Pragmatic abilities represent a child's ability to properly and effectively use language in a social context. Problems in this field can indicate the possible presence of certain developmental disorders in children at a very early stage. These are most often autistic spectrum disorders, where the pragmatic aspect of a language is most affected. Therefore, it would be best to concentrate on assessing these skills in the early identification and intervention of these children. This master's thesis examines the pragmatic abilities of preschool children with autism spectrum disorder and compares them to the abilities of children with a typical development. The research was carried out on a sample of 25 children from different health and educational institutions across Slovenia. The Slovenian adaptation of the Language Use Inventory questionnaire (D. O'Neill) was used in this study (Ocenjevanje pragmatičnega jezikovnega razvoja predšolskih otrok; adapted by M. Ozbič, D. Kogovšek and J. Novšak Brce). The participants of this questionnaire were parents of children with autistic spectrum disorders. The results show that the pragmatic abilities of the sample of children with autism spectrum disorder are less developed compared to their peers with a typical development. It has been shown that the difference in the development of pragmatic abilities among boys and girls with autism spectrum disorder is not statistically significant. On the other hand, the difference is statistically significant in relation to the age of children. Namely, older children with autism disorder have much better developed pragmatic abilities than the younger ones. Furthermore, there are also no statistically significant differences in the development of pragmatic abilities in the context of a child's diagnosis (whether there is only a suspicion of autism spectrum disorder or a confirmed diagnosis), but they are much less developed in individuals with additional associated disorders (mental disorders). Within this study, the parent report The Language Use Inventory proved to be a reliable and useful measurement tool. By standardizing it and formulating norms for Slovenian children, the questionnaire has the potential to become one of the key pragmatic measures in the field of early detection of autistic spectrum disorders in children.
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