Examination of schematic memory performances of children with autism and typically development

In this study, the schematic memory performances of children with autism and typical development (TD) were compared and examined. In order to examine the schematic memory performances of the participating children in the research, experimental materials in which photographs of different related and unrelated environments and objects were used were prepared in accordance with the literature. Twenty children with autism and 20 children with TD, aged between 48 and 96 months, participated in the study. In the study, non-verbal intelligence performances of children with autism and children with TD were matched using the Colored Matrices Raven Intelligence test. Within the scope of the research, the language skills of children with autism and TD were evaluated by applying the Turkish Early Language Test (TEDİL-3). Children's schematic memory scores were compared between groups, and the relationships between schematic memory scores and language scores and nonverbal intelligence scores were examined within the group. The results of the study showed that the schematic memory performances of children with TD were higher than the children with autism among the groups. When schematic memory performances were examined in detail, it was seen that children with TD remembered objects unrelated to the environment more than objects related to the environment. When the schematic memory performances of children with autism were examined, it was seen that there was no significant difference in remembering objects related to and unrelated to the environment. The research findings were discussed and suggestions for further research were given.