About one in every 68 children in the United States has Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Their symptoms vary in severity often including some form of intellectual disability and language impairment (NINDS, 2017). “People with ASD may have very different verbal abilities ranging from no speech at all to speech that is fluent, but awkward and inappropriate” (NINDS, 2017). This can be the result of restricted semantic ability or trouble understanding social contexts and socially accepted behaviors. Lacking these elements of communication, American philosopher John R. Searle would likely assert that these people do not possess human language. This is because Searle’s definition of language necessitates an ability to manipulate sentence structures to change meaning (Searle, 2009, p. 182) and a social contract that is understood and abided by both interlocutors (Searle, 2009, p. 176). To be without these is to be without a complete human language.
Searle differentiates between the prelinguistic and linguistic consciousness in order to determine what makes human language unique. One feature of language he identifies as unique from prelinguistic forms is semantically loaded syntactic structure (Searle, 2009, p. 182). The ability to use semantics offers a person with a fully functioning grasp on language the ability to create “indefinitely manipulatable structures with semantic content” (Searle, 2009, p. 182). This means that topics and ways of discussing them should be infinite. People with ASD, however, demonstrate a tendency to discuss the same topics repeatedly (NINDS, 2017) and a restricted ability to produce complex syntactic structure. In one study (Lee et al., 2017), people with ASD and people with typical development were asked to tell a story based on a picture. The narratives of those with ASD used fewer instances of complex syntax and more instances of incomplete syntax. Those with ASD may also have trouble with sentences that contain embedded clauses and focus more on key words than grammar when attempting to understand a statement (Vicker, 2009). Though production is not always linked to competence, one can provide insight into the other and provide circumstantial evidence. Lacking the ability to link semantics to syntax and choosing instead to maintain focus on specific topics, does not demonstrate a complete ability to understand and utilize syntax and semantics in the way that Searle describes. Because this is an essential component language has that prelinguistic consciousness does not, a person cannot have a complete language without having this skill.
According to Searle, it is not sufficient that a communication is used to convey meaning based on standardized rules and structures. In order for that communication to achieve Searle’s threshold for language, “it necessarily involves social commitments, and that the necessity of these social commitments derives from the social character of the communication situation” (Searle, 2009, p. 193-194). While pre-linguistic consciousness has intentionality and even can have ways of communicating that intentionality, there must be a commitment to the statement being made. There must be an illocutionary force attached to the words being said and that will be understood through the social conventions that dictate meaning in a given situation (Searle, 2009, p. 196). Those with ASD, however, do not meet this criterion. In a study (Berenguer et al., 2017) where parents completed the Children’s Communication Checklist Second Edition by rating aspects of communication, children were scored on, among other skills, their coherence and use of context. Children with ASD showed a lower pragmatic competence than typically developing children of their age. These symptoms present in children may shift as they age, but very rarely disappear (NINDS, 2017; Vicker, 2009). People with ASD may demonstrate difficulty with conversational context and figurative language (Vicker, 2009) both of which can generally be understood by typically developing people. Without showing understanding or use of the social conventions Searle proposes, these people cannot fully develop language.
Searle lays out a definition of language that excludes people with ASD from meeting all the qualifications. They fall short of demonstrating a complete operation of syntactic structure to communicate semantic intentions and show a lack of pragmatic comprehension in social settings required for the use of language. The definition divides humans into groups of those with language and those without. Since Searle sees language as part of the biology of being human with some genetic component (Searle, 2009, p. 174, 177), where does that leave those who are human but without human language? Following Searle’s argument would suggest that the genetic mutation that causes ASD (NINDS, 2017) also causes one to lose their humanity. He attempted to avoid this kind of question by proposing a hypothetical “hominid” similar in all regards to humans but lacking linguistics consciousness (Searle, 2009, p. 177), but the avoidance of this question leaves cracks in Searle’s definition and explanation of language.
References:
Berenguer, C., Miranda, A., Colomer, C., Baixauli, I., & Roselló, B. (2017). Contribution of Theory of Mind, Executive Functioning, and Pragmatics to Socialization Behaviors of Children with High-Functioning Autism. Journal of autism and developmental disorders, 48(2), 430-441.
Lee, M., Martin, G. E., Hogan, A., Hano, D., Gordon, P. C., & Losh, M. (2017). What’s the story? A computational analysis of narrative competence in autism. Autism, 1362361316677957.
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS). (2017). Autism Spectrum Disorder Fact Sheet.
Searle, J. R. (2009). What is Language? Some Preliminary Remarks. Etica & Politica, 11(1), 173-202.
Vicker, B. (2009). Social communication and language characteristics associated with high functioning, verbal children and adults with autism spectrum disorder. Indiana Resource Center for Autism. Retrieved from https://iidc.indiana.edu.