Minimally-Signing Autism in Deaf Children of Deaf Parents: A Case Series

Minimally-verbal autism is well described in hearing populations, but little is known about minimally-signing autism in deaf children with early, full access to sign. This case series presents seven deaf autistic children born to Deaf parents and exposed to American Sign Language (ASL) from birth who nonetheless remain minimally expressive signers. Participants were drawn from a nationwide cohort of 23 native-ASL deaf children with autism. Four children completed the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule-2 (ADOS-2); all caregivers completed the Social Communication Questionnaire (SCQ). Selected children also received the Test of Nonverbal Intelligence-4 (TONI-4) and the ASL Receptive Skills Test (ASL RST). Six of seven children scored above the SCQ cutoff, and all four ADOS-2 cases met diagnostic criteria. Across cases, hallmark autistic features were evident, including limited reciprocal interaction, reduced joint attention, and restricted/repetitive behaviors. Expressive signing ranged from absent to small repertoires of echolalic or idiosyncratic signs, rarely coordinated with gaze or affect; symbolic play was similarly constrained. Two children completed standardized testing: one showed average nonverbal cognition but ASL comprehension