Specific Language Impairment and High Functioning Autism: Evidence for Distinct Etiologies and for Modularity of Grammar and Pragmatics

This study investigates whether grammar and pragmatics are separate linguistic components, and whether children with Specific Language Impairment (SLI) and children with High Functioning Autism (HFA) have similar or distinct etiologies. A group of 27 children with HFA aged 6-14, age and gender matched to 27 children with SLI, and 27 TD controls are tested on the mass-count distinction (grammatical) and the choice for a definite/indefinite article (pragmatic). The results show that pragmatics can be impaired independently from grammar (in HFA) and vice versa (in SLI), providing evidence for domain specificity of grammar and pragmatics, and against shared etiologies for SLI and HFA