Echolalia as defined by parent communication partners

Echolalia, the repetition of previous speech, is highly prevalent in Autism. Research into echolalia has historically assumed a clinical standpoint, with two opposing paradigms, behaviourism and developmentalism, offering differing support and intervention programs. These paradigms offer a multitude of clinical operationalised definitions; despite attempts, there continue to be challenges regarding how echolalia is to be defined. Stepping out of the dichotomous clinically orientated literature, we examined how parents summarise and formalise their understanding of echolalia as a communication partner. The objectives of this study were three-fold: (1) to investigate how echolalia is described and defined by parents; (2) to examine if existing clinical definitions align with those of parents; and (3) to begin to consider the implications of such findings for a collaborative approach between clinical perspectives and the parent experience. We bring to the fore the voices of parents, who have historically remained absent from echolalia literature. That is to say, we step outside of the clinical realm and listen to parents: something which has been previously unconsidered but represents a new vital addition to the echolalia literature.

We employed a Grounded Theory approach to document the definitions of 133 parents.

We found that parents reported a multiplicity of important elements that are key to their understanding of echolalia.

Additionally, we found that clinical definitions do not resonate within the parent experience; parents experience echolalia in a different way to that of clinicians and parents can offer insight into our understanding of the phenomena. Our findings show that while some parents might align themselves with either a behavioural or developmental positionality, sometimes there is an overlap depending upon the context in which their child repeats and some parents advance interpretations that are not readily aligned with either of the traditional clinical schools of thought. We present implications for both clinicians and parents in ways that point towards a collaborative approach to support the person with echolalia.