輕症ASD兒童會話理解能力之研究

A Study on the Comprehension of Conversation in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders

本研究主要目的在探討輕症ASD 兒童與一般兒童在會話理解過程中，對於字面意義及非字面意義理解的差異情形，為進行此研究故先編製一套會話理解測驗。「會話理解測驗」編製過程中，首先抽取台北市、新北市667 位二至四年級一般兒童，經由預試、專家修訂、信效度建立等程序，完成題數三十五題，答題方式為選擇題形式的測驗內容。其次，分別控制語言理解能力及生理年齡，立意取樣各47 名二至四年級的輕症ASD 與一般兒童，共計94 名受試者以個別施測方式實施會話理解測驗。研究結果：1.「會話理解測驗」信效度考驗結果良好，符合語言學及認知發展的構念；2.輕症ASD 兒童字面意義或非字面意義的會話理解能力均較一般兒童低落，兩者誤解非字面意義會話時，均偏向字面意義解讀；3.明喻、言外之意及反諷等不同類型的非字面意義會話對輕症ASD 兒童並無難度上的差異；4.就字面意義會話理解表現而言，輕症ASD 兒童和一般兒童的表現均與生理年齡無關，但輕症ASD 兒童則和語言理解能力有關；5.非字面意義會話理解方面，一般兒童的表現和生理年齡有關，但和語文理解能力無關；相反地，輕症ASD 兒童則是和語文理解能力有關，但和生理年齡無關。由研究結果可歸納以下結論：1.「會話理解測驗」可有效應用於評估輕症ASD 兒童的會話理解能力；2.輕症ASD 兒童較容易誤解非字面意義會話，且誤解時的錯誤類型比例和一般兒童不同；3.一般兒童字面意義和非字面意義兩種會話理解之間的差距會隨著年齡的增加而減少。相較之下，輕症ASD 兒童卻有隨之擴大的情形。

The main purpose of this study was to explore the differences of literal and non-literal comprehension between normal children and children with Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). Methods: A test was designed to meet this purpose, which was, entitled “The Test of Conversation Comprehension”. In the first stage, a total of 667 second to fourth grade normal children from Taipei City and New Taipei City were invited to participate. After conducting pretesting, expert correction, and proof of reliability and validity, the final version of the test included 35 multiple-choice items. The second stage of the study proceeded after matching language comprehension and chronological age. A total of 94 children (47 with ASD, and 47 with normal children) were invited to individually take the “Test of Conversation Comprehension”, in order to assess their conversation comprehension. Findings: This study made a number of findings. First, the “Test of Conversation Comprehension” consisted of four subtests, which were: statements, similes, implicature, and irony. The reliability and validity were good and all four sub-tests corresponded well with the theory of linguistic and cognitive development. Second, the children with ASD were found to be apparently weaker in their comprehension of conversation than the normal children, and the weakness appeared in both literal and non-literal understanding. For both the children with ASD and the normal children, misunderstandings in non-literal conversations were caused by interpreting the conversations with literal meanings. Third, no significant differences in difficulties were found during the three sub-tests of similes, implicature, and irony, respectively, of the non-literal conversations for the ASD children. Fourth, the comprehension of literal meaning in both the normal children and those with ASD was not related to chorological age; however, in the children with ASD it was related to their comprehension of language itself. Lastly, the comprehension of non-literal meaning in the normal children was related to their chorological age, while that in the children with ASD was related to their comprehension of language itself. Conclusion/Implications: Based on the above findings, three conclusions were made, which are listed as follows: (1) the “Test of Conversation Comprehension” could be used to effectively evaluate the comprehension of conversation abilities of children with ASD; (2) non-literal conversation is more frequently misunderstood by children with ASD than normal children, and the proportion of error types differs between the children with ASD and normal children; and (3) for normal children, the difference between the comprehension of literal and non-literal conversation decreases along with their age, while the opposite was found in the ASD group. Based on the research findings, this study made a number of suggestions about the comprehension of conversation for children with ASD, which can be used for further research and teaching purposes.