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When working with students who have autism one can assume that they all have problems with communication. These difficulties have an impact upon both the receptive and expressive functions of communication.

What are the most common problems with communication?

Problems with communication result from difficulties in:

• processing auditory sensory information,
• understanding social interactions,
• and cognitive inflexibility.

Many individuals with autism have difficulties remembering sounds and associating words. As a result many individuals with autism have a very limited vocabulary and have problems with using language in various social situations.

Echolalia is another common problem in communication for many individuals with autism.

Immediate echolalia refers to utterances that are produced either immediately following or a brief time after the model utterance (Prizant, 1983). Delayed echolalia refers to utterances repeated at a significantly later time.