Subjective position sliding in utterances perceived as echolalic in a child with Language Disorder: a case study

Area of Science:

• Linguistic analysis
• Developmental psychology
• Clinical linguistics

Background:

• Investigated echolalia in a 10-year-old child with language disorder and early psychosis.
• Focused on the linguistic-discursive framework of recurring utterances structured as 'does X want Y?'

Observation:

• Observed linguistic fluctuations across syntactic, lexical, semantic, morphological, and prosodic elements.
• Identified a sliding of the subject position within the echolalia chain.

Findings:

• Echolalia demonstrated a shift from a spoken subject ('do you want Y?') to a speaking/desiring subject ('I want Y.').
• Linguistic fluctuations in echolalia provide clues to the subject's desire and relationship with others.
• Utterances, though unconventional, can indicate potential changes in subject position.

Implications:

• Highlights the importance of listening to utterances grounded in the speech of others in clinical practice.
• Suggests that echolalia can be a site for the constitution of the subject in language.
• Advocates for creating space for new interpretations of utterances often deemed devoid of subjectivity.