SUBMITTED ARTICLE
Accoun ing o he p e e ence o li e al
meanings in au ism spec um condi ions
Agus ín Vicen e
1
| Ing id Lossius Falkum
2
1
Depa men o Linguis ics and Basque
S udies, Ike basque & Uni e si y o he
Basque Coun y (UPV/EHU), Biscay,
Spain
2
Depa men o Linguis ics and
Scandina ian S udies (ILN)/Depa men
o Philosophy Classics, His o y o A and
Ideas (IFIKK), Uni e si y o Oslo, Oslo,
No way
Co espondence
Agus ín Vicen e, Micaela Po illa
Resea ch Cen e, Jus o Vélez de
Elo iaga, 1, 01006, Vi o ia-Gas eiz,
Spain.
Email: [email p o ec ed]
Funding in o ma ion
Ekonomia en Ga apen e a Lehiako asun
Saila, Eusko Jau la i za, G an /Awa d
Numbe : IT1396-19; Euskal He iko
Unibe si a ea, G an /Awa d Numbe :
GIU18/221; H2020 Eu opean Resea ch
Council, G an /Awa d Numbe : 853211;
Minis e io de Ciencia e Inno aci
on,
G an /Awa d Numbe :
PGC2018-093464-B-I00
P agma ic di icul ies a e conside ed a hallma k o
au ism spec um condi ions (ASC), bu emain poo ly
unde s ood. We discuss and e alua e exis ing hypo he-
ses ega ding he li e alism o ASC indi iduals, ha is,
hei endency o li e al in e p e a ions o non-li e al
communica i e in en ions. We p esen e idence ha
e eals a de elopmen al s age a which neu o ypical
child en also ha e a endency o li e alism and sugges
an explana ion o such beha iou ha links i o o he
beha iou al, ule- ollowing, pa e ns ypical o ha
age. We discuss e idence showing ha s ic adhe -
ence o ules is also widesp ead in ASC, and sugges
ha li e alism migh be linked o such ule- ollowing
beha iou .
KEYWORDS
au ism spec um condi ions, de elopmen , li e alism,
p agma ics, ule- ollowing beha iou
1|INTRODUCTION
Wha a speake means by an u e ance ypically goes beyond he li e al meanings o he wo ds
and sen ences she has used. A key assump ion unde lying con empo a y heo ies o human
communica ion is ha app op ia e use and in e p e a ion o language in ol es p agma ics
skills— ha is, he in e en ial capaci ies ha enable us o b idge he gap be ween linguis ic
Recei ed: 7 July 2020 Re ised: 29 Ma ch 2021 Accep ed: 30 Ma ch 2021
DOI: 10.1111/mila.12371
This is an open access a icle unde he e ms o he C ea i e Commons A ibu ion-NonComme cial License, which pe mi s use,
dis ibu ion and ep oduc ion in any medium, p o ided he o iginal wo k is p ope ly ci ed and is no used o comme cial pu poses.
© 2021 The Au ho s. Mind & Language published by John Wiley & Sons L d.
Mind & Language. 2023;38:119–140. wileyonlinelib a y.com/jou nal/mila 119
14680017, 2023, 1, Downloaded om h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mila.12371 by Uni e sidad Del Pais Vasco, Wiley Online Lib a y on [08/02/2023]. See he Te ms and Condi ions (h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/ e ms-and-condi ions) on Wiley Online Lib a y o ules o use; OA a icles a e go e ned by he applicable C ea i e Commons License
(li e al/con en ional) meanings and speake meanings in con ex (see, e.g., Ca s on, 2002;
Spe be & Wilson, 1986/1995).
Impai men s in such p agma ic easoning abili ies, ha is, di icul ies wi h app op ia e use
and in e p e a ion o language, a e conside ed a hallma k o au ism spec um condi ions (ASC)
(Tage -Flusbe g, Paul & Lo d, 2005). In pa icula , indi iduals diagnosed wi h ASC a e said o
be excessi ely li e alis s, in he sense ha hey end o p e e li e al in e p e a ions o wo ds and
u e ances, e en when speake s ha e non-li e al in en ions (Chahboun, Vulchano , Saldaña,
Eshuis & Vulchano a, 2016,2017; Vulchano a, Talco , Vulchano & S anko a, 2012;
Walenski & Lo e, 2017; see Sec ion 2.4 o discussion o he e idence).
1,2
Recen ly, howe e , some s udies ha e sugges ed ha he la gely he e ogenous popula ion o
ASC indi iduals may no be cha ac e ised by global p agma ic impai men s (Hochs ein, Bale &
Ba ne , 2018), and ha many high unc ioning ASC indi iduals a e able o unde s and scala
implica u es (Van Tiel & Kissine, 2018) me apho s (Kasi e & Mashal, 2016), and e en i ony
(Glenw igh & Agbayewa, 2012). Howe e , i is s ill ue ha mos indi iduals on he spec um
ha e di icul ies unde s anding non-li e al uses o language, he unde lying causes o which a e
deba ed (No bu y, 2014). Mo eo e , when a li e alis bias is es ed (as in Chahboun e al., 2016,
2017; Walenski & Lo e, 2017), he sugges ion is ha such di icul ies ela e o such li e alis
bias, and no jus o di icul ies wi h non-li e al uses o language ha may also appea in o he
condi ions, such as in de elopmen al language diso de s (DLD: see below). Hypo heses include
an impai men in “ heo y o mind”abili ies (Ba on-Cohen, Leslie & F i h, 1985) and conse-
quen di icul ies in unde s anding he speake 's in en ion (Happé, 1993; Rundblad &
Annaz, 2010a), “weak cen al cohe ence,”which biases owa ds local, de ail- ocused a he
han global in o ma ion p ocessing and makes he in eg a ion o con ex ual in o ma ion di i-
cul (Happé, 1999), execu i e dys unc ion (Hill, 2004) which impedes inhibi ion o he li e al
meaning and lexibili y in going beyond igid, li e al in e p e a ions, and lack o su icien
seman ic/wo ld knowledge (No bu y, 2014).
Despi e conside able esea ch a en ion, he p agma ic di icul ies wi h non-li e al uses in
ASC a e s ill poo ly unde s ood. In his pape , we discuss and e alua e exis ing hypo heses
ega ding he li e alism o ASC indi iduals, and link hem o accoun s o p agma ic de elop-
men in neu o ypical child en. While he e appea s o be a de elopmen al s age a which neu o-
ypical child en also ha e a endency o li e al in e p e a ions (Asch & Ne lo e, 1960; Falkum,
Recasens & Cla k, 2017; Köde & Falkum, 2020; Le o a o & Caccia i, 2002; Ne lich, Cla ke &
Todd, 1999; Winne , 1988/1997), we know o no s udies ha ha e explici ly in es iga ed
whe he ASC indi iduals' p agma ic di icul ies could be linked o he same sou ce as hose ha
neu o ypical child en expe ience a a ce ain s age in p agma ic de elopmen . We discuss a pos-
sible explana ion o he endency o li e al in e p e a ions in neu o ypical child en, one ha
links i o o he beha iou al, ule- ollowing, pa e ns ypical o he p e-p ima y and ea ly p i-
ma y school age. Finally, conside ing ex an e idence ha shows ha s ic adhe ence o ules
is also a widesp ead ea u e in ASC, we sugges ha li e alism migh be linked o such ule-
ollowing beha iou .
1
Vulchano a e al. (2012) is a case s udy abou EV, a Bulga ian woman wi h ou s anding language lea ning skills. They
an a numbe o es s on he L1 and L2 compe ence and compa ed i o a con ol g oup: Among o he hings, she sco ed
much lowe han con ols on idiom comp ehension and he inco ec esponses con ained “li e al
in e p e a ions”(p. 20).
2
Besides he empi ical e idence we will discuss, he e is ample e idence ha au is ic people exhibi a li e alis bias in
hei daily li es (A. C. Wilson & Bishop, 2021). See also: h ps://au ismguide.co.uk/ i ing-in o- he-wo ld/being-au is ic-
aspe ge s-synd ome-and-unde s anding-idioms-o -common-ph ases/.
120 VICENTE AND FALKUM
14680017, 2023, 1, Downloaded om h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mila.12371 by Uni e sidad Del Pais Vasco, Wiley Online Lib a y on [08/02/2023]. See he Te ms and Condi ions (h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/ e ms-and-condi ions) on Wiley Online Lib a y o ules o use; OA a icles a e go e ned by he applicable C ea i e Commons License
The pape is s uc u ed as ollows. In Sec ion 2, we discuss how he di e en cogni i e
impai men s unde lying exis ing hypo heses may impac on he li e alis p e e ence obse ed in
ASC, how hey ela e o one ano he , and how exis ing explana ions a e all unsa is ac o y in
one (speci ic) way o ano he . We also poin ou ha hey canno explain a di e en se o da a,
which we in oduce in Sec ion 3, namely, ha in he neu o ypical de elopmen , child en aged
h ee o ou seem o be less li e alis han child en aged i e o six. In Sec ion 4, we in oduce
ou own hypo hesis, which is ha such p e e ence o li e alis in e p e a ions is an exp ession
o a b oade con en ionalis a i ude, p obably de i ed om he di icul ies ha ASC people
expe ience when ying o unde s and he social wo ld in gene al. While i is s ill possible ha
he li e alism o ASC people has a di e en o igin han he li e alism o 5-yea -old neu-
o ypicals, i is dubious ha hei li e alism is ela ed o ac o s ha canno explain he non-
li e alism o 3-yea -olds and he obse ed di e ence be ween 3-yea -olds and 5-yea -olds.
2|LITERALISM AND ITS EXPLANATIONS
Wha does i mean o be a “li e alis ”? Mos , i no all, wo ds ha e se e al di e en meanings, and
he e is no eason o pick up one o hem as he li e al meaning. So, in a i s pass, we will ake i
ha someone is a li e alis i he o she has a s ong endency owa ds unde s anding wo ds and
u e ances as exp essing one o hei con en ional meanings ins ead o some no el, ad hoc, mean-
ing. Acco ding o his app oach, a li e alis pe son should no necessa ily ha e p oblems unde -
s anding con en ionalized me apho s o me onymies, gi en ha hese can be s o ed in he lexicon
in hesamewayaso dina y“li e al”meanings. Howe e , o a li e alis , acqui ing he meaning o
a con en ional me apho o me onym should also be mo e cos ly han usual, and we should see a
de ici in hei comp ehension and p oduc ion o con en ional me apho s and me onymies. Com-
p ehension and p oduc ion o con en ional idioma ic exp essions should also be a ec ed: A li e al-
is will ypically p ocess an idioma ic exp ession composi ionally and may no e en ealise ha he
exp ession has o ha e ano he meaning. A non-li e alis who hea s an idioma ic exp ession o
he i s ime is likely o be awa e ha i does no mean wha i composi ionally means, e en i
hey do no unde s and wha he exp ession means. In con as , a li e alis may no e en conside
ha he nonsensical combina ion o wo ds has o ha e ano he sense.
2.1 |Execu i e dys unc ion
As said abo e, he e a e se e al hypo heses as o why ASC indi iduals a e, o e all, mo e li e al-
is han hei neu o ypical pee s. One hypo hesis ela es li e alism o execu i e dys unc ion
(Hill, 2004). Execu i e unc ion e e s b oadly o a se o cogni i e abili ies ha a e necessa y
o he cogni i e con ol o beha iou , including inhibi ion, men al lexibili y and wo king
memo y (Diamond, 2013). Indi idually, a de ici in each o hese abili ies could, in p inciple,
lead o a endency o li e al in e p e a ions o igu a i ely used exp essions. An impai men in
inhibi o y con ol could make i di icul o supp ess p eponde an li e al meanings, poo men-
al lexibili y could make swi ching om one meaning (li e al) o ano he ( igu a i e) di icul ,
and a sca ci y o wo king memo y capaci y could make i di icul o simul aneously p ocess an
exp ession's li e al and igu a i e meaning.
I is a ma e o deba e whe he execu i e unc ion is globally impai ed ac oss he spec um
(F iedman & S e ling, 2019; Johns on, Mu ay, Spain, Walke & Russell, 2019) o whe he i is
VICENTE AND FALKUM 121
14680017, 2023, 1, Downloaded om h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mila.12371 by Uni e sidad Del Pais Vasco, Wiley Online Lib a y on [08/02/2023]. See he Te ms and Condi ions (h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/ e ms-and-condi ions) on Wiley Online Lib a y o ules o use; OA a icles a e go e ned by he applicable C ea i e Commons License
a co e de ici in au ism (Deme iou e al., 2018). ASC indi iduals may pe o m di e en ly on
pa icula sub- asks in ol ing execu i e unc ion. Fo ins ance, on he S oop ask
(S oop, 1935), a classic es o inhibi o y con ol whe e subjec s ha e o inhibi a p eponde an
beha iou (e.g., he esponse p imed by he colou o a colou wo d), some s udies ha e shown
ha ASC child en and adolescen s a e unimpai ed (Ozono & Jensen, 1999; Russell, Ja old &
Hood, 1999), while o he s ind gene al pa e ns o de ici s in inhibi o y con ol (H. M. Geu s,
an den Be gh & Ruzzano, 2014). Se e al s udies ha e shown impai men s in cogni i e lexibili y
in ASC, mo e speci ically on ask-swi ching using he Wisconsin ca d so ing es (WCST)
(Land y & Al-Taie, 2016; Willcu , Sonuga-Ba ke, Nigg & Se gean , 2008), and lowe sco es on
measu es o wo king memo y (Bouche , Mayes & Bigham, 2012; Ke cooda, G sko icb,
Bandac & Begesked, 2014). In a me a- e iew, howe e , F iedman and S e ling (2019) show ha
many ASC indi iduals pe o m as well as neu o ypicals on each o hese cons uc s (bu , see
Deme iou e al., 2018). This does no show ha execu i e dys unc ion may no be esponsible
o li e alism in he ASC popula ion, as he e migh be a co ela ion be ween execu i e dys unc-
ion and li e alism (i.e., pe sons on he spec um who ha e execu i e dys unc ion also ha e
p oblems in e p e ing language non-li e ally). I he e exis s such a co ela ion, his could, as
we men ioned abo e, be o a ious easons: lack o inhibi ion o he li e al meaning; in lexibil-
i y in swi ching om one in e p e a ion o ano he ; o di icul ies wi h ha ing wo di e en pos-
sible meanings in wo king memo y.
An assump ion unde lying his amily o explana ions is ha li e al meanings o wo ds a e
always ac i a ed. Howe e , as Glucksbe g (2008) claims: “Li e al meanings do no ha e uncon-
di ional p io i y, and so hey a e no necessa ily easie o compu e han nonli e al meanings”
(see also D. Wilson & Ca s on, 2007). Fo ins ance, some models o me apho p ocessing ha e i
ha me apho ical meanings a e accessed di ec ly, wi hou p io analysis o he comple e li e al
meaning (Gibbs, 1994,2002). O he models g an ha ele an ea u es o he li e al meaning
a e ac i a ed and hen supp essed (Rubio-Fe n
andez, 2007), bu supp ession o ea u es does
no ha e o be he same as inhibi ion o a compe ing meaning. Supp ession o ea u es is also
in ol ed in unde s anding complex nominal exp essions such as s one lion (Hogeweg, 2012)
and ake gun (Del Pinal, 2015), p ocesses ha ha e been shown o be less cos ly han o
ins ance, homonymy esolu ion (e.g., bank,pupil), whe e i seems necessa y o inhibi a p e-
ponde an meaning o ge o he in ended, subo dina e meaning (F isson, 2009). Tha is, i is
possible ha inhibi ion is no in ol ed in ypical non-li e al meaning p ocessing a e all.
The same kind o easoning cas s ini ial doub on he wo king memo y hypo hesis. ASC
indi iduals ha e been shown o ha e educed wo king memo y capaci y (WM) (Habib, Ha is,
Pollick & Mel ille, 2019). Acco ding o his iew, he obse ed li e alism could be a esul o
poo WM: I is no ha ASC indi iduals canno inhibi a pa icula piece o in o ma ion
(a li e al meaning), bu ha hey ha e di icul ies ha ing wo di e en pieces o in o ma ion in
WM a he same ime. So he ques ion abou li e alism could ul ima ely be a ques ion o being
unable o hold wo di e en in e p e a ions o one wo d in WM, one li e al and one non-li e al,
un il one o hem is selec ed. Howe e , once again we do no eally know whe he e ie ing a
non-li e al meaning in ol es accessing a li e al meaning i s and holding i in WM un il i is
disca ded. Homonymy esolu ion seems o wo k like his (Swinney, 1979). Typically, he mos
equen meaning is accessed while con ex also ac i a es an al e na i e meaning; hen he e is
compe i ion be ween bo h meanings, and he dominan meaning decays (o is inhibi ed). In his
case, i may well be ha bo h meanings a e empo a ily held in WM, and so ha a poo WM
capaci y may gi e ise o p oblems wi h homonymy esolu ion. Howe e , as we ha e discussed
abo e, comp ehension o non-li e al uses such as me apho s, me onymies, hype boles and o he
122 VICENTE AND FALKUM
14680017, 2023, 1, Downloaded om h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mila.12371 by Uni e sidad Del Pais Vasco, Wiley Online Lib a y on [08/02/2023]. See he Te ms and Condi ions (h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/ e ms-and-condi ions) on Wiley Online Lib a y o ules o use; OA a icles a e go e ned by he applicable C ea i e Commons License
kinds o depa u es om con en ional meaning does no necessa ily wo k like his, ha is,
he e may no be compe i ion be ween he li e al and he igu a i e meaning. Mo eo e , he e i-
dence conce ning homonymy esolu ion in ASC does no sugges ha indi iduals on he spec-
um a e unable o e ie e a subo dina e meaning o a homonym (Hahn, Snedeke &
Rabaglia i, 2015). One s udy, howe e , ound ha ASC indi iduals ha e di icul ies disambigu-
a ing homog aphs in a eading ask (L
opez & Leekam, 2003): Subjec s chose he dominan p o-
nuncia ion e en when he con ex made clea ha such p onuncia ion was no adequa e ( ea
in ea on he ace; dominan s. ea in he clo hes; subo dina e). Howe e , i is unclea whe he
hese esul s conce ning p onuncia ion disambigua ion ca y o e o meaning disambigua ion.
I homonymy esolu ion is no se iously comp omised in ASC indi iduals, he sugges ion is ha
he di icul ies conce ning li e alism a e no ela ed o inhibi ion o WM, bo h o which seem o
be in ol ed in homonymy esolu ion. Howe e , cau ion is ad ised: Gi en he he e ogenei y o
he spec um, e idence conce ning homonymy esolu ion would bea on he issue o li e alism
only i subjec s who a e able o disambigua e homonyms also show a s ong p e e ence o li -
e al in e p e a ions. We do no know o any s udy ha has compa ed homonymy esolu ion
and igu a i e meaning unde s anding in he same g oup o subjec s.
No e ha bo h he lack o inhibi ion and he WM explana ions wo k well only i i is he
case ha li e al meanings do ecei e a s ong ac i a ion in he p ocessing o non-li e al uses o
wo ds and sen ences. In he lack o inhibi ion explana ion, li e al meanings ecei e such a
s ong ac i a ion ha hey mus be inhibi ed; in he WM explana ion, li e al meanings a e
accessed and ill ou WM comple ely, gi en he assumed WM sho comings in ASC. Howe e ,
o all we know, ha may happen only i he subjec is al eady a li e alis , ha is, i li e al mean-
ings a e mo e s ongly ac i a ed han in he gene al popula ion. Someone wi h inhibi ion o
WM de ici s would lean owa ds li e al in e p e a ions in igu a i e con ex s only i such li e al
in e p e a ions ecei e an a ypical s ong ac i a ion.
The same kind o conside a ions apply o explana ions ha in ol e a de ici in cogni i e
lexibili y, a componen o execu i e unc ion in ol ed in ask swi ching. The e is in p inciple
no eason why a de ici in lexibili y unde s ood in his way should make non-li e al meanings
una ailable (again, unless one is al eady a li e alis ). Howe e , lexibili y may also ha e a
b oade , ague , meaning ela ed o he mo e gene al igidi y ha is obse ed in he beha iou
and cogni ion o ASC indi iduals. The p oposal abou why some ASC indi iduals ends o be li -
e alis s, which we will ou line in Sec ion 4, could be unde s ood as in ol ing lexibili y and
linked o igidi y abou social con en ions in gene al. Howe e , “ lexibili y”he e would jus be
a desc ip i e e m ha applies o cha ac e is ic pa e ns o beha iou obse ed in ASC.
2.2 |Theo y o mind
A second majo con ende is heo y o mind (ToM) capaci ies. Acco ding o he ToM accoun ,
ASC indi iduals end o be li e alis s because hey ha e di icul ies easoning abou o he s'
men al s a es, including in e ing wha he speake in ends o communica e by he use o
language (Ba on-Cohen e al., 1985; Ba on-Cohen, Baldwin & C owson, 1997; Happé, 1993). This
hypo hesis has i s oo s in p agma ic accoun s o linguis ic unde s anding which assume ha
he abili y o in e speake meanings is essen ially a o m o men alis ic easoning
(e.g., G ice, 1975/1989; Spe be & Wilson, 1986/1995). In a seminal s udy, Happé (1993) ounda
co ela ion be ween i s -o de heo y o mind and me apho unde s anding, and second-o de he-
o y o mind and i ony unde s anding in ASC indi iduals, suppo ing he ToM accoun o
VICENTE AND FALKUM 123
14680017, 2023, 1, Downloaded om h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mila.12371 by Uni e sidad Del Pais Vasco, Wiley Online Lib a y on [08/02/2023]. See he Te ms and Condi ions (h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/ e ms-and-condi ions) on Wiley Online Lib a y o ules o use; OA a icles a e go e ned by he applicable C ea i e Commons License
p agma ic di icul ies in ASC (see also Ma in & McDonald, 2004; Why e & Nelson, 2015). How-
e e , ecen esea ch has ques ioned he iew ha many o he p agma ic challenges in ASC a e
due oToMde ici s, o along imebelie ed obewidesp eadac oss hespec um(bu seeF i h,
Happé & Siddons, 1994; Ge nsbache & Ye geau, 2019, o easons o be scep ical abou his iew).
Fi s , he e a e s udies ha show ha p agma ic easoning is no uni e sally impai ed ac oss he
spec um, and ha some ASC indi iduals a e able o handle p agma ic phenomena ha a e
assumed o equi e in e ences abou he speake 's in en ions. Examples a e scala implica u es
(Che allie , Wilson, Happé & No eck, 2010;Hochs eine al.,2018), me apho (No bu y, 2005)
and e en i ony (e.g., Che allie , No eck, Happé & Wilson, 2011). O he s udies sugges ha he e
may be no o only a weak co ela ion be ween ToM measu es and non-li e al unde s anding
(e.g., No bu y, 2005). E en Happé's o iginal s udy ound ha hose ASC subjec s who passed all
ToM es s pe o med wo se han ypically de eloping adul s on ce ain ypes o s o ies in ol ing
non-li e al uses o language, so a ToM de ici is unlikely o be he whole s o y. Ye , i is s ill widely
assumed bo h ha ToM abili ies a e ec ui ed o i ony comp ehension and o he depa u es om
li e al meaning ha ou inely equi e men alis ic easoning, and ha he oo o he p oblems
ASC people expe ience wi h such depa u es is a sca ce ToM capaci y (And és-Roque a &
Ka sos, 2020). Recen ly, i has been sugges ed ha men alis ic easoning need no unde lie all
p agma ic in e encing (And és-Roque a & Ka sos, 2020; Ja y, 2013;Kissine,2016). Ja y (2013)has
a gued ha e en i we assumed ha accessing a non-li e al meaning in ol es p agma ic
in e encing (calcula ing implica u es), many implica u es do no equi e men alis ic easoning.
Fo ins ance, i you say “I'm hi s y”and you ge he esponse “The ba h oom is o e he e,”Ja y
claims ha you do no need o eason abou he speake 's in en ions in o de o de i e he
implica u e You can d ink wa e he e. The only hings you need, acco ding o Ja y, a e wo ld
knowledge and associa i e capaci y. A less ex eme posi ion is aken by And és-Roque a and
Ka sos (2020), who dis inguish be ween linguis ic and social p agma ics ( o a simila p oposal, see
B. Geu s, Kissine & an Tiel, 2019): Whe eas social p agma ics implies ep esen ing he men al
s a es o ano he pe son, linguis ic p agma ics seems o only equi e in ac linguis ic abili ies,
accompanied by enough wo ld knowledge and associa i e capaci y, as he speake 's meaning can
be accessed om an egocen ic pe spec i e. Acco ding o And és-Roque a and Ka sos (2020), lin-
guis ic p agma ics p o o ypically includes scala implica u es and indi ec eques s, while i ony is
he pa adigm case o social p agma ics.
While we do no wish o ake a s ance on his deba e ega ding he ole o ToM in p agma ic
easoning he e, we belie e ha in p inciple, igu a i e uses o language, along wi h linguis ic
p agma ics, do no equi e explici conjec u ing abou he men al s a es o he speake . Again,
one su ely has o do some men alis ic easoning (e.g., “Why does she say ha Lawye s a e
sha ks, which is ob iously alse? Wha could she be meaning?”e c.) i one al eady has a s ong
endency owa ds unde s anding hings li e ally. I one is ini ially mo e lexible abou wha
wo ds can exp ess, p ocessing a non-li e al meaning can be a much simple a ai
(e.g., Recana i, 2004; D. Wilson & Ca s on, 2007). In a much-ci ed s udy, No bu y (2005) sug-
ges s ha language abili ies, and no ToM, p edic igu a i e language abili ies. He s udy,
which compa ed child en wi h ASC (wi h o wi hou language impai men ) wi h child en wi h
de elopmen al language diso de (DLD), showed ha child en wi h language impai men , wi h
o wi hou concu en au is ic ea u es, ha e di icul ies wi h me apho unde s anding (see also
Bühle , Pe o ic & Pouscoulous, 2018). To explain his, No bu y p oposes ha in o de o unde -
s and a me apho subjec s need in ac analogical easoning (which ASC indi iduals appa en ly
ha e: Mo sanyi, S amenko i
c & Holyoak, 2019) and he wo ld knowledge equi ed o g asp he
analogy. Child en wi h language delay may lack he equi ed wo ld knowledge due o sho age
124 VICENTE AND FALKUM
14680017, 2023, 1, Downloaded om h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mila.12371 by Uni e sidad Del Pais Vasco, Wiley Online Lib a y on [08/02/2023]. See he Te ms and Condi ions (h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/ e ms-and-condi ions) on Wiley Online Lib a y o ules o use; OA a icles a e go e ned by he applicable C ea i e Commons License
in hei ocabula y o linguis ic inpu in gene al. Thus, di icul ies in me apho unde s anding,
acco ding o No bu y, would de i e om pu ely linguis ic issues. While he e a e se e al p ob-
lema ic aspec s o his s udy, which we will come back o in Sec ion 2.4., ToM abili ies do no
uni o mly p edic igu a i e meaning unde s anding in a ypical popula ions (see, e.g., Langdon,
Da ies & Col hea , 2002, on he ela ion be ween ToM and unde s anding o me apho
and i ony in schizoph enia). Howe e , as we ha e sugges ed, i migh be ha indi iduals
who al eady ha e a s ong li e alis bias a e o ced o s uggle wi h men alis ic easoning in
o de o unde s and igu a i e uses o wo ds. Bu again, an explana ion o his li e alis bias is
equi ed.
2.3 |Cen al cohe ence
The nex app oach asc ibes li e alism in ASC o a weakness in so-called global o cen al cohe ence
(CC), biasing owa ds local, de ail- ocused a he han global in o ma ion p ocessing, making he
in eg a ion o con ex ual in o ma ion di icul (Happé, 1999). Weak cen al cohe ence is obse ed
in pe cep ion, whe e ASC indi iduals a e epo ed o be less sensi i e o o e all ges al s and mo e
a en i e o de ails (Plais ed, Saksida, Alc
an a a & Weisbla , 2003). In language unde s anding, a
weakness in global cohe ence means ha he pe son will be less sensi i e o con ex ual elemen s.
Thus, he e will be a di icul y in he in eg a ion o con ex ual ac o s, and he pe son may go wo d
by wo d in in e p e ing a linguis ic u e ance. In p inciple, we hink his could be a plausible
accoun o he a es ed li e alism o ASC indi iduals. Howe e , ollowing (Happé & F i h, 2006),
he e a e wo, appa en ly di e en ways in which weak CC could a ec p ocessing o non-li e al
u e ances. Acco ding o he i s , weak CC implies ha subjec s ocus on ea u es and de ails
ins ead o ge ing he global gis . Acco ding o he second, weak CC implies ha subjec s ha e di i-
cul ies in p ocessing any hing ha depa s, e en sligh ly, om he hings hey a e amilia wi h.
He e hey quo e Kanne 's (1943, p. 246) o iginal obse a ion: “Asi ua ion,ape o mance,asen-
ence is no ega ded as comple e i i is no made up o exac ly he same elemen s ha we e p e-
sen a he ime he child was i s con on ed wi h i . I he sligh es ing edien is al e ed o
emo ed, he o al si ua ion is no longe he same and he e o e is no accep ed as such.”
Acco ding o his second idea, indi iduals wi h ASC may be li e alis s because hey a e ixa ed on
he li e al meanings ha “we e p esen a he ime he child was con on ed wi h [ he wo ds].”
3
Howe e , i weak CC is simply a de ici in ge ing he global gis , i is no ob ious ha someone
wi h such a condi ion should be unable o go beyond li e al meanings. Weak CC is in oked in
accoun ing o ASC child en's di icul ies using sen ence con ex o disambigua e homog aphs
(L
opez & Leekam, 2003) bu , as we ha e al eady men ioned, i is a om clea ha he p ocesses
o mechanisms unde lying unde s anding o non-li e al uses o language a e simila o hose
in ol ed in esol ing ambigui ies. In addi ion, as also men ioned, he e a e s udies o homonymy
esolu ion sugges ing ha ASC child en a e unimpai ed compa ed o TD child en (Hahn
e al., 2015). I may also be he case ha cen al cohe ence is in ol ed in unde s anding some ypes
o non-li e al uses bu no in o he s. Fo ins ance, idioma ic exp essions (Vulchano a, Saldaña,
Chahboun & Vulchano , 2015) may be ha de and may equi e a ges al in e p e a ion ha is no
equi ed in unde s anding, o ins ance, me onymy, me apho , hype bole o o he loose uses o
wo ds. In sum, we do no know how much o CC ha is equi ed in o de o each non-li e al
3
This implies ha hey migh be li e alis abou some “non-li e al”meanings as well, i hese we e he i s meanings
ha hey we e in oduced o.
VICENTE AND FALKUM 125
14680017, 2023, 1, Downloaded om h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mila.12371 by Uni e sidad Del Pais Vasco, Wiley Online Lib a y on [08/02/2023]. See he Te ms and Condi ions (h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/ e ms-and-condi ions) on Wiley Online Lib a y o ules o use; OA a icles a e go e ned by he applicable C ea i e Commons License
in e p e a ions. Finally, i is no clea whe he p ocessing a uni o he size o a sen ence should be
a ec ed by weak CC. Weak CC may impac he abili y o keep ack o mo e o less complex, o
simply long, na a i es, bu no necessa ily on he capaci y o unde s and a non-li e al meaning
(Ti ado & Saldaña, 2016). In his espec , he s udies by B ock, No bu y, Eina and Na ion (2008)
and Au-Yeung, Kaakinen, Li e sedge and Benson (2018) sugges ha con ex -in eg a ion in small
linguis ic uni s is unp oblema ic in au ism.
2.4 |Linguis ic–seman ic abili y
Acco ding o No bu y (2005), he eason why many people diagnosed wi h ASC end o ha e
di icul ies unde s anding me apho s is o be ound in hei poo e linguis ic abili ies compa ed
o hei ypically de eloping pee s. On his iew, di icul ies wi h me apho comp ehension a e
no exclusi e o ASC, bu common o all condi ions in which linguis ic abili ies is comp omised.
Recen ly, Bühle e al. (2018) conduc ed a s udy which hey ake o suppo No bu y's iew,
showing ha child en wi h de elopmen al language diso de also ha e p oblems unde s anding
me apho and ha hei pe o mance is no ela ed o non- e bal in elligence.
No bu y (2005) sugges s ha me apho unde s anding equi es a deg ee o seman ic knowl-
edge ha people wi h linguis ic delay o linguis ic impai men lack. Howe e , i is unclea wha
such seman ic knowledge amoun s o. I his is wo ld knowledge de i ed om sca ce linguis ic
inpu , as No bu y he sel p oposes (e.g., he wo ld knowledge equi ed o g asp an analogy o
sha ed p ope ies o di e en en i ies), he eal issue is no linguis ic, bu cogni i e-concep ual
(c . Keil, 1986). Bu i can also be a ques ion o compe ence in lexical in eg a ion ollowing com-
posi ional ules, which would be p ope ly seman ic knowledge, o ease o p ocessing, which is
mo e o a pe o mance issue. Mo eo e , as No bu y's s udy used he es o wo d knowledge
(TOWK) as a measu e o pa icipan s' linguis ic abili y/seman ic knowledge, which con ains
bo h me apho s and o he ypes o igu a i e language, he co ela ion she ound wi h me apho
unde s anding is no su p ising (Rundblad & Annaz, 2010b). In any case, a leas wi h espec
o ASC, he e idence is a om clea cu : Fo ins ance, Chahboun e al. (2017) ma ched a g oup
o ASC adul s wi h a g oup o neu o ypical adul s by linguis ic abili ies, and ound ha ASC
adul s we e slowe in a lexical decision ask in ol ing me apho s. Tha is, e en i linguis ic
impai men s may p edic di icul ies wi h non-li e al meaning unde s anding, such di icul ies
may pe sis in he absence o linguis ic impai men .
A lack o wo ld knowledge may explain why someone is unable o e ie e he sha ed p op-
e ies be ween he sou ce and he a ge in a me apho . Howe e , li e alism in he in e p e a-
ion o me onymy, ce ain ypes o implica u es o i ony has o ha e a di e en kind o
explana ion. Acco ding o some esea che s who ind No bu y's accoun compelling (And és-
Roque a & Ka sos, 2020), di icul ies wi h i ony comp ehension can be explained by ToM de i-
ci s, while di icul ies wi h scala implica u es o o he kinds o igu a i e meaning a e
ancho ed in s uc u al language p oblems (i.e., ocabula y and g amma ).
4
This kind o
app oach is unable o explain an o e all li e alis endency in subjec s who do no ha e lan-
guage impai men . Bu , beyond ha , he app oach lacks an explana ion as o how wha hey
call “s uc u al language”p oblems impac igu a i e meaning unde s anding. And e en i we
4
This kind o accoun does no add ess he issue o pa icula ised implica u es like he ones Ja y (2013) calls “ma e ial
implica u es,”which, a leas in p inciple, may no equi e men alis ic easoning. A. C. Wilson and Bishop (2021) epo
issues wi h his kind o implica u es as well.
126 VICENTE AND FALKUM
14680017, 2023, 1, Downloaded om h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mila.12371 by Uni e sidad Del Pais Vasco, Wiley Online Lib a y on [08/02/2023]. See he Te ms and Condi ions (h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/ e ms-and-condi ions) on Wiley Online Lib a y o ules o use; OA a icles a e go e ned by he applicable C ea i e Commons License
assume ha linguis ic p oblems p edic di icul ies wi h igu a i e meanings, i is s ill unclea
how linguis ic p oblems would ha e an impac on lexibili y in comp ehension in gene al.
Gi en ha we as ye lack an explana ion o he ela ion be ween hese wo ac o s, i canno be
excluded ha he ela ion holds in i ue o a hi d ac o . Fo ins ance, i could be ha people
who in gene al ha e p oblems comp ehending o he s end o ollow linguis ic con en ions
mo e s ic ly.
Finally, a capi al ques ion abou he ask design in No bu y (2005) is o wha ex en he kind
o dicho omous pa adigm she uses ells us much abou li e alism (i.e., he endency o in e p e
language li e ally). This ques ion also applies o o he s udies ha ake hei esul s o suppo
he s uc u al language hypo hesis (Bühle e al., 2018; No bu y, 2004). Rega dless o he ype
o assessmen chosen by he au ho s (which a ies om mul iple-choice asks o e bal explana-
ions), he p oblem lies in hei labelling answe s as ei he co ec o inco ec , wi hou u he
disc imina ion. This may obscu e li e alis pa e ns in he inco ec answe s. In No bu y's (2005)
s udy, li e alism is no e en es ed. The s udy only es s whe he subjec s can disc imina e
which candida e is he bes me apho , wi h asks such as: “The hea ing had been le on o e -
nigh and he oom was e y wa m. I was:
a. an o en
b. a blanke
c. a g ill
d. a spice
(No bu y, 2005, p. 399)
While his pa adigm es s whe he subjec s can comp ehend me apho s i lea es no oom o
es ing whe he subjec s in e p e me apho s li e ally o no .
E en s udies ha ha e a di e en design and include a li e alis op ion, such as Kasi e and
Mashal's (2014,2016) s udies on no el me apho s in ASC, o No bu y's (2004) s udy on idioms,
a e no ine-g ained enough o unco e a li e alis bias. As men ioned abo e, hese s udies only
conside “co ec ”and “inco ec ” esponses, wi hou u he explo a ion, such ha a li e alis
esponse will no be dis inguished om any o he “bad”choice. The e o e, hese s udies canno
e lec whe he au is ic subjec s exhibi a cha ac e is ic p agma ic s yle when aced wi h igu a-
i e meaning. Ra he , hey only indica e ha indi iduals who ha e language delay also ha e
di icul ies wi h igu a i e language. Se e al s udies show ha people wi h language delay ha e
p oblems unde s anding igu a i e language o idioma ic exp essions (e.g., Bühle e al., 2018).
Au is ic indi iduals wi h language delay ha e hose same p oblems (as do second language
lea ne s). Wha is no u he explo ed is whe he au is ic people (o people wi h DLD, o ha
ma e ) also exhibi a li e alis bias. Ha ing issues wi h igu a i e language is no equal o ha -
ing a li e alis bias. Tes ing o he o me does no mean ha he la e is es ed.
E en a “co ec ” esponse need no mean ha igu a i e language has been p ocessed in a
“ ypical”way. Figu a i e meanings may incu highe p ocessing cos . So, i is possible ha
au is ic people who gi e co ec esponses s ill exhibi a li e alis bias. Tha is, his kind o es -
ing lea es open he possibili y ha people wi h ASC, whe he showing language delay o no ,
may p ocess igu a i e language di e en ly han con ol popula ions.
O he expe imen al pa adigms, using eac ion imes, p iming, o eye-mo emen s, a e mo e
app op ia e i he goal is o es a li e alis bias. In gene al, es ing o online pe o mance seems
p e e able. Fo ins ance, Walenski and Lo e's (2017) p iming s udy on idiom comp ehension
ound ha bo h TD and DLD indi iduals con as wi h ASC subjec s in ha bo h TD and DLD
VICENTE AND FALKUM 127
14680017, 2023, 1, Downloaded om h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mila.12371 by Uni e sidad Del Pais Vasco, Wiley Online Lib a y on [08/02/2023]. See he Te ms and Condi ions (h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/ e ms-and-condi ions) on Wiley Online Lib a y o ules o use; OA a icles a e go e ned by he applicable C ea i e Commons License
accommoda e excep ions. The eason why igidi y in beha iou is made mani es in he
social domain mo e han in o he s is simply because he social wo ld is much less ule-
go e ned han o he s.
The e is li le discussion as o how igidi y ace s de elop in ime. Bishop e al. (2013) epo
inc eased ci cumsc ibed in e es s wi h g ea e age, bu S ang e al. (2017) do no ind such a
ela ion. S ang e al. also men ion ha lexibili y p oblems in gene al we e less in ense in he
olde pa icipan s in hei s udy, bu hey ecommend cau ion, since, as o oday, he e a e no
da a om longi udinal s udies. In he absence o such longi udinal s udies, i is possible o spec-
ula e ha high unc ioning (HF) ASC people may become mo e lexible abou ules wi h ime,
once hey ealise ha ule- ollowing in neu o ypicals admi s many excep ions. Wi hou being
able o commi o sugges ing any di ec ela ionship, i seems ha he same p ocess o conscious
ealisa ion may d i e imp o emen s in wo king ou non-li e al uses o language in he cou se
o HF au is ic indi iduals de elopmen (who can a ain a be e unde s anding o igu a i e lan-
guage, bu no as good as TD adul s: Chahboun e al., 2016,2017). In bo h cases, ASC indi id-
uals may emain igid and li e alis s a he deepes le el, while succeeding a mee ing he
challenges o he ypicals' wo ld.
5|CONCLUDING REMARKS
We sugges ha ASC indi iduals' ixa ion wi h li e al meanings is pa and pa cel o his gen-
e al ixa ion wi h ules in he social ealm. The a ionale behind his explana ion o li e al-
ism in ASC is: (i) wo ds ha e con en ional meanings, bu hey a e also used non-
con en ionally by speake s, such ha unde s anding wha speake s mean in ol es being able
o no ollow/be lexible abou a con en ional ule; (ii) he e is some e idence showing ha
when subjec s a e mo e li e alis , hey a e also mo e igid abou con en ions in gene al;
(iii) many ASC people a e igid conce ning social ules ( he e being a ious easons ha
could explain i ), so i is o be expec ed ha hey a e also igid conce ning ules abou wha
wo ds mean. In his sec ion, we ha e ied o suppo s ep (iii) o he a gumen by iden i y-
ing a beha iou al ai common o many ASC indi iduals ha is no o en discussed: s ic
adhe ence o ules. This kind o ule ollowing in lexibili y also seems o be p esen in TD
child en o a ce ain age, who also display less lexibili y conce ning meaning in e p e a ion
(Sec ion 2). The e is eason o belie e ha bo h kinds o beha iou s a e ela ed, as in he e -
ain o meaning in e p e a ion he e a e also con en ions as well as excep ions o such con-
en ions. So, gi en ha we hink ha mos accoun s o li e alism in ASC a e uncon incing
and ha we ind in ASC people a ai ha is plausibly ela ed o he li e alism we ind in
ypical de elopmen , ou sugges ion is ha li e alism in ASC may be ela ed o hei o e all
being s ic e abou ules. We hope ha his may open up a new di ec ion o empi ical
esea ch in o he sou ces o ASC indi iduals' di icul ies in his impo an domain o social
cogni ion and communica ion.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We would like o hank Elena Cas o iejo, Isabel Ma ín-Gonzalez, Valen ina Pe olini and wo
anonymous e iewe s o hei e y help ul commen s and sugges ions. This pape is pa o a p o-
jec ha has ecei ed unding om he Eu opean Resea ch Council (ERC) unde he Eu opean
Union's Ho izon 2020 esea ch and inno a ion p og amme (G an ag eemen No. 853211).
Funding o his esea ch was also suppo ed by Agencia Es a al de In es igaci
on, Spain g an
134 VICENTE AND FALKUM
14680017, 2023, 1, Downloaded om h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mila.12371 by Uni e sidad Del Pais Vasco, Wiley Online Lib a y on [08/02/2023]. See he Te ms and Condi ions (h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/ e ms-and-condi ions) on Wiley Online Lib a y o ules o use; OA a icles a e go e ned by he applicable C ea i e Commons License
numbe : PGC2018-093464-B-I00; by he Basque Go e nmen , g an numbe : IT1396-19; and by
he Uni e si y o he Basque Coun y (UPV/EHU), g an numbe s: GIU18/221 and US20/03.
DATA AVAILABILITY STATEMENT
Da a sha ing is no applicable o his a icle as no new da a we e c ea ed o analysed in his
s udy.
ORCID
Agus ín Vicen e h ps://o cid.o g/0000-0002-5331-5546
REFERENCES
Ame ican Psychia ic Associa ion (2013). Diagnos ic and s a is ical manual o men al diso de s (DSM-5) (5 h ed.).
Washing on, DC: Ame ican Psychia ic Associa ion Publishing.
And és-Roque a, C. & Ka sos, N. (2020). A dis inc ion be ween linguis ic- and social-p agma ics helps he p ecise
cha ac e isa ion o p agma ic challenges in child en wi h au ism spec um diso de s and de elopmen al lan-
guage diso de . Jou nal o Speech, Language and Hea ing Resea ch,63(5), 1494–1508. h ps://doi.o g/10.
1044/2020_JSLHR-19-00263
Asch, S. & Ne lo e, H. (1960). The de elopmen o double unc ion e ms in child en: An explo a o y in es iga-
ion. In B. Kaplan & S. Wapne (Eds.), Pe spec i es in psychological heo y: Essays in hono o Heinz We ne
(pp. 47–60). New Yo k, NY: In e na ional Uni e si ies P ess.
Au-Yeung, S. K., Kaakinen, J. K., Li e sedge, S. P. & Benson, V. (2018). Would adul s wi h au ism be less likely
o bu y he su i o s? An eye mo emen s udy o anomalous ex eading. Qua e ly Jou nal o Expe imen al
Psychology,71(1), 280–290. h ps://doi.o g/10.1080/17470218.2017.1322621
Ba on-Cohen, S., Baldwin, D. A. & C owson, M. (1997). Do child en wi h au ism use he speake 's di ec ion o
gaze s a egy o c ack he code o language? Child De elopmen ,68(1), 48–57. h ps://doi.o g/10.2307/
1131924
Ba on-Cohen, S., Leslie, A. M. & F i h, U. (1985). Does he au is ic child ha e a “ heo y o mind”?Cogni ion,
21(1), 37–46. h ps://doi.o g/10.1016/0010-0277(85)90022-8
Belmon e, M. (2020). How indi iduals and ins i u ions can lea n o make oom o human cogni i e di e si y: A
pe sonal pe spec i e om my li e in neu oscience. In H. B. Rosq is , N. Chown & A. S enning (Eds.),
Neu odi e si y s udies: A new c i ical pa adigm (pp. 183–202). London: Rou ledge.
Be ko, J. (1958). The child's lea ning o English mo phology. Wo d,14, 150–177. h ps://doi.o g/10.1080/
00437956.1958.11659661
Billow, R. M. (1975). A cogni i e de elopmen al s udy o me apho comp ehension. De elopmen al Psychology,
11(4), 415–423. h ps://doi.o g/10.1037/h0076668
Billow, R. M. (1981). Obse ing spon aneous me apho in child en. Jou nal o Expe imen al Child Psychology,31,
430–455. h ps://doi.o g/10.1016/0022-0965(81)90028-X
Bishop, S. L., Hus, V., Duncan, A., Hue a, M., Go ham, K., Pickles, A. & Lo d, C. (2013). Subca ego ies o
es ic ed and epe i i e beha io s in child en wi h au ism spec um diso de s. Jou nal o Au ism and
De elopmen al Diso de s,43(6), 1287–1297. h ps://doi.o g/10.1007/s10803-012-1671-0
Bloom, P. (2000). How child en lea n he meanings o wo ds. Camb idge, MA: The MIT P ess.
Bouche , J., Mayes, A. & Bigham, S. (2012). Memo y in au is ic spec um diso de . Psychological Bulle in,38(3),
458–496. h ps://doi.o g/10.1037/a0026869
B ock, J., No bu y, C., Eina , S. & Na ion, K. (2008). Do indi iduals wi h au ism p ocess wo ds in con ex ?
E idence om language-media ed eye-mo emen s. Cogni ion,108, 896–904. h ps://doi.o g/10.1016/j.
cogni ion.2008.06.007
Bühle , D., Pe o ic, A. & Pouscoulous, N. (2018). Comp ehension o no el me apho in young child en wi h
de elopmen al language diso de . Au ism & De elopmen al Language Impai men s,3,1–11. h ps://doi.o g/
10.1177/2396941518817229
Ca s on, R. (2002). Though s and u e ances: The p agma ics o explici communica ion. Ox o d: Blackwell
Publishe s.
VICENTE AND FALKUM 135
14680017, 2023, 1, Downloaded om h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mila.12371 by Uni e sidad Del Pais Vasco, Wiley Online Lib a y on [08/02/2023]. See he Te ms and Condi ions (h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/ e ms-and-condi ions) on Wiley Online Lib a y o ules o use; OA a icles a e go e ned by he applicable C ea i e Commons License
Ca s on, R. (2021). Polysemy: P agma ics and sense con en ions. Mind & Language,36(1), 108–133.
Chahboun, S., Vulchano , V., Saldaña, D., Eshuis, H. & Vulchano a, M. (2016). Can you play wi h i e and no
hu you sel ? A compa a i e s udy in igu a i e language comp ehension be ween indi iduals wi h and
wi hou au ism spec um diso de . PLoS One,11(12), e0168571. h ps://doi.o g/10.1371/jou nal.pone.
0168571
Chahboun, S., Vulchano , V., Saldaña, D., Eshuis, R. & Vulchano a, M. D. (2017). Can you ell i by he p ime:
A s udy o me apho ical p iming in high- unc ioning au ism in compa ison wi h ma ched con ols.
In e na ional Jou nal o Language and Communica ion Diso de s,52(6), 766–785. h ps://doi.o g/10.1111/
1460-6984.12314
Che allie , C., No eck, I., Happé, F. G. E. & Wilson, D. (2011). Wha 's in a oice? P osody as a es case o he
heo y o mind accoun o au ism. Neu opsychologia,49(3), 507–517. h ps://doi.o g/10.1016/j.
neu opsychologia.2010.11.042
Che allie , C., Wilson, D., Happé, F. & No eck, I. (2010). Scala in e ences in au ism spec um diso de s. Jou nal
o Au ism and De elopmen al Diso de s,40(1), 1104–1117. h ps://doi.o g/10.1007/s10803-010-0960-8
Cla k, E. V. (1993). The lexicon in acquisi ion. Camb idge: Camb idge Uni e si y P ess.
Cla k, E. V. (2007). Con en ionali y and con as in language and language acquisi ion. New Di ec ions o Child
and Adolescen De elopmen ,115,11–23. h ps://doi.o g/10.1002/cad.179
Con oy, A., Lidz, J. & Musolino, J. (2009). The lee ing isomo phism e ec . Language Acquisi ion,16(2), 106–117.
h ps://doi.o g/10.1080/10489220902769242
Csib a, G. & Ge gely, G. (2009). Na u al pedagogy. T ends in Cogni i e Sciences,13(4), 148–153. h ps://doi.o g/
10.1016/j. ics.2009.01.005
Deame , F. (2013). An in es iga ion in o he p ocesses and mechanisms unde lying he comp ehension o me apho
and hype bole (Doc o al hesis). London: Uni e si y College London.
Del Pinal, G. (2015). Dual con en seman ics, p i a i e adjec i es, and dynamic composi ionali y. Seman ics and
P agma ics,8(7), 1–53. h ps://doi.o g/10.3765/sp.8.7
Deme iou, E. A., Lampi , A., Quin ana, D. S., Naismi h, S. L., Song, Y. J. C., Pye, J. E., …Guas ella, A. J. (2018).
Au ism spec um diso de s: A me a-analysis o execu i e unc ion. Molecula Psychia y,23(5), 1198–1204.
h ps://doi.o g/10.1038/mp.2017.75
Di Paola, S., Domaneschi, F. & Pouscoulous, N. (2020). Me apho ical de eloping minds: The ole o mul iple ac-
o s in he de elopmen o me apho comp ehension. Jou nal o P agma ics,156, 235–251. h ps://doi.o g/
10.1016/j.p agma.2019.08.008
Diamond, A. (2013). Execu i e unc ions. Annual Re iew o Psychology,64, 135–168. h ps://doi.o g/10.1146/
annu e -psych-113011-143750
Diesend uck, G. & Ma kson, L. (2001). Child en's a oidance o lexical o e lap: A p agma ic accoun .
De elopmen al Psychology,37(5), 630–641. h ps://doi.o g/10.1075/lald.44.06 e
Falkum, I. L. (2019). P agma ic de elopmen : Lea ning o use language o communica e. In J. S. Ho s & J. Von
Koss To kildsen (Eds.), In e na ional handbook o language acquisi ion. London: Rou ledge.
Falkum, I. L. & Köde , F. (2020). The acquisi ion o igu a i e meanings. Jou nal o P agma ics,164,18–24.
h ps://doi.o g/10.1016/j.p agma.2020.04.007
Falkum, I. L., Recasens, M. & Cla k, E. V. (2017). “The mous ache si s down i s ”: On he acquisi ion o me on-
ymy. Jou nal o Child Language,44(1), 87–119. h ps://doi.o g/10.1017/S0305000915000720
F iedman, L. & S e ling, A. A. (2019). A e iew o language, execu i e unc ion, and in e en ion in au ism spec-
um diso de . Semina s in Speech and Language,40(4), 291–304. h ps://doi.o g/10.1055/s-0039-1692964
F isson, S. (2009). Seman ic unde speci ica ion in language p ocessing. Language and Linguis ics Compass,3(1),
111–127. h ps://doi.o g/10.1111/j.1749-818x.2008.00104.x
F i h, U., Happé, F. & Siddons, F. (1994). Au ism and heo y o mind in e e yday li e. Social De elopmen ,3,
108–124. h ps://doi.o g/10.1111/j.1467-9507.1994. b00031.x
Ga dne , H., Ki che , M., Winne , E. & Pe kins, D. (1975). Child en's me apho ic p oduc ions and p e e ences.
Jou nal o Child Language,2(1), 125–141. h ps://doi.o g/10.1017/S0305000900000921
Ge man, T. P., T uxaw, D. & De ey e , M. A. (2007). The ole o in o ma ion abou “con en ion”,“design”, and
“goal”, in ep esen ing a i icial kinds. New Di ec ions o Child and Adolescen De elopmen ,115,69–81.
h ps://doi.o g/10.1002/cd.183
136 VICENTE AND FALKUM
14680017, 2023, 1, Downloaded om h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mila.12371 by Uni e sidad Del Pais Vasco, Wiley Online Lib a y on [08/02/2023]. See he Te ms and Condi ions (h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/ e ms-and-condi ions) on Wiley Online Lib a y o ules o use; OA a icles a e go e ned by he applicable C ea i e Commons License
Ge nsbache , M. A. & Ye geau, M. (2019). Empi ical ailu es o he claim ha au is ic people lack a heo y o
mind. A chi es o Scien i ic Psychology,7(1), 102–118. h ps://doi.o g/10.1037/a c0000067
Geu s, B., Kissine, M. & an Tiel, B. (2019). P agma ic easoning in au ism. In K. Mo sanyi & R. By ne (Eds.),
Thinking, easoning and decision making in au ism (pp. 113–134). London: Psychology P ess.
Geu s, H. M., an den Be gh, S. F. W. M. & Ruzzano, L. (2014). P epo en esponse inhibi ion and in e e ence
con ol in au ism spec um diso de s: Two me a-analyses. Au ism Resea ch,7(4), 407–420. h ps://doi.o g/10.
1002/au .1369
Gibbs, R. W. (1994). The poe ics o mind. Camb idge: Camb idge Uni e si y P ess.
Gibbs, R. W. (2002). A new look a li e al meaning in unde s anding wha is said and implica ed. Jou nal o
P agma ics,34(4), 457–486. h ps://doi.o g/10.1016/S0378-2166(01)00046-7
Glenw igh , M. & Agbayewa, A. S. (2012). Olde child en and adolescen s wi h high- unc ioning au ism spec-
um diso de s can comp ehend e bal i ony in compu e -media ed communica ion. Resea ch in Au ism
Spec um Diso de s,6(2), 628–638. h ps://doi.o g/10.1016/j. asd.2011.09.013
Glucksbe g, S. (2008). How me apho s c ea e ca ego ies—Quickly. In R. W. Gibbs (Ed.), The Camb idge
handbook o me apho and hough (pp. 67–83). Camb idge: Camb idge Uni e si y P ess.
Göcke i z, S., Schmid , M. F. H. & Tomasello, M. (2014). Young child en's c ea ion and ansmission o social
no ms. Cogni i e De elopmen ,30,81–95. h ps://doi.o g/10.1016/j.cogde .2014.01.003
G ice, H. P. (1975/1989). Logic and con e sa ion. In S udies in he way o wo ds (pp. 22–40). Camb idge, MA:
Ha a d Uni e si y P ess.
Habib, A., Ha is, L., Pollick, F. & Mel ille, C. (2019). A me a-analysis o wo king memo y in indi iduals wi h
au ism spec um diso de s. PLoS One,14(4), e0216198. h ps://doi.o g/10.1371/jou nal.pone.0216198
Hahn, N., Snedeke , J. & Rabaglia i, H. (2015). Rapid linguis ic ambigui y esolu ion in young child en wi h
au ism spec um diso de : Eye acking e idence o he limi s o weak cen al cohe ence. Au ism Resea ch,
8, 717–726. h ps://doi.o g/10.1002/au .1487
Happé, F. G. E. (1993). Communica i e compe ence and heo y o mind in au ism: A es o ele ance heo y.
Cogni ion,48, 101–119. h ps://doi.o g/10.1016/0010-0277(93)90026-R
Happé, F. G. E. (1999). Au ism: Cogni i e de ici o cogni i e s yle? T ends in Cogni i e Sciences,3(6), 216–222.
h ps://doi.o g/10.1016/S1364-6613(99)01318-2
Happé, F. G. E. & F i h, U. (2006). The weak cohe ence accoun : De ail- ocused cogni i e s yle in au ism spec-
um diso de s. Jou nal o Au ism and De elopmen al Diso de s,36(1), 5–25. h ps://doi.o g/10.1007/s10803-
005-0039-0
Hill, E. L. (2004). Execu i e dys unc ion in au ism. T ends in Cogni i e Sciences,8,26–32. h ps://doi.o g/10.
1016/j. ics.2003.11.003
Hochs ein, L., Bale, A. & Ba ne , D. (2018). Scala implica u e in absence o epis emic easoning? The case o
au ism spec um diso de . Language Lea ning and De elopmen ,14(3), 224–240. h ps://doi.o g/10.1080/
15475441.2017.1343670
Hogeweg, L. (2012). Rich lexical ep esen a ions and con lic ing ea u es. In e na ional Re iew o P agma ics,4,
209–231. h ps://doi.o g/10.1163/18773109-00040205
Hull, L., Pe ides, K. V., Allison, C., Smi h, P., Ba on-Cohen, S., Lai, M.-C. & Mandy, W. (2017). “Pu ing on my
bes no mal”: Social camou laging in adul s wi h au ism spec um condi ions. Jou nal o Au ism De elop-
men al Diso de s,47, 2519–2534. h ps://doi.o g/10.1007/s10803-017-3166-5
Ja y, M. (2013). Two ypes o implica u e: Ma e ial and beha iou al. Mind & Language,28(5), 638–660. h ps://
doi.o g/10.1111/mila.12037
Jaswal, V. K. & Akh a , N. (2019). Being e sus appea ing socially unin e es ed: Challenging assump ions
abou social mo i a ion in au ism. Beha iou al and B ain Sciences,42, e82. h ps://doi.o g/10.1017/
S0140525X18001826
Johns on, K., Mu ay, K., Spain, D., Walke , I. & Russell, A. (2019). Execu i e unc ion: Cogni ion and beha iou
in adul s wi h au ism spec um diso de s (ASD). Jou nal o Au ism De elopmen al Diso de s,49(10),
4181–4192. h ps://doi.o g/10.1007/s10803-019-04133-7
Kalish, C. W. (2007). P agma ic and p esc ip i e aspec s o child en's ca ego iza ion. New Di ec ions o Child
and Adolescen De elopmen ,115,39–52. h ps://doi.o g/10.1002/cd.181
Kanne , L. (1943). Au is ic dis u bances o a ec i e con ac . Ne ous Child,2, 217–250.
VICENTE AND FALKUM 137
14680017, 2023, 1, Downloaded om h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mila.12371 by Uni e sidad Del Pais Vasco, Wiley Online Lib a y on [08/02/2023]. See he Te ms and Condi ions (h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/ e ms-and-condi ions) on Wiley Online Lib a y o ules o use; OA a icles a e go e ned by he applicable C ea i e Commons License
Ka milo -Smi h, A. (1992). Beyond modula i y: A de elopmen al pe spec i e on cogni i e science. Camb idge, MA:
The MIT P ess.
Kasi e , A. & Mashal, N. (2014). Ve bal c ea i i y in au ism: Comp ehension and gene a ion o me apho ic
language in high- unc ioning au ism spec um diso de and ypical de elopmen . F on ie s in Human
Neu oscience,8, 615. h ps://doi.o g/10.3389/ nhum.2014.00615
Kasi e , A. & Mashal, N. (2016). Comp ehension and gene a ion o me apho s by child en wi h au ism spec um
diso de . Resea ch in Au ism Spec um Diso de s,32,53–63.
Keil, F. C. (1986). Concep ual domains and he acquisi ion o me apho . Cogni i e De elopmen ,1,73–96. h ps://
doi.o g/10.1016/S0885-2014(86)80024-7
Ke cooda, S., G sko icb, J. A., Bandac, D. & Begesked, J. (2014). Wo king memo y and au ism: A e iew o li e -
a u e. Resea ch in Au ism Spec um Diso de s,8(10), 1316–1332. h ps://doi.o g/10.1016/j. asd.2014.06.011
Kissine, M. (2016). P agma ics as me acogni i e con ol. F on ie s in Psychology,6, 2057. h ps://doi.o g/10.3389/
psyg.2015.02057
Köde , F. & Falkum, I. L. (2020). Child en's me onymy comp ehension: E idence om eye- acking and pic u e
selec ion. Jou nal o P agma ics,156, 191–205. h ps://doi.o g/10.1016/j.p agma.2019.07.007
Land y, O. & Al-Taie, S. (2016). A me a-analysis o he Wisconsin ca d so ask in au ism. Jou nal o Au ism
De elopmen al Diso de s,46, 1220–1235. h ps://doi.o g/10.1007/s10803-015-2659-3
Langdon, R., Da ies, M. & Col hea , M. (2002). Unde s anding minds and unde s anding communica ed mean-
ings in schizoph enia. Mind & Language,17(1–2), 68–104. h ps://doi.o g/10.1111/1468-0017.00189
Le o a o, M. C. & Caccia i, C. (2002). The c ea ion o new igu a i e exp essions: Psycholinguis ic e idence in
I alian child en, adolescen s and adul s. Jou nal o Child Language,29, 127–150. h ps://doi.o g/10.1017/
S0305000901004950
Lewis, D. K. (1969). Con en ion: A philosophical s udy. Camb idge, MA: Ha a d Uni e si y P ess.
Li ings on, L. A. & Happé, F. (2017). Concep ualising compensa ion in neu ode elopmen al diso de s: Re lec-
ions om au ism spec um diso de . Neu oscience & Biobeha io al Re iews,80, 729–742. h ps://doi.o g/10.
1016/j.neubio e .2017.06.005
L
opez, B. & Leekam, S. R. (2003). Do child en wi h au ism ail o p ocess in o ma ion in con ex ? Jou nal o
Child Psychology and Psychia y,44(2), 285–300. h ps://doi.o g/10.1111/1469-7610.00121
Ma in, I. & McDonald, S. (2004). An explo a ion o causes o non-li e al p oblems in indi iduals wi h Aspe ge
synd ome. Jou nal o Au ism and De elopmen al Diso de s,34, 311–328. h ps://doi.o g/10.1023/B:JADD.
0000029553.52889.15
Ma hews, D., Lie en, E., Theaks on, A. & Tomasello, M. (2006). The e ec o pe cep ual a ailabili y and p io
discou se on young child en's use o e e ing exp essions. Applied PsychoLinguis ics,27, 403–422. h ps://
doi.o g/10.1017/S0142716406060334
Mo sanyi, K., S amenko i
c, D. & Holyoak, K. J. (2019). Analogical easoning in au ism. In K. Mo sanyi & R.
By ne (Eds.), Thinking, easoning, and decision making in au ism (pp. 59–74). London: Rou ledge.
Nason, W. (2014). Au ism discussion page on he co e challenges o au ism: A oolbox o helping child en wi h
au ism eel sa e, accep ed, and compe en . London: Jessica Kingsley Publishe s.
Ne lich, B., Cla ke, D. D. & Todd, Z. (1999). “Mummy, I like being a sandwich”: Me onymy in language acquisi-
ion. In K. Pan he & G. Radden (Eds.), Me onymy in language and hough (pp. 361–383). Ams e dam: John
Benjamins.
No bu y, C. F. (2004). Fac o s suppo ing idiom comp ehension in child en wi h communica ion diso de s.
Jou nal o Speech, Language and Hea ing Resea ch,47(5), 1179–1193. h ps://doi.o g/10.1044/1092-4388
(2004/087)
No bu y, C. F. (2005). The ela ionship be ween heo y o mind and me apho : E idence om child en wi h
language impai men and au is ic spec um diso de . B i ish Jou nal o De elopmen al Psychology,23,
383–399. h ps://doi.o g/10.1348/026151005X26732
No bu y, C. F. (2014). A ypical p agma ic de elopmen . In D. Ma hews (Ed.), P agma ic de elopmen in i s
language acquisi ion (pp. 343–362). Ams e dam: John Benjamins.
Olo son, E. L., Casey, D., Oluyedun, O. A., Van He wegen, J., Bece a, A. & Rundblad, G. (2014). You h wi h
au ism spec um diso de comp ehend lexicalized and no el p ima y concep ual me apho s. Jou nal o
Au ism and De elopmen al Diso de s,44(10), 2568–2583. h ps://doi.o g/10.1007/s10803-014-2129-3
138 VICENTE AND FALKUM
14680017, 2023, 1, Downloaded om h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mila.12371 by Uni e sidad Del Pais Vasco, Wiley Online Lib a y on [08/02/2023]. See he Te ms and Condi ions (h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/ e ms-and-condi ions) on Wiley Online Lib a y o ules o use; OA a icles a e go e ned by he applicable C ea i e Commons License
Özçalıs¸kan, S¸. (2005). On lea ning how o d aw he dis inc ion be ween physical and me apho ical mo ion: Is
me apho an ea ly eme ging cogni i e and linguis ic capaci y? Jou nal o Child Language,32, 291–318.
h ps://doi.o g/10.1017/S0305000905006884
Ozono , S. & Jensen, J. (1999). B ie epo : Speci ic execu i e unc ion p o iles in h ee neu ode elopmen al
diso de s. Jou nal o Au ism and De elopmen al Diso de s,29,171–177. h ps://doi.o g/10.1023/A:1023052913110
Pe olini, V., Jo ba, M. & Vicen e, A. (n.d.). Wha does i ake o be igid? Re lec ions on he no ions o igidi y
in ASC.
Plais ed, K., Saksida, L., Alc
an a a, J. & Weisbla , E. (2003). Towa ds an unde s anding o he mechanisms o
weak cen al cohe ence e ec s: Expe imen s in isual con igu al lea ning and audi o y pe cep ion.
Philosophical ansac ions o he Royal Socie y o London. Se ies B, Biological Sciences,358(1430), 375–386.
h ps://doi.o g/10.1098/ s b.2002.1211
Pouscoulous, N. (2011). Me apho : Fo adul s only? Belgian Jou nal o Linguis ics,25,51–79. h ps://doi.o g/10.
1075/bjl.25.04pou
Rakoczy, H. (2007). Play, games, and he de elopmen o collec i e in en ionali y. New Di ec ions o Child and
Adolescen De elopmen ,115,53–67. h ps://doi.o g/10.1002/cd.182
Recana i, F. (2004). Li e al meaning. Camb idge: Camb ige Uni e si y P ess.
Rubio-Fe n
andez, P. (2007). Supp ession in me apho in e p e a ion: Di e ences be ween meaning selec ion and
meaning cons uc ion. Jou nal o Seman ics,24(4), 345–371. h ps://doi.o g/10.1093/jos/ m006
Rundblad, G. & Annaz, D. (2010a). De elopmen o me apho and me onymy comp ehension: Recep i e ocabu-
la y and concep ual knowledge. B i ish Jou nal o De elopmen al Psychology,28, 547–563. h ps://doi.o g/10.
1348/026151009X454373
Rundblad, G. & Annaz, D. (2010b). The a ypical de elopmen o me apho and me onymy comp ehension in
child en wi h au ism. Au ism,14(1), 29–46. h ps://doi.o g/10.1177/1362361309340667
Russell, J., Ja old, C. & Hood, B. (1999). Two in ac execu i e capaci ies in child en wi h au ism: Implica ions
o he co e execu i e dys unc ions in he diso de . Jou nal o Au ism and De elopmen al Diso de s,29,
103–112. h ps://doi.o g/10.1023/A:1023084425406
Sabbagh, M. A. & Baldwin, D. A. (2001). Lea ning wo ds om knowledgeable e sus igno an speake s: Links
be ween p eschoole s heo y o mind and seman ic de elopmen . Child De elopmen ,72, 1054–1070. h ps://
doi.o g/10.1111/1467-8624.00334
Sabbagh, M. A. & Hende son, A. M. E. (2007). How an app ecia ion o con en ionali y shapes ea ly wo d lea n-
ing. New Di ec ions o Child and Adolescen De elopmen ,115,25–37. h ps://doi.o g/10.1002/cad.180
Schmid , M. F. H., Bu le , L. P., Hein z, J. & Tomasello, M. (2016). Young child en see a single ac ion and in e a
social no m: P omiscuous no ma i i y in 3-yea -olds. Psychological Science,27(10), 1360–1370. h ps://doi.
o g/10.1177/0956797616661182
Shulman, C., Gube man, A., Shiling, N. & Bauminge , N. (2012). Mo al and social easoning in au ism spec um
diso de s. Jou nal o Au ism and De elopmen al Diso de s,42, 1364–1376. h ps://doi.o g/10.1007/s10803-
011-1369-8
Sou h, M. & Rodge s, J. (2017). Senso y, emo ional and cogni i e con ibu ions o anxie y in au ism spec um
diso de s. F on ie s in Human Neu oscience,11, 20. h ps://doi.o g/10.3389/ nhum.2017.00020
Spain, D., Sinc, J., Linde a, K. B., McMahond, J. & Happé, F. G. E. (2018). Social anxie y in au ism spec um dis-
o de : A sys ema ic e iew. Resea ch in Au ism Spec um Diso de s,52,51–68. h ps://doi.o g/10.1016/j. asd.
2018.04.007
Spe be , D. & Wilson, D. (1986/1995). Rele ance: Communica ion and cogni ion. Ox o d: Blackwell.
S ephens, G. & Ma hews, D. (2014). The communica i e in an om 0–18 mon hs. The social-cogni i e ounda-
ions o p agma ic de elopmen . In P agma ic de elopmen in i s language acquisi ion (pp. 13–35).
Ams e dam: John Benjamins.
S ang, J. F., An hony, L. G., Ye ys, B. E., Ha dy, K. K., Wallace, G. L., A mou , A. C., …Kenwo hy, L. (2017).
The lexibili y scale: De elopmen and p elimina y alida ion o a cogni i e lexibili y measu e in child en
wi h au ism spec um diso de s. Jou nal o Au ism and De elopmen al Diso de s,47(8), 2502–2518. h ps://
doi.o g/10.1007/s10803-017-3152-y
S oop, J. R. (1935). S udies o in e e ence in se ial e bal eac ions. Jou nal o Expe imen al Psychology,18(6),
643–662. h ps://doi.o g/10.1037/h0054651
VICENTE AND FALKUM 139
14680017, 2023, 1, Downloaded om h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mila.12371 by Uni e sidad Del Pais Vasco, Wiley Online Lib a y on [08/02/2023]. See he Te ms and Condi ions (h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/ e ms-and-condi ions) on Wiley Online Lib a y o ules o use; OA a icles a e go e ned by he applicable C ea i e Commons License
Swinney, D. A. (1979). Lexical access du ing sen ence comp ehension: (Re)conside a ion o con ex e ec s.
Jou nal o Ve bal Lea ning and Ve bal Beha io ,18(6), 645–659. h ps://doi.o g/10.1016/S0022-5371(79)
90355-4
Tage -Flusbe g, H., Paul, R. & Lo d, C. (2005). Language and communica ion in au ism. In D. J. Cohen & F. R.
Volkman (Eds.), Handbook o au ism and pe asi e de elopmen al diso de s (3 d ed., pp. 335–364). New
Yo k, NY: John Wiley and Sons.
Ti ado, M. J. & Saldaña, D. (2016). Reade s wi h au ism can p oduce in e ences, bu hey canno answe in e en-
ial ques ions. Jou nal o Au ism and De elopmen al Diso de s,46, 1025–1037. h ps://doi.o g/10.1007/
s10803-015-2648-6
Van Tiel, R. & Kissine, M. (2018). Quan i y-based easoning in he b oade au ism pheno ype: A web-based
s udy. Applied Psycholinguis ics,39, 1373–1403. h ps://doi.o g/10.1017/S014271641800036X
Vulchano a, M., Saldaña, D., Chahboun, S. & Vulchano , V. (2015). Figu a i e language p ocessing in a ypical
popula ions: The ASD pe spec i e. F on ie s in Human Neu oscience,9, 24. h ps://doi.o g/10.3389/ nhum.
2015.00024
Vulchano a, M., Talco , J. B., Vulchano , V. & S anko a, M. (2012). Language agains he odds, o a he no :
The weak cen al cohe ence hypo hesis and language. Jou nal o Neu olinguis ics,25(1), 13–30. h ps://doi.
o g/10.1016/j.jneu oling.2011.07.004
Walenski, M. & Lo e, T. (2017). The eal- ime comp ehension o idioms by ypical child en, child en wi h spe-
ci ic language impai men and child en wi h au ism. Jou nal o Speech Pa hology & The apy,3(1), 130.
h ps://doi.o g/10.4172/2472-5005.1000130
Why e, E. M. & Nelson, K. E. (2015). T ajec o ies o p agma ic and nonli e al language de elopmen in child en
wi h au ism spec um diso de s. Jou nal o Au ism and De elopmen al Diso de s,54(2), 2–14. h ps://doi.o g/
10.1016/j.jcomdis.2015.01.001
Willcu , E., Sonuga-Ba ke, E., Nigg, J. & Se gean , J. (2008). Recen de elopmen s in neu opsychological models
o childhood psychia ic diso de s. In T. Banaschewski & L. A. Rohde (Eds.), Biological child psychia y:
Recen ends and de elopmen s. Ad ances in biological psychia y (Vol. 24, pp. 195–226). Basel: Ka ge .
Wilson, A. C. & Bishop, D. V. M. (2019). “I you ca ch my d i …”: Abili y o in e implied meaning is dis inc
om ocabula y and g amma skills. Wellcome Open Resea ch,4, 68. h ps://doi.o g/10.12688/
wellcomeopen es.15210.3
Wilson, A. C. & Bishop, D. V. M. (2020). Regis e ed epo : In es iga ing a p e e ence o ce ain y in con e sa-
ion among au is ic adul s compa ed o dyslexic adul s and he gene al popula ion. Pee J,8, e10398. h ps://
doi.o g/10.7717/pee j.10398
Wilson, A. C. & Bishop, D. V. M. (2021). “Second guessing you sel all he ime abou wha hey eally mean …”:
Cogni i e di e ences be ween au is ic and non-au is ic adul s in unde s anding implied meaning. Au ism
Resea ch,14(1), 93–101. h ps://doi.o g/10.1002/au .2345
Wilson, D. & Ca s on, R. (2007). A uni a y app oach o lexical p agma ics: Rele ance, in e ence and ad hoc con-
cep s. In N. Bu on-Robe s (Ed.), P agma ics (pp. 230–259). London: Palg a e.
Winne , E. (1988/1997). The poin o wo ds: Child en's unde s anding o me apho and i ony. Camb idge, MA:
Ha a d Uni e si y P ess.
Winne , E., Rosens iel, A. K. & Ga dne , H. (1976). The de elopmen o me apho ic unde s anding. De elopmen al
Psychology,12(4), 289–297. h ps://doi.o g/10.1037/0012-1649.12.4.289
How o ci e his a icle: Vicen e, A., & Falkum, I. L. (2023). Accoun ing o he
p e e ence o li e al meanings in au ism spec um condi ions. Mind & Language,38(1),
119–140. h ps://doi.o g/10.1111/mila.12371
140 VICENTE AND FALKUM
14680017, 2023, 1, Downloaded om h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/mila.12371 by Uni e sidad Del Pais Vasco, Wiley Online Lib a y on [08/02/2023]. See he Te ms and Condi ions (h ps://onlinelib a y.wiley.com/ e ms-and-condi ions) on Wiley Online Lib a y o ules o use; OA a icles a e go e ned by he applicable C ea i e Commons License
