Does language guide behavior in children with autism?

It is unknown if children with high-functioning autism (HFA) employ self-directed speech to guide motor sequencing and motor control, or if they can benefit from using self-directed speech when prompted to do so. Participants performed a three-movement sequence across three conditions: Natural Learning, Task-Congruent Verbalization (TCV), and Task-Incongruent Verbalization (TIV). TIV deleteriously impacted performance in the typically-developing group (TD; <italic>n</italic>= 22), and not the HFA group (<italic>n</italic>=21). TCV improved performance in both groups, but to a greater extent in the HFA group. These findings suggest that children with HFA do <italic>not</italic> initiate self-directed speech spontaneously, but can use language to guide behavior when prompted to do so.