# Research Component: Multimodal Approach to Word Learning in Children with Autism

> **NIH NIH U54** · UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS LAWRENCE · 2020 · $206,927

## Abstract

Our project highlights one of the primary areas of research within the Kansas Intellectual and Developmental
Research Center— language and communication. Specifically, we focus on language and communication in
children with autism and minimal verbal skills (less than 20 spoken words). Remaining nonverbal past the age
of 5 years has been considered a poor prognostic indicator for future language developments (Picket et al.,
2009), yet few interventions have been developed to address this problem. The Specific Aims for this project
are (1) to further investigate a multimodal intervention for school-age children with minimal verbal skills—
defined as less than 20 words spontaneously spoken, signed, or selected via graphic symbol selection—and
(2) to identify significant covariates associated with differential responding to the intervention. The research
addresses an unmet need to promote spoken word production in children who remain essentially nonverbal
well past the ages associated with speech acquisition. The project is also innovative because: a) it investigates
a multimodal intervention based on principles of phonotactic probability and neighborhood density in
combination with augmentative and alternative communication (AAC), and b) it investigates novel predictors of
treatment response that are obtained through cutting-edge technologies. We propose that this intervention will
have better success than past interventions because we will provide increased input through speech, digitized
speech and visual images and additional speech sound practice for words that are comprised of high
frequency sounds in the child’s repertoire. Extant speech sounds in each participant’s repertoire will be
identified using LENA digitized recordings. Vocabulary words will then be selected based on a child’s speech
sound repertoire and principles of word learning—words with high probability speech sound sequences will be
selected and taught with either our multimodal intervention or a treatment as usual condition. Responses to
these interventions will be evaluated using a Sequential Multiple Assignment Randomized Trials (SMART)
design. We propose that different outcomes will be associated with individual and environmental predictors
identified in our previous research. Individual predictors include verbal comprehension, imitation skills,
adaptive behavior, nonverbal speech sound repertoire, and communication complexity. Communication
complexity will be measured with the Communication Complexity Scale (CCS), developed by the Principal
Investigator. Environmental predictors include language input to the child as measured with LENA recording
devices. Results will determine if our multimodal intervention is more successful than treatment as usual for
teaching word productions, but will also identify the individual and environmental profiles associated with
differential outcomes. Our discoveries will lead to more focused clinical trial research and will inform
customized ...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10005937
- **Project number:** 5U54HD090216-05
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF KANSAS LAWRENCE
- **Principal Investigator:** NANCY CAROLINE BRADY
- **Activity code:** U54 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $206,927
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** — → 2023-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10005937

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10005937, Research Component: Multimodal Approach to Word Learning in Children with Autism (5U54HD090216-05). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10005937. Licensed CC0.

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