Translucency Ratings of Blissymbols over Repeated Exposures by Children with Autism

Abstract

The use of graphic symbols forms an integral part of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) strategies, particularly for pre-literate children. Although some studies have indicated that typically developing children and those with autism are able to learn symbol meanings with multiple exposures to graphic symbols, little is known about how children with autism rate the degree to which the symbol represents its referent (translucency) with repeated exposures. The purpose of this study was to describe the translucency ratings of children with autism over three consecutive exposures. Twenty-two children with autism participated in a Blissymbol translucency task that included 40 symbols. The Blissymbol task was modified from , who explored the translucency of Blissymbols with typically developing children. Findings of this study indicated statistically significant differences in total translucency ratings of the Blissymbols by the children with autism between Day 1 and Day 3 (medium effect size) with Day 3 yielding more positive ratings than Day 1. No single Blissymbol showed statistically significant differences over the days. Findings are interpreted and further implications for research are discussed.

Keywords::

• Autism
• Blissymbol
• Translucency
• Repeated exposure

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the Unica School for Children with Autism for their willingness to participate and support this study. Rina Owen's assistance with the statistical analysis of this study is acknowledged with gratitude.

Declaration of interest: The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.

Financial assistance for this study from the National Research Foundation (NRF) in South Africa is also hereby acknowledged. Opinions expressed in this article is that of the authors and do not represent policy of the NRF.