Sequence of Gestural Representations in Children with High Functioning Autism

There is controversy as to whether gestural representation deficits in autism spectrum disorders reflect a language or/and a motor-based deficit. In this study children with high functioning autism (HFA, n=26), children with language impairment (LI, n=24), and typically developing children (n=30) demonstrated and described tooth brushing. Children with HFA showed a significantly lower level of gestural representation compared to the typical group but did not differ from LI group, and demonstrated significantly fewer recognizable actions within tooth brushing than both comparison groups but did not differ in the number of steps they described. The lower gestural representation level in both clinical groups may reflect a symbolic representation impairment, while the specific difficulties of children with HFA in presenting an elaborate and accurate sequence of motor actions may more closely reflect dyspraxia.