Exploring how bilingualism affects language development in young children with autism
Official title: Dual Language Development in Young Children with ASD
Funded at University of Wisconsin-Madison · NIH-11093435 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This study looks at how young bilingual children with Autism Spectrum Disorder, who are learning both Spanish at home and another language in their community, develop their language skills, and it aims to help families understand the best ways to support their children's language growth.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Wisconsin-Madison NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Madison, United States) |
| Project start | August 1, 2023 |
| Project end | May 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $636,748 |
| NIH project number | 5R01DC021150-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11093435 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates for this research are bilingual children aged 18-36 months who are exposed to Spanish at home and have a diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder.
✕Less likely to help
Children who are not bilingual or who do not have a diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder may not benefit from this research.
What this research studies
This research investigates how young bilingual children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) develop language skills in both their home language and the community language. It focuses on children aged 18-36 months who are exposed to Spanish at home, examining the patterns of their dual-language development and how different language inputs influence their language outcomes. The study employs experimental tasks and parent-child interactions to gather data on language skills, aiming to provide insights that can help bilingual families navigate language choices for their children with ASD.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this research could provide valuable guidance for bilingual families on how to support language development in children with autism.
How similar studies have gone: While there have been studies on bilingualism in children with ASD, this research takes a novel approach by focusing specifically on dual-language development patterns rather than simple comparisons with monolingual peers.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Wisconsin-Madison
Madison, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Kaushanskaya, Margarita — University of Wisconsin-Madison
- Study coordinator: Kaushanskaya, Margarita
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.