week 2

Question 1

What is linguistic communication?

Answer 1

Communication using natural language, characterized by generativity, being automatic and effortless, and involving comprehension and production.

Question 2

What is infant-directed speech (IDS)?

Answer 2

Also called ‘motherese,’ it uses a louder voice, slower speech, simpler words, and accentuates word boundaries. It often repeats and expands child utterances.

Question 3

What cues help in segmenting words from a speech stream?

Answer 3

Pauses, stress patterns, and transitional probabilities.

Question 4

Why are pauses not reliable for segmenting words?

Answer 4

There are often no clear pauses between words in natural speech.

Question 5

How do stress patterns help infants in word segmentation?

Answer 5

Infants use the predominant stress pattern of their native language to identify words.

Question 6

What did Jusczyk (1999) demonstrate about stress patterns?

Answer 6

7.5-month-olds can segment words based on their native language’s stress patterns.

Question 7

How do infants adapt to new stress patterns in word segmentation?

Answer 7

Infants can learn to use a different stress pattern, such as trochaic or iambic patterns, as shown by Thiessen & Saffran (2007).

Question 8

What is transitional probability?

Answer 8

It measures the likelihood of one sound following another, aiding in word segmentation.

Question 9

What are one-word utterances?

Answer 9

Words like ‘mommy’ or ‘doggie’ that emerge around one year and often function as holophrases.

Question 10

When do multiword utterances appear?

Answer 10

Around 18 months, often learned by rote and resembling telegraphic speech.

Question 11

What is the problem of referential ambiguity?

Answer 11

Difficulty in linking words to the correct concepts or objects in the environment.

Question 12

What are some word learning heuristics?

Answer 12

Shape bias, whole-object bias, taxonomic assumptions, and mutual exclusivity.

Question 13

What is the shape bias?

Answer 13

A tendency to generalize word meaning based on object shape, critical for vocabulary growth.

Question 14

What is the whole-object bias?

Answer 14

Assuming a new word refers to an entire object rather than its parts or features.

Question 15

What is mutual exclusivity?

Answer 15

Assuming one label per object and rejecting alternative names.

Question 16

How do social cues aid word learning?

Answer 16

Gaze following, pointing, and responsiveness from caregivers provide clues to word meanings.

Question 17

What is cross-situational word learning?

Answer 17

Using consistent object-word pairings across different situations to infer meanings.

Question 18

What external factors affect vocabulary development?

Answer 18

Socioeconomic status, child-directed speech, interaction styles, and caregiver education.

Question 19

What is the ‘30-million-word gap’?

Answer 19

A term from Hart & Risley (1995) describing word exposure differences between socioeconomic groups by age 3.

Question 20

What are the effects of the ‘30-million-word gap’?

Answer 20

Differences in vocabulary size, language development, and academic performance.

Question 21

How does SES affect language processing?

Answer 21

Children from higher SES families show better language skills and vocabulary at 18 months (Fernald et al., 2013).

Question 22

What is child-directed speech (CDS)?

Answer 22

Speech tailored to children that predicts vocabulary development, influenced by caregiver education and interaction quality.

Question 23

Is child-directed speech universal?

Answer 23

No, its prevalence varies across cultures, with more use in urban than rural settings (Casillas et al., 2020).

Question 24

How does maternal responsiveness influence language milestones?

Answer 24

It predicts the timing of first words, combinatorial speech, and use of language for past events.

Question 25

What are examples of maternal responsiveness?

Answer 25

Affirmations, imitations, descriptions, questions, play prompts, and exploratory prompts.

Question 26

What is the role of interaction style in language development?

Answer 26

Responsive interaction styles foster better vocabulary and language milestone achievements.

Question 27

What does ‘fast mapping’ refer to?

Answer 27

The quick association of a new word with its meaning after minimal exposure.

Question 28

What are early vocabulary characteristics?

Answer 28

Dominated by concrete nouns and basic-level category names.

Question 29

How do 12-month-olds learn nouns?

Answer 29

Using cross-situational statistics to link words to objects (Smith & Yu, 2008).

Question 30

How do 2.5-year-olds learn verbs?

Answer 30

Through observation of consistent action-word pairings across contexts (Scott & Fisher, 2012).

Question 31

What are common features of infant-directed speech?

Answer 31

Simplification, repetition, and emphasis on key elements to facilitate understanding.

Question 32

What are examples of perceptual heuristics?

Answer 32

Shape bias and preferences for consistent sensory features.

Question 33

What is the taxonomic assumption?

Answer 33

A bias to group objects categorically rather than thematically.

Question 34

What is ‘telegraphic speech’?

Answer 34

Speech in young children that includes only essential content words, omitting smaller grammatical elements.

Question 35

How does genetics influence vocabulary development?

Answer 35

Genetics affect baseline capabilities, while environmental factors shape outcomes.

Question 36

What is the significance of caregiver education in CDS?

Answer 36

Higher caregiver education correlates with better child vocabulary outcomes through quality and quantity of interactions.

Question 37

What does ‘interaction style’ refer to?

Answer 37

The manner in which caregivers engage with children, such as responsiveness or use of prompts.