Children with autism spectrum disorder often have significant language delays. But do they learn language differently than neurotypical toddlers? We compared the lexical skills of 64 preverbal and minimally verbal children with autism spectrum disorder to 461 vocabulary-size-matched typically developing toddlers. We also examined social features…

Cross-lagged panel analysis was used to examine associations between two joint engagement variables; higher order supported joint engagement and higher order supported joint engagement that co-occurs with caregiver's follow-in talk (higher order supported joint engagement + follow-in), and expressive and receptive vocabulary in a group of young…

Research with typically developing children suggests a strong positive relation between early gesture use and subsequent vocabulary development. In this study, we ask whether gesture production plays a similar role for children with autism spectrum disorder. We observed 23 18-month-old typically developing children and 23 30-month-old children…