Investigation of phonological characteristics of children with autism spectrum disorder

The main purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between verbal language performance and phonological abilities in children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) with different language levels. Turkish Early Language Development Test (TEDIL) was applied to determine the language levels and Ankara Articulation Test (AAT) was used to determine the phonological characteristics, of 36 children with ASD between ages of 2;0 - 7;11. As a result of TEDİL, 15 children with a very weak general language level, 5 weak, 6 under below average, 9 on average and 1 above average were determined. As a result of the AAT, it was determined that 83.33% of the children performed below the age level, 5.56% at or near the age level, and 11.11% above the age level in phonological skills. It was found that there is a moderate and significant relationship between the children's general language levels and phonological levels (r = 0.495, p <0.01). It was determined that mistakes were made in the form of omitting the target sound and substituting another sound. The frequencies of the phonemes with errors were also examined. As a result of the study, it was found that children with ASD who have better general language level also have had better phonological performances.