A Pragmatic Analysis of Autistic Children: Case of Dar El Amal Wa Tadhamon- Batna
No Thumbnail Available
Date
2023
Authors
Amina RABEHI
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Abstract
Disruption of normal developmental phases may lead to a weakening of cognitive abilities,
which can have serious repercussions for socialisation. Autism Spectrum Disorder is
characterized by enduring challenges with social interaction and engagement, as well as
restricted and repetitive patterns of behavior. These features are widely recognized as hallmarks
of the disorder. It often emerges in the first few years of a person's life (American Psychiatric
Association, 2013). Autism is displayed by unconventional social communication and
interaction. Therefore, it is not astonishing that autistic people have severe pragmatic
difficulties. In this respect, the primary goals of this study are to make a generalization about
the universality of pragmatic development of autistic children as well as the developmental
connection between pragmatic aspects and language in general, focusing on Algerian-speaking
autistic children. It also portrays the way age, gender, school attendance, and Mean Length of
Utterance influence such pragmatic parameters. It clarifies how schooling contributes to the
development of communicative and pragmatic abilities in a 'longitudinal instrumental case
study'. The data gathered depended on Pragmatic Protocol designed by Prutting and Kirchner
(1987); sampling and observation of spontaneous language that took around eight months and
been analysed quantitatively and qualitatively to address the research questions. The findings
show that participants performed poorly on tests of communication. Also, the
pragmatic difficulties associated with autism stem from cognitive rather than cultural factors.
It was shown that schooling and increased Mean Length of Utterance help autistic children
become better at using a variety of pragmatic skills. In addition to this, there is a significant
correlation between the Mean Length of Utterance of a child and their likelihood of enrolling
in formal education. Participants with a consistent school attendance pattern had better Mean
Length of Utterance scores.