan et al. (2021) and Northrup et al. (2022) went further.
They found small boosts in attention and fewer behavior problems for bilingual autistic youth.
All four studies agree: two languages do not hurt and may lightly help.
Why it matters
You can reassure families who speak another language at home.
Keep using both languages; drop the fear of delay.
When you write goals, include both languages if the family uses them.
No need to pick just one.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
Parents and professionals are concerned that second language exposure may delay communication in children with ASD. In this study 174 youth (6-16 years) with and without ASD, exposed to a second language, were compared on executive function (EF) and functional communication (FC) with their peers without exposure. There were no significant differences between groups on age, IQ, and socioeconomic status. Parents reported on language exposure and rated EF and FC skills within everyday social contexts. The findings indicated that second language exposure in children with ASD is not associated with delay in cognitive and functional communication skills rather there was evidence of a reduced clinical impact as indexed by a lower percentage of children whose FC and EF ratings fell within the clinical range.
Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 2017 · doi:10.1007/s10803-017-3103-7