Scripting

Scripting is when your child repeats lines they heard earlier, from TV shows, movies, songs or people important to them. It can happen long after they first heard the line. Clinicians often call it delayed echolalia. It's one of the repeated behaviors seen in autism. Still, repeated phrases alone don't mean a child is autistic.

Repeated speech can serve different purposes, such as taking turns, labeling, asking for things, agreeing or protesting. It can also help with calming or just be fun. Some behavior analysis studies aim to reduce echolalia, while the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and Cohn and colleagues argue against trying to stop all of it. The word has a second meaning too. The National Autistic Society uses it for planning what to say ahead of time, which it lists as a kind of masking.

Your child might repeat a TV show line loudly and often, or say a movie line at a moment that seems unrelated. That line may carry a message. A movie line at bedtime, for example, might be your child's way of saying they're tired. Other times, a line may be for comfort or fun. A speech-language pathologist (SLP) looks at what your child's scripting is for and why, since its purpose can vary.

• What it does for your child: Ask your Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) what your child's scripting seems to do for them, such as asking, protesting or calming.
• Working with speech therapy: Ask how your child's ABA and speech therapy teams will look at scripting together.
• Goals around scripting: If a goal targets scripting, ask why and what your child gains from the change.