Echolalia

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For the Something for Kate album, see Echolalia (album).

Echolalia is the repetition of vocalizations made by another person. Echolalia is present in autism, Tourette syndrome, aphasia, Rubinstein-Taybi syndrome, developmental disability, schizophrenia and, occasionally, other forms of psychopathology. When done involuntarily, it is considered a tic.

The word "echolalia" is derived from the Greek ἠχώ meaning "echo" or "to repeat",[1] and λαλιά (laliá) meaning "babbling, meaningless talk"[2] (of onomatopoeic origin from the verb λαλείν (laleín) meaning "to talk").

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[edit] Immediate echolalia

Immediate echolalia is when a word or phrase is immediately repeated. In some autistic and Asperger's cases it may be a method of buying time to help process language. In an instance a child with autism is asked, "Do you want dinner?" The child echoes back "Do you want dinner?" followed by a pause and then a response, "Yes. What's for dinner?"[3]

[edit] Delayed echolalia

Delayed echolalia has been defined as the "echoing of a phrase after some delay or lapse of time".[citation needed] Persons with autism who repeat TV commercials, favorite movie scripts, or parental reprimands are examples used in describing this phenomenon. It may or may not be communicative.[citation needed]

This condition appears to tap into long-term auditory memory, and for this reason, may be a different phenomenon from immediate echolalia. As it can involve the recitation of entire scripts, delayed echolalia is often mistaken as evidence for higher-than-average intellect.[citation needed]

[edit] References

  1. ^ (Greek) Triantafyllidis Online Dictionary, ηχώ, Retrieved on 2007-06-11
  2. ^ (Greek) Triantafyllidis Online Dictionary, λαλιά, Retrieved on 2007-06-11
  3. ^ Bashe, P. R. The OASIS Guide to Asperger Syndrome; Advice, Support, Insight, and Inspiration. Crown Publishers, 2001, p. 22.

[edit] Further reading

Simon N (1975). "Echolalic speech in childhood autism. Consideration of possible underlying loci of brain damage". Arch. Gen. Psychiatry 32 (11): 1439–46. PMID 812450. 

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