Functions of expression performed by children on the autism spectrum – own research

Abstract

The dissertation is devoted to the production of expression by children on the autism spectrum with Asperger’s syndrome. The article discusses the function of speech acts depending on the purpose of the statement. The implementation of intentions can be expressed through information, action, emotional and modal functions. This work discusses the issues of contemporary criteria for autism spectrum disorder, including Asperger’s syndrome. Moreover, the theoretical part includes a description of the possible pathomechanism of the autism spectrum and the most frequently described symptoms of Asperger’s syndrome in the area of language and communication skills. In the section devoted to methodology, the sociolinguistic concept of interaction by Stanisław Grabias was mentioned, in which the author distinguishes the functions of an utterance, taking into account its purpose. The purpose of the research as well as research questions and hypotheses were defined. Then, the results of own research were presented, which were conducted among children diagnosed with Asperger’s syndrome. The analysis of the material includes examples of statements along with the function assigned to them, as well as quantitative results that show which function is implemented most often and which is used least often. Based on the results, possible conclusions are drawn and presented.