Handwriting of Eight-Year-Old Children with Autistic Spectrum Disorder: An Exploration

Informal reports suggest a high level of handwriting impairment among children with autistic spectrum disorder (ASD). The literature on handwriting in ASD and impairments associated with ASD are briefly reviewed. The Sequential Handwriting Process is then proposed as a suitable vehicle to study handwriting in ASD. Three research questions are examined: Is the handwriting speed of children with ASD significantly different from that of children without ASD? Is the handwriting legibility of children with ASD significantly different from that of children without ASD? With respect to the proposed Sequential Handwriting Process, are there any significant differences between the handwriting of children with ASD and that of comparison children in the strength of correlations between each of 13 handwriting process variables and speed and legibility? Fifty-six 8-year old Australian children (28 with ASD and a matched group of 28 comparison children) were assessed on 13 handwriting process variables and two handwriting outcome variables. The handwriting of children with ASD was slower and less legible than that of the comparison children, but the differences were not significant. Accuracy of letter formation was significantly worse for children with ASD (p = .001). Although the two groups showed significant correlations between legibility and both oral spelling and accuracy of letter formation, they differed on the other significant correlations. None of the handwriting process variables showed significant correlations with speed for either group. Findings are discussed in relation to higher-level cognitive demands.