Movement and the emergence of role play in children with autism

Abstract

The study aims at understanding aspects of the development of roleplay activities in autistic children, focusing on movement. This a qualitative case study focused on game carried out by three children with autism during their playful activities in a university toy library. Data collection instruments included participant observation, video recording of sections, and field diary records. The study indicates unique paths for role-play development in those children’s play, starting in restricted interests and movements and lack of verbal language, then expanding to differentiate movements, with vocalization associated to more elaborate mental functions, and finally arriving at a coordinated process of defining gestures, verbal language and role-play.