"Narrative Language Among Mothers With the <i>FMR1</i> Premutation and " by Sara Mousavi

Author

Sara Mousavi

Date of Award

Summer 2020

Document Type

Open Access Thesis

Department

Communication Sciences and Disorders

First Advisor

Jessica Klusek

Abstract

Difficulties with pragmatic language are known language traits among women with the FMR1 premutation and within the broad autism phenotype (BAP). Our study investigated the narrative cohesion and story grammar organization of spontaneously generated stories produced by mothers with the FMR1 premutation, mothers of children with ASD, and mothers of typically developing children. No group differences were observed in story grammar, overall quality, or frequency of use of temporal devices. But both the mothers of children with ASD and mothers with the FMR1 premutation committed reference errors at a significantly higher frequency than mothers in the control group. This study provides new insight into narrative skills exhibited by mothers with the FMR1 premutation and mothers of children with ASD, which extends our understanding of the phenotypes associated with genetic risk related to the FMR1 premutation and BAP. Further research analyzing narrative cohesion in the FMR1 premutation is warranted to better understand the language profile of the genotype.

Rights

© 2020, Sara Mousavi

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