Question-response-evaluation sequences in the home interactions of a bilingual child with autism spectrum disorder

Prior research has described the prevalence and utility of questions in children's language learning environment. However, there has been little empirical investigation of the interaction sequences that ensue following caregiver questions. Understanding these interactions may be especially important for children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), who may have difficulty engaging in reciprocal interactions. Question-response-evaluation sequences (QRE) are a particular type of interaction sequence launched by questions that have been examined primarily in classroom contexts. Less research has been devoted to understanding how caregivers and children with ASD leverage this interactional format in the context of home interactions.

We focus on QRE sequences within interactions between a 5-year-old bilingual child with ASD and his parents. In these sequences, the adult poses known-answer questions, the child responds and the adult evaluates the response. QRE sequences are primarily structured by the questioner (i.e., the parents in our context), and we examine the interactive work done by parents to initiate, maintain and close these sequences. We also examine the child's contributions to these sequences.

We applied conversation analysis (CA) to video recordings of home routines, such as play, book-reading and schoolwork. Videos were fully transcribed using CA conventions, and 55 QRE segments were isolated from the data corpus for further analysis.

Q-word questions (i.e., where, what, why, when, how questions) were the most prevalent question format, and repetition of the child's response was the most prevalent form of evaluation. We found that QRE sequences were embedded within a variety of action trajectories that extend beyond pedagogical functions. These included repairing a prior utterance, extending collaborative play routines and engaging in topically connected labelling rituals.

QRE sequences appeared to strike a balance in terms of the level of constraint they placed on the child's contributions to interactions, and the affordances they provide for participating in and progressing through interactions. This study can help clinicians understand the types of interactions that can be pursued with QRE sequences in their work with children with ASD. The findings may also aid intervention researchers' efforts to leverage caregivers' existing strengths for adapting their interactional overtures to maximize children's engagement. Finally, this study provides an illustration of caregiver-child interactions in a population that is currently under-represented in the literature.