Imagination exercises improve language in younger but not in older children with autism suggesting a strong critical period

Abstract

Imagination exercises administered by caregivers were investigated in a three-year-long observational trial of 3,540 children with autism aged 2-12 years. Tablet-based verbal and nonverbal exercises modeled on language therapy and emphasizing mental-juxtaposition-of-objects were organized into an application called Mental Imagery Therapy for Autism (MITA). MITA-exposed children were matched to the 'Treatment-as-Usual' participants (TaU, N=5,222) by age, language, sociability, cognitive awareness, and health at baseline. Both younger (2-5 years-of-age) and older children (5-12 YOA) in MITA and TaU groups improved their symptoms over time, but younger MITA-exposed children showed three-fold improvement in language score at the end of the trial vs. TaU group. There was no difference between MITA and TaU in the older children group, supporting Lenneberg's critical period hypothesis.

The Degree of Application of Language Activities in Autistic Children and Their Relationship in Improving Verbal Expression Skills in Special Education Centers in Jordan

“…The study's findings suggest that language exercises, particularly those that are engaging and use visual cues, may be effective in increasing communication skills in autistic children. This aligns with the support from Vyshedskiy et al (2020) and Henry and Solari (2020), who emphasized the importance of tailored language activities for individual needs. However, it is crucial to highlight that the sample size of this study was small, so the results should be regarded with caution.…”

“…In Clendon et al's (2021) study, the developing reading skills of young children with autism spectrum disorder who have poor verbal communication skills were assessed. Henry and Solari (2020) studied the influence of spoken language and auditory comprehension development in children with autism spectrum disorders, and Vyshedskiy et al (2020) determined how caregiver-led imaginative play activities affected the language skills of autistic children. Bin Saddiq (2021) performed a study to determine how well an electronic language-based program may improve the expressive language and interpersonal communication abilities of Egyptian youngsters with hearing impairments.…”

Novel linguistic evaluation of prefrontal synthesis (LEPS) test measures prefrontal synthesis acquisition in neurotypical children and predicts high-functioning versus low-functioning class assignment in individuals with autism

“…Propensity to acquire PFS seems to start before the age of two (Bick et al, 2015), reduces notably after five years of age (Basser, 1962;Boatman et al, 1999;Krashen & Harshman, 1972;Lenneberg, 1967;Pulsifer et al, 2004;Vyshedskiy et al, 2019), and ceases completely after puberty (Vyshedskiy, Mahapatra, et al, 2017). As the result of this strong and short critical period, the ability of children to acquire PFS can be significantly diminished by the time they enter the public school system.…”

“…Only by defining PFS as a separate neurological mechanism, were we able to discover the strong critical period for PFS acquisition. Specifically, individuals who have not acquired PFS in early childhood cannot develop PFS later in life despite years of therapy (Vyshedskiy et al, 2019;Vyshedskiy, Mahapatra, et al, 2017). Strong critical periods are not unusual in central nervous system development.…”

Novel Linguistic Evaluation of Prefrontal Synthesis (LEPS) test measures prefrontal synthesis acquisition in neurotypical children and predicts high-functioning versus low-functioning class assignment in individuals with autism

“…Propensity to acquire PFS seems to start before the age of two (Bick et al, 2015), reduces notably after five years of age (Basser, 1962;Boatman et al, 1999;Krashen & Harshman, 1972;Lenneberg, 1967;Pulsifer et al, 2004;Vyshedskiy et al, 2019), and ceases completely after puberty (Vyshedskiy, Mahapatra, et al, 2017). As the result of this strong and short critical period, the ability of children to acquire PFS can be significantly diminished by the time they enter the public school system.…”