Language Beyond the Spectrum

Participants who are between the ages 3 years (36 months, 1064 days) to 12 years (144 months, 4741 days) old, are diagnosed with autism, spectrum disorder (ASD) and currently receives Applied Behavior Analytic Services, and speak English as their primary language are eligible to participate in this study.

Children will participate in four 30-40-minute virtual sessions at 6-month intervals. A research assistant will guide them through a few fun and interactive language activities. They will listen to interesting stories and be asked to retell them, and share their own similar stories. They will also be asked questions about displayed images that reveal children’s inferencing, affect recognition, Theory of Mind, and math skills.

To support the socio-emotional and academic development of children with Autism, it is critical to learn more about their language skills. More specifically, we want to learn about the importance of early language to the development of your child’s language, social perception, and math skills.

The assessments will be conducted at four different time points, with 6 months in between each (with exception of the 4th time-point, which is one year after the 3rd time-point).
Each of the four assessment sessions will take 20-45 minutes.

You will receive a $20 Virtual VISA gift card after your child completes all four sessions. This study has 4 time-points, therefore, your child can earn up to $80 in VISA gift cards if they continue to participate in each of the time-points. You can expect compensation 1-2 days after completion. The following conditions are required to receive compensation: your child fits the requirements for the study (listed below) and the child must be visible and participate in assessments.