Exploring the Utility of the Quick Interactive Language Screener in Young Autistic Children
- 1Communication Sciences and Disorders, , Boston, MA, USA
- 2Communicative Sciences and Disorders, , New York, NY, USA
Abstract
Background & Aims Measuring emerging language in young autistic children is notoriously difficult. Conventional approaches—including standardized assessment, caregiver report, and natural language samples—offer valuable information but also have their respective limitations. The Quick Interactive Language Screener (QUILS) is a newer approach that has proven useful in non-autistic children. It is a computer-based tool designed to screen early language comprehension skills in vocabulary and syntax, as well as the processes underlying word learning. The present investigation aims to explore the usefulness of the QUILS when used with young autistic children, in terms of (1) correlations across the QUILS subtests and (2) correlations between the QUILS and other frequently used language measures (CDI-III vocabulary, CDI-III sentences, natural language sample metrics including lexical diversity and MLU, and Vineland-3). Methods Secondary data analysis was used to explore a subset of participants derived from a national remote (i.e., Zoom-based) study on language development in children with autism. Participants (N = 54) aged 38–71 months ( M = 56.2, SD = 8.8) were administered the QUILS; their caregiver completed the CDI-III and Vineland-3 about their development, and caregivers and children completed a brief caregiver–child interaction, from which natural language samples were transcribed. Results The three subtests of the QUILS showed high correlations with each other (all p s < .001). Similarly, a QUILS composite score was highly correlated (all p s < .001) with words and sentences produced on the CDI-III, two metrics derived from our natural language sample (lexical diversity and MLU), and the Vineland-3 Communication Domain raw score. Conclusions These results indicate that with young autistic children, the subtests of the QUILS cohere with each other, and the QUILS (overall) converges with other measures of emergent language. Implications These findings indicate that the QUILS may be a useful addition to the toolbox of early language assessment in autism. Our preliminary findings suggest that the QUILS is feasible for use with young autistic children and that it may be a useful complement to other instruments, providing promising directions for quantification of language skills using computer-based, remote administration.
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BibTeX
@article{digiorgio2026exploring,
title = {{Exploring the Utility of the Quick Interactive Language Screener in Young Autistic Children}},
author = {Mia DiGiorgio and Kelly Steen and Thuy Buonocore and Rhiannon Luyster and Sudha Arunachalam},
journal = {Autism and Developmental Language Impairments},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.1177/23969415261496734},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1177/23969415261496734},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Exploring the Utility of the Quick Interactive Language Screener in Young Autistic Children
AU - Mia DiGiorgio
AU - Kelly Steen
AU - Thuy Buonocore
AU - Rhiannon Luyster
AU - Sudha Arunachalam
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/23
JO - Autism and Developmental Language Impairments
DO - 10.1177/23969415261496734
UR - https://doi.org/10.1177/23969415261496734
AB - Background & Aims Measuring emerging language in young autistic children is notoriously difficult. Conventional approaches—including standardized assessment, caregiver report, and natural language samples—offer valuable information but also have their respective limitations. The Quick Interactive Language Screener (QUILS) is a newer approach that has proven useful in non-autistic children. It is a computer-based tool designed to screen early language comprehension skills in vocabulary and syntax, as well as the processes underlying word learning. The present investigation aims to explore the usefulness of the QUILS when used with young autistic children, in terms of (1) correlations across the QUILS subtests and (2) correlations between the QUILS and other frequently used language measures (CDI-III vocabulary, CDI-III sentences, natural language sample metrics including lexical diversity and MLU, and Vineland-3). Methods Secondary data analysis was used to explore a subset of participants derived from a national remote (i.e., Zoom-based) study on language development in children with autism. Participants (N = 54) aged 38–71 months ( M = 56.2, SD = 8.8) were administered the QUILS; their caregiver completed the CDI-III and Vineland-3 about their development, and caregivers and children completed a brief caregiver–child interaction, from which natural language samples were transcribed. Results The three subtests of the QUILS showed high correlations with each other (all p s < .001). Similarly, a QUILS composite score was highly correlated (all p s < .001) with words and sentences produced on the CDI-III, two metrics derived from our natural language sample (lexical diversity and MLU), and the Vineland-3 Communication Domain raw score. Conclusions These results indicate that with young autistic children, the subtests of the QUILS cohere with each other, and the QUILS (overall) converges with other measures of emergent language. Implications These findings indicate that the QUILS may be a useful addition to the toolbox of early language assessment in autism. Our preliminary findings suggest that the QUILS is feasible for use with young autistic children and that it may be a useful complement to other instruments, providing promising directions for quantification of language skills using computer-based, remote administration.
SN - 2396-9415
ER -