Home Literacy Environment and Parental Perceived Literacy Development in Children with Autism: A Mediation Model

The significant impact of the home literacy environment (HLE) on the literacy development and educational achievements of typically developing (TD) children has been well documented. The focus of the current research is to gain insights into the HLE of children with autism spectrum disorders owing to their literacy difficulties. We used online questionnaires to collect data on the HLE, literacy development, reading interest, and parent-child relationship from the parents of 120 school-aged Chinese children with autism. The results confirmed that the HLE of autistic children predicts their literacy development not only directly but also indirectly, through reading interest and the parent-child relationship. The mediating effect accounted for more than half of the total effect. The study highlights that children with autism could benefit from stimulating HLE as well as their TD counterparts.