Habilidades sintáticas em crianças com transtorno do espectro autista

Abstract

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) is a neurodevelopmental disorder that impacts communication, social interaction, and generates restricted and repetitive behaviors. Delay in language is one of the first observed signs. Phonological, syntactic, semantic, and pragmatic aspects are language components that may be affected. Studies emphasize the importance of assessing pragmatic difficulties, considered diagnostic criteria for autism. However, it is essential to understand how other linguistic aspects may manifest in ASD. Objective: Evaluate the syntactic performance of children diagnosed with ASD. Method: Analytical, qualitative, observational, non-interventional, and cross-sectional research with ASD children aged 5 to 8 years, attending the Centro de Desenvolvimento Infantil Caminhando Pela Infância in Goiânia, using a narrative with a sequence of images as visual support for oral reproduction. Results: It was observed that children with ASD had difficulties in microstructure (gender inflection, word and/or segment repetition, and the presence of unusual structures) and macrostructure (use of narrative initial marker, additions, and repetition of the same cohesion element), in addition to inappropriate intonation and difficulty in maintaining the theme. Conclusion: Difficulties in both microstructure and macrostructure were identified. It was not possible to establish a correlation between syntactic performance and chronological age in the studied group.

Keywords: Autism Spectrum Disorder; Language; Communication; Speech therapy; Syntactic Performance.