Passionate about languages, but listening and speaking – ¡Ay, Caramba! Autistic adults discuss foreign language learning

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Caldwell‐Harris, C. L. (2022). Passionate about languages, but listening and speaking – ¡Ay, Caramba! Autistic adults discuss foreign language learning. Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development, 45(6), 1888-1903. https://doi.org/10.1080/01434632.2022.2029869

Publication date: 1 Feb 2022 Added to AutiHub: 5 Jul 2026 Type: Article Article language: English
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Authors

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1
Publication authors identified as autistic
1 / 1 (100.0%)
  1. Catherine L. Caldwell‐Harris *

Abstract

Little is known about how persons with autism spectrum conditions experience the process of learning foreign languages. To augment the research literature (reviewed here) with the experiences of autistic persons, online autism forums were scrutinised. Discussions pertinent to language learning were identified in English, Spanish, French and German, with 169 posts analysed. Thematic analysis revealed 8 themes. Three themes concerned ease and difficulty of learning. Reading and writing were strengths, due to their offline nature. Listening comprehension was difficult, especially with background noise. Speaking was difficult, due to demands of immediacy. Four inter-related themes could be understood as positive outcomes of autistic traits. Languages were a special interest, and many posters reported being self-taught. Posters often listed many languages but acknowledged that learning their full list was impractical. Posters reported being interested in diverse aspects of language structure, suggesting that languages were compelling because they provided an opportunity for systemising. Finally, posters discussed how autism conferred both advantages and disadvantages for language learning. Some posters discussed their engagement in terms reminiscent of polyglots and mild forms of linguistic savantism. This analysis revealed a group of curious learners whose abilities and strengths are mostly unknown to applied linguists.

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These indicators describe the cited bibliography imported for this publication. Cited-reference metrics use the cited-reference total as denominator. Cited-author metrics state whether they use all cited-author occurrences or only occurrences linked to authors already integrated in the AutiHub database. They use cached links between cited authors and authors integrated in the AutiHub database. Last computed: 16 Aug 2026 11:30.

Cited references
37
Total cited references integrated for this publication.
Cited references with an identified autistic author
6 / 37 (16.2%)
Cited author occurrences identified as autistic
6 / 74 (8.1%)
Among occurrences linked to AutiHub author records: 6 / 21 (28.6%). Distinct cited authors identified as autistic: 2 / 63 (3.2%).
Cited author occurrences linked to AutiHub author records
21 / 74 (28.4%)
Distinct linked cited authors: 13 / 63 (20.6%)
Linked cited-author occurrences not identified as autistic
15 / 21 (71.4%)
Among linked cited-author occurrences only. Across all cited-author occurrences: 15 / 74 (20.3%). Distinct linked cited authors not identified as autistic: 11 / 13 (84.6%).
3 cited bibliography entries could not be fully enriched from DOI metadata.
Crossref: not found (2) · DataCite: not found (1)
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