Research Center: Boston University
Location: 635 Commonwealth Ave., Boston, MA 02215, United States
Lead Researcher: Dr. Jennifer Zuk
IRB: This study has been reviewed and approved by the Boston University CRC Institutional Review Board

Communication is a vital part of daily life, and our understanding of how children navigate speech prosody—like pitch, timing, and rhythm—can significantly impact how we learn about their communication skills or development.

In this study, researchers are delving deep into the speech and language abilities of children, both with and without autism. Your child’s participation in this study could contribute significantly to understanding how best to help these children in their communication development.

See if your child qualifies for this study!

• We offer free parking and transportation assistance, including public transportation expenses, for transportation required for participation in our study.
• Parents may gain a better understanding of their child’s communication skills.
• Participants will receive a $50 gift card for each visit completed and an individualized summary of participation to guide their parents’ understanding of their child’s language development.
• Participants will be contributing valuable information that may benefit children in the future.

• If you decide to participate in the study and later feel that you no longer wish to be part of it, you can withdraw at any time.
• Any information that you provide will be kept strictly confidential, except as required by law.

• Children who are or will soon be 8-10 with a diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)
• Must have been exposed to English since birth
• Must not have any uncorrected visual impairments
• Can verbally communicate simple phrases and sentences without the use of an assistive device
• Must not have a history of neurological (brain and nervous system) injury/trauma, birth-related complications, or genetic disorders that could present as ASD (e.g., Fragile X syndrome)
• Must not have claustrophobia or any metallic or electronic implants that could affect MRI tests
• Must be able to attend 3 study visits (~2.5 hours each) at the research site over approximately 2-3 months

The study team will explain the research in its entirety but some details are:

• Participants will be asked to complete listening, looking, and speaking activities.
• Parents will be asked to complete questionnaires.
• Participants will also complete a neuroimaging session. Your child will complete a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) session to measure your child’s brain structure and function. Before completing the MRI, your child will complete a child-friendly training session to learn about MRI and to practice laying still to complete activities.
  • All participants taking part in this study will complete a behavioral testing session. Your child will complete paper-and-pencil and computer-based activities that involve seeing, listening, and responding to sounds, words, and sentences. Parents will be asked to complete background questionnaires.

Boston University
Boston University (BU) is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university now has more than 4,000 faculty members and nearly 34,000 students and is one of Boston’s largest employers. It offers bachelor’s degrees, master’s degrees, doctorates, and medical, dental, business, and law degrees through 17 schools and colleges on three urban campuses.

Please note:
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the researchers would like to assure the participants that ensuring their and the study staff’s safety is of utmost importance.