Social (Pragmatic) Communication Disorder

Author(s):  
Amma A. Agyemang
2020 ◽  
Vol 63 (6) ◽  
pp. 1916-1932 ◽  
Author(s):  
Haiying Yuan ◽  
Christine Dollaghan

Purpose No diagnostic tools exist for identifying social (pragmatic) communication disorder (SPCD), a new Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition category for individuals with social communication deficits but not the repetitive, restricted behaviors and interests (RRBIs) that would qualify them for a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). We explored the value of items from a widely used screening measure of ASD for distinguishing SPCD from typical controls (TC; Aim 1) and from ASD (Aim 2). Method We applied item response theory (IRT) modeling to Social Communication Questionnaire–Lifetime ( Rutter, Bailey, & Lord, 2003 ) records available in the National Database for Autism Research. We defined records from putative SPCD ( n = 54), ASD ( n = 278), and TC ( n = 274) groups retrospectively, based on National Database for Autism Research classifications and Autism Diagnostic Interview–Revised responses. After assessing model assumptions, estimating model parameters, and measuring model fit, we identified items in the social communication and RRBI domains that were maximally informative in differentiating the groups. Results IRT modeling identified a set of seven social communication items that distinguished SPCD from TC with sensitivity and specificity > 80%. A set of five RRBI items was less successful in distinguishing SPCD from ASD (sensitivity and specificity < 70%). Conclusion The IRT modeling approach and the Social Communication Questionnaire–Lifetime item sets it identified may be useful in efforts to construct screening and diagnostic measures for SPCD.


Author(s):  
Lauren B Swineford ◽  
Audrey Thurm ◽  
Gillian Baird ◽  
Amy M Wetherby ◽  
Susan Swedo

2019 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 39-53
Author(s):  
Agnieszka Siedler ◽  
Tadeusz Gałkowski ◽  
Maria Pąchalska

The aim of the study was to assess self-reported individual differences in the use of the inner speech of adolescents with Social (Pragmatic) Communication Disorder (SCD) and in particular to answer the questions: Do adolescent with SCD have inner speech and what is the direction of this speech? Is this a monologue and internal dialogue, i.e., do they speak to themselves (internal monologue) or to other people (internal dialogue)? We tested 22 adolescents with SCD, diagnosed according to the DSM-5 criterion. The average age was 16.48 years, SD = 2.71. The youngest patient was 12 years old and the oldest was 19 years old. The modified version of the Puchalska-Wasyl Scale of Inner Speech was used for the study. The questionnaire was tailored to the capabilities of the persons with SCD and included questions about the occurrence of internal speech and the direction of this speech, that is, internal conversations to yourself (internal monologue) or to other people (internal dialogue). The patients participating in the experiment were informed in detail about the whole procedure and they or their parents, if they were under age, provided written consent for their participation in the experiment (according to the guidelines of the Helsinki Declaration, 2008). Statistical analysis showed that in adolescents with SCD there is a statistically significant relationship in the frequency of the monologue and internal dialogue. Persons who declared a more frequent occurrence of internal dialogue also declared more frequent occurrences of internal monologue, which means that they had the general ability for inner speech. A comparison of the direction of inner speech, that is the internal monologue and internal dialogue has shown that during inner speech they more often use internal dialogue than internal monologue. It was found that in adolescents with SCD, inner speech is present, and it manifests itself in the form of an internal monologue and internal dialogue. However, far more often do they use internal dialogue than internal monologue.


Author(s):  
Yuli Fradkin ◽  
Judy Flax ◽  
Parth Majmundar ◽  
Sherry Wilson ◽  
Chrisitine Gwin ◽  
...  

Autism ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 23 (8) ◽  
pp. 1982-1992 ◽  
Author(s):  
Judy Flax ◽  
Christine Gwin ◽  
Sherri Wilson ◽  
Yuli Fradkin ◽  
Steve Buyske ◽  
...  

The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders’ (5th ed.) Social (Pragmatic) Communication Disorder is meant to capture the social elements of communication dysfunction in children who do not meet autism spectrum disorder criteria. It is unclear whether Social (Pragmatic) Communication Disorder captures these elements without overlapping with Autism Spectrum Disorder or the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders’ (5th ed.) Language Disorder. Standardized behavioral assessments administered during a family genetics study were used to evaluate the social communication impairment and the restricted interests and repetitive behaviors in persons with autism spectrum disorder, language impairment, or neither. Social communication impairment and restricted interests and repetitive behavior were significantly correlated in all family members regardless of affection status. Rates of social communication impairment and restricted interests and repetitive behavior were highest in individuals with autism spectrum disorder. One-third of family members with language impairment presented with at least mild/moderate levels of social communication impairment (36.6%) and restricted interests and repetitive behavior (43.3%). A subset of unaffected members also presented with mild/moderate levels of social communication impairment (parents = 10.1%, siblings 11.6%) and restricted interests and repetitive behavior (parents = 14.0%, siblings = 22.1%). The majority of child family members with mild/moderate levels of social communication impairment had similar restricted interest and repetitive behavior levels reflecting criteria representing the Broad Autism Phenotype. These data suggest that social pragmatic communication disorder does not capture the profiles of children who have both social communication impairment and restricted interests and repetitive behavior but are in need of clinical services.


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