Fiction or non-fiction: Parent-reported book preferences of their preschoolers with autism spectrum disorder
Background and aims Children’s early interactions with books are important for fostering development of oral language and emergent literacy skills. It is not known whether children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder show different preferences for text types in the home environment prior to scho...
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
SAGE Publishing
2019-12-01
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| Series: | Autism and Developmental Language Impairments |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1177/2396941519896736 |
| _version_ | 1797333408303546368 |
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| author | Rebecca M Armstrong Jessica Paynter Marleen F Westerveld |
| author_facet | Rebecca M Armstrong Jessica Paynter Marleen F Westerveld |
| author_sort | Rebecca M Armstrong |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Background and aims Children’s early interactions with books are important for fostering development of oral language and emergent literacy skills. It is not known whether children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder show different preferences for text types in the home environment prior to school entry. The current study aimed to: (i) investigate parent-reports of the favourite books of their children with autism spectrum disorder compared to typically developing children and (ii) identify whether there are differences in the reasons why books were preferred across the two groups. Methods Participants included children (aged 26–70 months) with autism spectrum disorder ( n = 41) and typically developing peers ( n = 164). Parent-reports of their child’s current favourite book/s were coded as fiction versus non-fiction and also category type. Parents also reported why the book was considered a favourite and this was coded. Results There were no differences between groups for fiction versus non-fiction, with both groups preferring fiction (>95% of responses). A strong category preference for animal topics across both groups was present. Significant group differences were found when asked to select specific reasons for favourite book preferences. Conclusions This study provides preliminary evidence of similarities between preschool children with autism spectrum disorder and typically developing peers’ preferences for fiction books during the early years. Implications It should not be assumed that children with autism spectrum disorder have different preferences for book types compared to typically developing children in the early years of development. Providing preschoolers with a range of book types during the preschool years will help to facilitate early language and emergent literacy skills. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-08T08:03:24Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-3b999dc13092450abfe53f3f0015d372 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2396-9415 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-08T08:03:24Z |
| publishDate | 2019-12-01 |
| publisher | SAGE Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Autism and Developmental Language Impairments |
| spelling | doaj.art-3b999dc13092450abfe53f3f0015d3722024-02-02T11:32:03ZengSAGE PublishingAutism and Developmental Language Impairments2396-94152019-12-01410.1177/2396941519896736Fiction or non-fiction: Parent-reported book preferences of their preschoolers with autism spectrum disorderRebecca M ArmstrongJessica PaynterMarleen F WesterveldBackground and aims Children’s early interactions with books are important for fostering development of oral language and emergent literacy skills. It is not known whether children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder show different preferences for text types in the home environment prior to school entry. The current study aimed to: (i) investigate parent-reports of the favourite books of their children with autism spectrum disorder compared to typically developing children and (ii) identify whether there are differences in the reasons why books were preferred across the two groups. Methods Participants included children (aged 26–70 months) with autism spectrum disorder ( n = 41) and typically developing peers ( n = 164). Parent-reports of their child’s current favourite book/s were coded as fiction versus non-fiction and also category type. Parents also reported why the book was considered a favourite and this was coded. Results There were no differences between groups for fiction versus non-fiction, with both groups preferring fiction (>95% of responses). A strong category preference for animal topics across both groups was present. Significant group differences were found when asked to select specific reasons for favourite book preferences. Conclusions This study provides preliminary evidence of similarities between preschool children with autism spectrum disorder and typically developing peers’ preferences for fiction books during the early years. Implications It should not be assumed that children with autism spectrum disorder have different preferences for book types compared to typically developing children in the early years of development. Providing preschoolers with a range of book types during the preschool years will help to facilitate early language and emergent literacy skills.https://doi.org/10.1177/2396941519896736 |
| spellingShingle | Rebecca M Armstrong Jessica Paynter Marleen F Westerveld Fiction or non-fiction: Parent-reported book preferences of their preschoolers with autism spectrum disorder Autism and Developmental Language Impairments |
| title | Fiction or non-fiction: Parent-reported book preferences of their preschoolers with autism spectrum disorder |
| title_full | Fiction or non-fiction: Parent-reported book preferences of their preschoolers with autism spectrum disorder |
| title_fullStr | Fiction or non-fiction: Parent-reported book preferences of their preschoolers with autism spectrum disorder |
| title_full_unstemmed | Fiction or non-fiction: Parent-reported book preferences of their preschoolers with autism spectrum disorder |
| title_short | Fiction or non-fiction: Parent-reported book preferences of their preschoolers with autism spectrum disorder |
| title_sort | fiction or non fiction parent reported book preferences of their preschoolers with autism spectrum disorder |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1177/2396941519896736 |
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