LAHP-funded Series on Social Communication in Autism - Kirsten Abbot (University of Kent)

Title: Can we start to unpick which cognitive and socio-cognitive processes relate to pragmatic development in autistic and non-autistic children?

Abstract:

Pragmatic language difficulties are listed in the diagnostic criteria for autism. However, there are also large individual differences in the pragmatic language of neurotypical children. These individual differences have been shown to mediate the relationship between poor structural language and behavioural difficulties – and to predict difficulties with peers in adolescence.  To understand the nature of these individual differences in pragmatics within both autistic and non-autistic children, we first need to establish the following. We need a better understanding of what a specific pragmatic task actually entails, whether the task is reliable and which cognitive and socio-cognitive abilities contribute unique variance to a given pragmatic domain. In this talk, I will discuss some of the methodological hurdles we need to overcome before we can start to unpick these issues.

The talk will be delivered in person and via zoom.

Zoom link: https://ucl.zoom.us/j/96381812212

Meeting ID: 963 8181 2212