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Visual-spatial skills deficits are one of the primary neuropsychological deficits among children with Nonverbal Learning Disability (NVLD; Rourke, 1989) and Asperger's Syndrome (AS; Ellis, & Gunter, 1999; Klin, Volkmar, Sparrow, Cicchetti, & Rourke, 1995). In addition to affecting written tasks, visual-spatial deficits also have implications for the social functioning of children. Children who are not able to accurately process visual-spatial information will have difficulty processing the visual, nonverbal cues present in social situations including facial expressions, hand movements, and body posture (Nowicki & Duke, 1992). These social perception deficits make social interactions difficult for these children. As a result of their social differences, they are likely to get negative reactions from others, have social skills deficits (Petti, Voelker, Shore, and Hayman-Abello, 2003), and have much difficulty fitting in with same-aged peers. These social skills deficits will likely lead to internalized adjustment problems in which these children feel isolated, withdrawn, and depressed around their peers. This sequence of events, visual-spatial deficits, followed by social perception deficits, followed by social skills deficits, which ultimately lead to internalized emotional problems, is implied, but not empirically proven, in a study by Petti and colleagues (2003). In addition to experiencing greater socioemotional problems than other LD subtypes, visual-spatial and social deficits of children with NVLD have been shown to worsen with age (Casey, Rourke and Picard, 1991). This dissertation study investigated the relation between these four constructs (i.e., visual-spatial skills, social perception, social skills, and internalized emotional functioning). It was hypothesized that social perception and social skills mediate the relationship between visual-spatial skills and internalized emotional functioning. In addition, these deficits were expected to increase as these children get older. As NVLD and AS are commonly co-morbid with Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity DisorderPredominantly Inattentive Type (ADHD: PI; Gross-Tsur & Shalev, 1995; Voeller, 1996), this diagnostic group was compared to children diagnosed with ADHD: PI. An additional aim of this study was to differentiate the classification of Learning Disability (LD) by demonstrating the socioemotional functioning differences between individuals with NVLD/ADHD: PI and their counterparts -- individuals with a Verbal Learning Disability (VLD/ADHD: PI). Seventy-one children, ranging in age from 8-14 participated in the study and were assigned to one of three groups (e.g., NVLD/AS with ADHD: PI, VLD with ADHD: PI, or ADHD: PI) based on pre-determined criteria. The NVLD/AS group, as expected, showed impairments in all areas (i.e., visual-spatial skills, social perception, social skills, and internalized socioemotional functioning) and significantly differed from one or both of the other groups on each of the four domains. Support was not found for the age effects for the NVLD/AS group. That is, visual-spatial and internalized socioemotional scores did not worsen with increasing age as expected. Also, visual-spatial skills were not significantly related to internalizing socioemotional functioning, and the hypothesized mediation variables were not statistically significant. The current study contributes to the understanding of individuals with NVLD, an under-studied population. The proposed visual-spatial skills deficits and social perception deficits in Rourke's (1989) theoretical model were supported. This study also offers some insight into the internalizing socioemotional functioning of children with NVLD. It clarifies the heterogeneity of socioemotional functioning among LD children, suggesting that it is children with the LD subtype, namely NVLD, who are at greater risk for social problems. / text

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / The empathizing-systemizing (E-S) theory states that individuals with autism spectrum conditions (ASC) can be identified by a deficit in empathy (social skills, communication skills, and theory of mind) and a propensity for systemizing (islets of ability, obsessions with systems, and repetitive behavior). This theory has been tested in various contexts, but never with adolescents between the ages of 12 and 16. The EQ-A (Empathizing Quotient for Adolescents) and the SQ-A (Systemizing Quotient for Adolescents) were administered to 47 adolescents between the ages of 12 and 16 who had been diagnosed with ASC and 97 adolescents with no reported physical or mental disorders to discover differences in empathizing and systemizing. To test the specific elements and predictions of the E-S theory, the EQ-A was divided into a set of three subscales derived by conceptually mapping items to factors corresponding to the concepts theoretically underlying the scale. The SQ-A was divided into subscales using factor analysis. It was found that all four subscales resulting from the factor analysis on the SQ-A were associated with obsessions with systems. A weak positive correlation was found between the SQ-A and the EQ-A. Although the EQ-A was able to differentiate significantly between individuals with an ASC and those without, the SQ-A was not. In addition, although the EQ-A and EQ-A subscales scores correlated with similar subscales scores of the GARS-2 (a well-validated existing autism screening test), the SQ-A and its subscales did not. Implications for the E-S Theory are discussed.

In this thesis, the theoretical introduction firstly reviews Asperger's syndrome using available scientific resources. Secondly, we discuss major impacts and parameters of the integration process in a general perspective. The empirical part is fosuced on two case studies describing integration of two students who were diagnosed with Asperger syndrome. Data collection was based on direct observation, interview, databases and information from experts. The results and conclusions shall help to improve pegagogical skills of teachers. Furthermore the thesis shall serve as a source of information and guideline for parents, for whom the sufficient education is very essential.

Le monde social est par essence fortement incertain, dans la mesure où les informations peuvent varier rapidement et de façon imprévisible, et il est essentiel de pouvoir s’y adapter. Les personnes avec autisme présentent souvent une intolérance au changement et une recherche d’immuabilité, associées à des difficultés dans le domaine de la prise de décision. Elles rapportent également que leurs difficultés sont amplifiées lorsque la prise de décision implique un changement de routine et lorsqu’elle fait entrer en jeu une composante sociale. Si la prise de décision dans un environnement social a été beaucoup explorée, l’influence de l’incertitude du contexte (c’est-à-dire d’un changement brutal des probabilités de survenue d’un événement) et son interaction avec la nature sociale de l’environnement n’ont jamais été étudiées dans le cadre de l’autisme. Cette thèse vise à mieux comprendre les spécificités du traitement du caractère imprévisible du contexte chez les personnes autistes de haut niveau (High-Functioning Autism : HFA) et avec un Syndrome d’Asperger (AS). La question posée ici est de savoir si c’est l’aspect social, ou bien l’aspect imprévisible, qui pose problème aux personnes avec autisme dans les interactions sociales. Nous avons fait l’hypothèse d’une altération du traitement du caractère imprévisible chez ces personnes, comparées à des sujets neurotypiques appariés, et nous souhaitions préciser l’influence de la nature sociale ou non-sociale de la source d’information sur cette altération. Dans la première étude, comportementale, de cette thèse, nous avons adapté une tâche de prise de décision de Behrens et al. (2007, 2008), comportant une condition stable et une condition instable (i.e. incertaine), cet aspect stable ou instable pouvant venir d’un indice social ou non-social. Cette première étude a permis de montrer que, dans notre tâche, les difficultés rencontrées par les personnes HFA/AS dans un environnement social tiennent plus à son caractère imprévisible qu’à son aspect social. A cela s’ajoute une difficulté globale à intégrer les indices contextuels dans la prise de décision. Notre deuxième étude, en IRM fonctionnelle, visait à identifier les régions cérébrales impliquées dans le traitement du caractère imprévisible du contexte, ainsi que l’effet de la nature sociale de l’environnement sur ce traitement, chez des personnes avec autisme. Cette seconde étude a montré que les personnes HFA/AS mobilisent moins le réseau attentionnel fronto-pariétal que les personnes neurotypiques dans un contexte incertain (qu’il soit social ou non). On observe également chez ces personnes une difficulté à réorienter l’attention lorsque les indices contextuels ne sont pas pertinents. Par ailleurs, dans un environnement social les personnes HFA/AS activent moins les aires du « cerveau social » que les personnes neurotypiques. La discussion établit un parallèle entre ces résultats et la littérature existante, et propose des perspectives en termes de prise en charge dans l’autisme / The social world is inherently very uncertain, as the information can change rapidly, unpredictably, and thus it is essential to be able to adapt. People with autism often show a resistance to change and a preference for sameness, associated with decision-making difficulties. They also report that their difficulties are augmented when the decision involves a change in the routine and when a social component is involved. While the decision-making in a social environment has been widely investigated, the influence of the uncertainty of the context (i.e. of a sudden change in the probability of occurrence of an event) and its interaction with the social nature of the environment has never been studied in the context of autism. This thesis aims to better understand how people with High-Functioning Autism (HFA) and Asperger's syndrome (AS) process an unpredictable context. The main question asked here is which of the social or unexpected aspects denote a problem for people with autism in social interactions. We hypothesized that processing of uncertainty is altered in HFA/AS people compared to matched controls, and we wanted to determine what is the influence of a social or a non-social source of information on this alteration. In the first study of this thesis (a behavioural study), we adapted a decision-making task from Behrens et al. (2007, 2008), which implies a stable and an unstable (i.e. uncertain) conditions. The stable or unstable aspect could derive from a social or a non-social cue. The study showed that in our task the difficulties faced by people with HFA/AS in a social environment are more linked to the uncertainty of the context than to its social aspect. HFA/AS participants also showed a global difficulty to integrate contextual cues in decisionmaking. The second study (a functional MRI study) aimed to identify brain regions involved in the uncertainty processing, as well as the effect of the social nature of the environment on this processing. We observed in HFA/AS participants a weaker engagement of the fronto-parietal attentional cerebral network in an unstable context (regardless whether the cue was social or non-social). We also observed in these participants a difficulty to redirect their attention when contextual cues were not relevant. Moreover, in a social environment people with HFA/AS activated less than controls brain areas belonging to the "social brain”. The discussion draws a parallel between these results and the literature, and opens to rehabilitation perspectives for people with autism

This study aimed to explore the underlying basis of the communication difficulties in children (between 5.0 and 7.11 years) with high functioning pervasive developmental disorder (HFPDD) (n=26), compared to children with specific language impairment (SLI) (n=26), and children with no history of developmental difficulty (NDD) (n=26). The study looked at: whether different profiles could be obtained for the groups on comprehensive batteries of communication, cognitive processing and theory of mind; which areas measured were best correlated; and which measures best differentiated the groups. Comprehensive communication and theory of mind batteries were devised and conducted. Cognitive processing was measured using the Cognitive Assessment System (CAS) (Naglieri and Das, 1997). Data was analysed using descriptive statistics, analysis of variance, the Kruskal-Wallis test, Bonferroni t tests, frequency distributions, Pearson correlation coefficients and discriminant function analyses. Kappa coefficients and analysis of variance measures were carried out on 23% of the rated data in order to establish inter-rater agreement and acceptable levels of agreement were reached. On the communication assessment, the HFPDD group experienced the most difficulty on the measures of understanding abstract vocabulary, understanding conversation, pronoun alternation, higher level semantics, narrative ability and pragmatic ability. In contrast, the SLI group experienced the most difficulty on the measures of expressive grammar and narrative clarity. On the cognitive processing assessment, the HFPDD group experienced marked difficulty in the areas of planning and attention, while the SLI group experienced significant difficulty in the areas of successive processing and less marked but still significant difficulty in the area of planning. Within the HFPDD group, a group with simultaneous processing markedly stronger than successive processing, a group with successive processing markedly stronger than simultaneous processing, and a group with simultaneous and successive processing occurring at a similar level, were identified. The HFPDD group experienced significant difficulty on all the measures of theory of mind, although a limited number of HFPDD subjects did not experience difficulty. The SLI group experienced significant difficulty on the two theory of mind measures that were more verbally loaded. Strong correlations were found between receptive language, expressive semantics, narrative ability, pragmatic ability, planning, attention and theory of mind; and between expressive grammar and successive processing. Pragmatic ability, narrative ability, planning, and certain of the theory of mind measures best appeared to discriminate the groups. A combined model of language, cognitive and theory of mind processing is proposed to explain the differences between the HFPDD and SLI groups.

This thesis examines language alignment in children with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD), a neurodevelopmental disorder characterised by impaired social understanding and poor communication skills. Alignment, the tendency for speakers to repeat one another's linguistic choices in conversation, promotes better communication and more satisfying interactions (cf. e.g., Fusaroli et al., 2012). By corollary, deficits in alignment may adversely affect both communicative and affective aspects of conversation. Across three studies, I consider whether ASD children's conversational deficits relate to disrupted patterns of alignment, and explore the mechanisms underlying this. In the first study, I adopt a corpus-based approach to show that syntactic alignment effects are observable in ASD children's ‘real-life' conversations, not just in an experimental context. The second study draws on research into the role of inhibitory control in communicative perspective-taking (Nilsen & Graham, 2009) to show that lexical alignment is not socially mediated in ASD. I develop this work in the third study, which highlights how, for ASD children, conversation can be compromised when lexical alignment is driven exclusively by priming mechanisms. Taken together, these studies advance our understanding of conversational deficits in ASD, and particularly how impaired social understanding affects ASD children's language processing in dialogue. I conclude that, while ASD children have intact alignment, reduced social understanding may prevent them from ‘diverging', which can be necessary to move a conversation forward (Healey, Purver, & Howes, 2014). More broadly, the thesis addresses questions of theoretical relevance to the study of alignment, by clarifying the contributions of unmediated (i.e., priming) and socially mediated (i.e., audience design) mechanisms to children's alignment behaviour, both in ASD and typical development.