If It Seems To Make Sense When A Person With Autism Repeats A Jingle, Does He/She Not Have Delayed Echolalia?

Oct. 23, 2008 -- Question: If it seems to make sense when a person with autism repeats a jingle often played in a television commercial, does it mean he doesn't have delayed echolalia?

Answer: Echolalia as I mentioned can be delayed or it can be immediate. And some children -- and there's a different level of communicative intent that children can use with their echolalia. So a child may repeat a part of a nursery rhyme or a TV segment either because it's reinforcing to him- or herself to hear those words or because they are trying to communicate something and that's the only way they know how. So regardless of the extent of the social impact and the social motivation behind the echolalia, if it's repeating things that they've heard elsewhere in a stereotyped and rigid and consistent way, then it is echolalia.