Spoken language among children with autism spectrum disorder and its relationship with some variables

Abstract

The study aimed to reveal the level of spoken language among children with autism spectrum disorder. It investigated the effect of a number of variables such as: (sex, verbal rehabilitation, the presence of a disability associated with autism, the age of the child, the degree of severity of autism, the period of time the child spend in the center, the educational qualification of the mother, the economic level of the family) on the level of spoken language among children with autism spectrum disorder. The sample consisted of 143 boys and girls, (23) for the psychometric study sample and (120) for the basic study sample. In order to  achieve the objectives of the study, a questionnaire of (48) items was designed to measure the level of spoken language among children with autism spectrum disorder. The results of this study showed that the level of spoken language among children with autism spectrum disorder is at the average level in general. Moreover, the results showed that there were no statistically significant differences due to the gender variable, the time period for the child’s presence in the center, or the economic level of the family. However, the differences were statistically significant in the rest of  the variables in favor of each of the older age of the child, and children who do not have autism along with any other disability, and in favor of children who are verbally qualified and children with a simple degree of autism, and in favor of children of mothers who hold a secondary certificate.