An interactive assessment allows clinicians and researchers to evaluate an autistic child’s use of language in everyday social situations.

A new test can measure the language skills of autistic children of any verbal ability, at almost any age.

Autistic children’s traits track with subtle, autism-like behaviors in their mothers; women with these traits may also carry a genetic predisposition to the condition.

The more children with autism tune in to and communicate with others as toddlers, the stronger their conversation skills are later in childhood.

Hearing difficulties and autism often overlap, exacerbating autism traits and complicating diagnoses.

Grouping autistic people based on their social abilities may reveal subtypes of the condition.

Parents say the so-called ‘rapid prompting method’ unlocks hidden talents in their minimally verbal autistic children, but researchers question whether the words produced are the child’s own.

Doctors often conflate autism and intellectual disability, and no wonder: The biological distinction between them is murky. Scientific progress depends on knowing where the conditions intersect — and part ways.

Researchers use a variety of measures and definitions to characterize autistic children who speak few or no words.

A delay in autistic children’s brain responses to sound may continue into adulthood.