Use of a Local Dialect by Children With Autism or Asperger Syndrome

Abstract

In Tsugaru, a city located in Aomori prefecture in northeastern Japan, some teachers at schools for special support education, public health nurses, and parents believe that children with autism do not use the Tsugaru dialect, which is a regional language pattern quite different from standard Japanese. A questionnaire was administered to people who interact with children with autism or Asperger syndrome in Aomori (n = 118) and Akita prefectures (n = 85), in order to evaluate the use of the local dialect by children with autism, Asperger syndrome, or other intellectual disabilities. The reported prevalence of the Tsugaru dialect among these children was compared to that of children without disabilities living in the same area. In Aomori prefecture, additional questions asked about the respondents' beliefs regarding the relation between the Tsugaru dialect, autism, and Asperger syndrome. In addition, a questionnaire survey completed by homeroom teachers at a school for special support education asked about the use of 44 words unique to the Tsugaru dialect and the corresponding 44 words in standard Japanese, as well as the extent of the local accent of each student. The results were as follows: (a) in both Aomori and Akita prefectures, children with autism or Asperger syndrome were reported to use the Tsugaru dialect less often than children with other intellectual disabilities and children without disabilities; (b) 36% of the respondents were aware of the belief that children with autism do not use the Tsugaru dialect; 52% of the respondents in Aomori reported holding that belief; (c) the difference between the children with autism or Asperger syndrome and the children with other intellectual disabilities was attributed by the respondents to differences in pronunciation, intonation, and use of the sentence-final particle; and (d) the teachers at the school for special support education reported that their students with autistic spectrum disorders did not use dialect words and did not have a local accent. Adapted from the source document