Pathways to meaning: Written and spoken word priming in children with ASD versus typically developing peers

Abstract

Visual supports are widely utilized with children on the autism spectrum, however, the effect of visual versus auditory modality on language comprehension has not been directly investigated. To address this issue, we utilized a semantic priming paradigm in two experiments with 18 children with ASD and no language impairment and 14 children with typical development. In the first, cross-modal experiment with a spoken word prime, no priming effect was identified. In the second, uni-modal written word prime experiment, a three-way interaction was identified. Subsequent analysis revealed that priming occurred only in the younger participants with ASD. These results are discussed in terms of the cross- and uni-modal demands of the two experiments and in light of lexical processing of spoken and written words within a developmental framework. © 2014 Elsevier Ltd.