Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39776110›Full record

ArticleJournal of autism and developmental disorders2026

Acquisition of Speech Prosody in a Non-native Tone Language by Children With and Without Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Si Chen, Yixin Zhang, Meixuan Li, Bin Li, Shuang Lu, Angel Chan, Haoyan Ge, Tempo Tang, Zhuoming Chen

Abstract read
PubMed Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Si ChenDepartment of Chinese and Bilingual Studies, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Yixin ZhangDepartment of Chinese and Bilingual Studies, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, China. yixin-yz.zhang@polyu.edu.hk.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0485-2230
Meixuan LiDepartment of Chinese and Bilingual Studies, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Bin LiDepartment of Linguistics and Translation, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Shuang LuSchool of Foreign Languages, Renmin University of China, Beijing, China.
Angel ChanDepartment of Chinese and Bilingual Studies, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Haoyan GeSchool of Education and Languages, Hong Kong Metropolitan University, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Tempo TangThe Hong Kong Child and Youth Services, North Point, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Zhuoming ChenThe First Hospital of Jinan University, Guangzhou, China.

Funding

Hong Kong Polytechnic University 1-W08CHong Kong Polytechnic University 1-WZ02Hong Kong Polytechnic University 1-ZE0DHong Kong Polytechnic University 1-ZVRTHui Hoy and Chow Sin Lan Charity Fund R-ZH5ZMinisterial Standing Committee on Scientific and Technological Cooperation of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation K-ZB2PRGC A-PB1B
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeChildren with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often show abnormal speech prosody. Tonal languages can pose more difficulties as speakers need to use acoustic cues to make lexical contrasts while encoding the focal function, but the acquisition of speech prosody of non-native languages, especially tonal languages has rarely been investigated.

methodsThis study aims to fill in the aforementioned gap by studying prosodic focus-marking in Mandarin by native Cantonese-speaking children with ASD (n = 25), in comparison with their typically developing (TD) peers (n = 20) and native Mandarin-speaking children (n = 20). Natural prosodic marking of different types of focus was elicited by picture-based prompt questions, recorded and analyzed acoustically.

resultsThe autistic children made use of fewer acoustic cues and produced less evident on-focus expansion in these cues than TD, especially the native-Mandarin speaking peers. They also demonstrated a clear preference to on-focus expansion than to post-focus compression. These children, together with their native Cantonese-speaking peers, also hyper-performed in tone realization, prioritizing lexical prosody over focus marking. Such hyper-performance may further limit their use of prosodic cues in focus marking. However, the difficulties the autistic children faced in the acquisition of speech prosody in a non-native tone language, though found, are not more than those they face in their mother tongue.

conclusionMultilingual exposure may help the autistic children master the use of some focus marking strategies though they still need interventions to help them to implement their focus-marking knowledge more sufficiently in both native and non-native languages.

Indexed as

Autism Spectrum DisorderLanguage DevelopmentMultilingualismSpeech PerceptionChildCuesFemaleHumansLanguageMaleAutism spectrum disorderChild language acquisitionMultilingualismProsodic focus markingThird language acquisition

Identifiers

PMID39776110

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.