ANALYZING COMMUNICATION CHALLENGES: A QUALITATIVE ANALYSIS OF SPEECH AND EXPRESSIVE LANGUAGE DISORDER IN URDU-SPEAKING CHILDREN WITH AUTISM

Abstract

ASD is a developmental disorder that is usually identified in early childhood and is characterized by a wide variety of symptoms that differ in intensity from person to person. The expressive language impairments of L1 Urdu-speaking children with ASD in Pakistan are the main emphasis of this study, which also looks at grammatical, lexical, and echolalia problems. The study also looks at the participants' ASD severity levels and how they connect to linguistic challenges. Clinical evaluations employing DSM-5 criteria served as the basis for classifying ASD levels. Even with the increasing amount of research on ASD, little is known about how autistic people produce language. Data were gathered from four children, aged five to eight, using qualitative case studies, and their severity of ASD was evaluated using the DSM-5 criteria. The results show patterns like echolalia, limited vocabulary, and repetitive grammar problems, along with varied degrees of expressive language impairment. The need of individualized, focused therapy approaches is underscored by these revelations. With the goal of enhancing communication techniques and community support, the study provides educators and clinicians dealing with children on the autism spectrum with useful information.