Tell me where it is: Selective difficulties in spatial language on the autism spectrum

Abstract

Proficient use of spatial terms such as under, to the left of or in front of is a central component of daily communication and is important in the development of language and spatial cognition. Here we examine spatial language abilities in intellectually high-functioning individuals with autism spectrum disorder, an area previously overlooked in autism research. Twenty-five high-functioning individuals with ASD and 25 typically developing controls, matched for chronological age and cognitive abilities, completed a novel battery tapping a broad range of spatial language abilities. We report selective difficulties in the production of spatial terms and spatial description recall in high-functioning ASD. Overall verbal abilities did not account for the observed group differences. Crucially, however, the intensity of autism spectrum traits predicted individual performance in both spatial language production and spatial description recall. We discuss the theoretical implications of these findings and explore their significance for both clinical practice and intervention. Lay abstract How we think and talk about space is an essential ability, necessary for understanding the world around us. We recruit spatial thinking every day when finding our way or using tools but also in more advanced tasks, such as reading complex graphs or maps. We do so also in daily communication when we use spatial language, terms such as under, over, to the left of or in front of, and when we give instructions. Spatial terms appear in children’s early vocabularies and continue to develop until late childhood or even early adolescence. Because spatial language develops over many years, some spatial terms are mastered very early, whereas others take longer to acquire. In the current set of studies, we tested how intellectually high-functioning children and adults on the autism spectrum use and understand these early- and late-acquired spatial terms in comparison to typically developing age-matched individuals. We found that children and adults on the autism spectrum experience difficulties with the use of some spatial terms (e.g. near and far or out of and down off) but not with others, which are acquired early (e.g. in and on or over and under). We also found that remembering spatial terms from short stories was more difficult for the individuals on the autism spectrum compared with typically developing individuals. These results reveal difficulties that can profoundly affect everyday communication of children and adults on the autism spectrum but also open new directions of research on language development in autism spectrum disorders.

Mental rotation and language in autism spectrum disorder

“…This finding aligns with prior work suggesting diminished use of language in the form of verbal mediation as a strategy during visuospatial task performance (Larson et al, 2021;Williams et al, 2012). Our finding that structural language competence was associated with mental rotation accuracy, however, may provide broad support for studies indicating cross-domain associations between language and spatial cognition at different levels of granularity and targeting different levels of language structure (e.g., Bochynska, Coventry et al, 2020;; but see Prescott et al, 2023).…”

“…Visuospatial skills are often viewed as a relative strength in autism spectrum disorder (ASD), yet difficulties have been observed on visuospatial executive function (Lai et al, 2017; Wang et al, 2017) and spatial navigation tasks (Lind et al, 2013, 2014; Ring et al, 2018; Smith, 2015), as well as in the comprehension and production of spatial language (Bochynska, Coventry et al, 2020; Bochynska, Vulchanova et al, 2020; but see Prescott et al, 2023). Development of spatial cognition and language is thought to be interrelated through several mechanisms in neurotypical (NT) development, including engagement of shared concepts between systems (e.g., spatial verbs and syntactic frames, spatial prepositions and directional information; Coventry & Garrod, 2004; Hayward & Tarr, 1995; Landau & Hoffman, 2005; Landau & Sciences, 1993) and the use of verbal mediation to guide behavior (e.g., self‐talk; Larson et al, 2021; Marcovitch & Zelazo, 2009; Zelazo, 2004).…”

Metaphor processing in autism: A systematic review and meta-analysis

“…As many theorists have argued, the deficits in metaphor processing for people with autism may be closely linked to more general deficits in linguistic skills. For example, even though autistic individuals are generally unimpaired in spatial skills, they show deficits in the use of spatial language (Bochynska, Coventry, Vulchanov, & Vulchanova, 2020), and the integration of materials presented in different modalities (for example, pictorial and verbal) might pose a particular challenge for them (cf. Kalandadze et al, 2019).…”

Investigating the challenges of teaching sex education to autistic learners: A qualitative exploration of teachers’ experiences

“…Participants suggested that using the correct terminology for body parts is vital as it could identify safeguarding concerns such as sexual abuse. There is a particular dependency on teachers in this regard as autistic learners may not be able to effectively communicate concerning this topic (Bochynska et al, 2020). Additionally, learners may not even be aware of what a safeguarding scenario is if they have not been educated on it; highlighted by Kathleen that it is "easy" for autistic individuals to be sexually abused.…”