PDF icon PDF herunterladen
Open Access
CC BY 4.0 · Journal of Child Science 2022; 12(01): e55-e66
DOI: 10.1055/s-0042-1743492
Original Article

Often Encountered but Rarely Reported: Challenges in Selecting Language(s) for Intervention in Bi/Multilingual Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder

Malavi Srikar
1   National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
,
Reny Raju
1   National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
,
Nikita Dadlani
1   National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
,
Divya Swaminathan
1   National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
,
Prathiksha Vaidhyanathan
2   Jupiter Hospital, Pune, Maharashtra, India
,
Shoba S. Meera 
1   National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences, Bangalore, Karnataka, India
› Institutsangaben
› Weitere Informationen
Auch verfügbar aufeRef
  Lizenzen und Reprints
Preview

Abstract

India is a socioculturally and linguistically diverse country. Most often individuals grow up exposed to more than one language. Apart from exposure to native and community languages, there is a growing preference for English as the language of formal education and employment. Previous studies demonstrated that bilingual children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) develop language similar to their monolingual nonverbal IQ-matched ASD peers. However, most of these studies have been conducted in countries in which English is the primary language for majority of the population. Although existing studies support a bilingual environment for children with ASD, professionals still seem to advise families' use of a monolingual approach. This paper reviews and discusses factors that influence the selection of language(s) for intervention in young children with ASD in bi/multilingual environments. These are discussed under three areas namely, (1) language environment of the child, (2) parent/caregivers' perspectives regarding bi/multilingual exposure, and (3) medium of education and availability of intervention services. This paper also highlights the complexities involved in the language selection process for intervention using four case vignettes. Based on the review and findings from the case vignettes, it is evident that there is a need for (1) sensitizing fellow professionals regarding the increasing shift toward a bi/multilingual approach, (2) formulating guidelines for this decision-making process, and (3) continuing to develop an evidence base for adopting multilingual approach for intervention in a socioculturally and linguistically diverse country like India.

Keywords

bilingual - multilingual - autism spectrum disorder - intervention - speech-language pathology


Publikationsverlauf

Eingereicht: 04. Januar 2022

Angenommen: 05. Januar 2022

Artikel online veröffentlicht:
07. Juli 2022

© 2022. The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, permitting unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction so long as the original work is properly cited. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

Georg Thieme Verlag KG
Rüdigerstraße 14, 70469 Stuttgart, Germany