Bilingualism and second-order theory of mind development in autistic children over time: Longitudinal relations with language, executive functions, and intelligence.
autism spectrum disorder
bilingualism
executive functions
expressive vocabulary
intelligence
longitudinal design
second‐order theory of mind
Journal
Autism research : official journal of the International Society for Autism Research
ISSN: 1939-3806
Titre abrégé: Autism Res
Pays: United States
ID NLM: 101461858
Informations de publication
Date de publication:
23 Aug 2024
23 Aug 2024
Historique:
received:
06
04
2024
accepted:
01
08
2024
medline:
23
8
2024
pubmed:
23
8
2024
entrez:
23
8
2024
Statut:
aheadofprint
Résumé
Theory of Mind has long been studied as a core weakness in autism spectrum disorder due to its relationship with social reciprocity, while bilingualism has been shown to compensate for autistic individuals' mentalizing weaknesses. However, our knowledge of the Theory of Mind developmental trajectories of bilingual and monolingual autistic children, as well as of the factors related to Theory of Mind development in autism spectrum disorder is still limited. The current study has examined first- and second-order Theory of Mind skills in 21 monolingual and 21 bilingual autistic children longitudinally across three time points, specifically at ages 6, 9, and 12, and also investigated associations between Theory of Mind trajectories and trajectories of the children's language, intelligence and executive function skills. The results reveal that bilingual autistic children outperformed their monolingual peers in second-order Theory of Mind at ages 9 and 12, and that intelligence and, especially, expressive vocabulary skills played a pivotal role in advancing bilingual autistic children's second-order Theory of Mind development. On the other hand, monolingual autistic children only managed to capitalize on their language and intelligence resources at age 12. The findings highlight the importance of investigating bilingualism effects on autistic children's advanced cognitive abilities longitudinally.
Types de publication
Journal Article
Langues
eng
Sous-ensembles de citation
IM
Subventions
Organisme : Swiss National Science Foundation
ID : PR00P1_193104/1
Pays : Switzerland
Informations de copyright
© 2024 The Author(s). Autism Research published by International Society for Autism Research and Wiley Periodicals LLC.
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