Running head: Repair strategies and problem behavior Communicative Repair Strategies And Problem Behaviors Of Children With Autism

Repair strategies and problem behavior 2 The use of strategies by children with developmental disabilities to repair communicative breakdowns has received little attention in the research literature to date. The research that is available suggests that children with severe communication impairments may be more likely to experience communicative breakdowns than their typically developing peers. These children may also have fewer strategies available to them to repair these breakdowns. The present article reviews some of the research in this area and discusses the possible links between communicative breakdowns and the emergence of problem behavior in children with autism. Theoretical and practical implications are considered and areas for future research are highlighted. Repair strategies and problem behavior 3 For typically developing infants and toddlers the prelinguistic stage of communication development involves making the transition from reflexive, preintentional behaviors to the use of behaviors that have communicative intent, together with the acquisitio