Week 4

Question 1

What are the key findings in Werker’s perceptual narrowing in language development study?

Answer 1

• 6 to 8-month-olds: can discriminate speech sounds of both foreign languages
• 8 to 10-month-olds: ability to discriminate foreign speech sounds is dropping
• 10 to 12-month-olds: almost completely lost ability to discriminate foreign speech sounds
• 1-year-olds: most have lost ability to discriminate foreign speech sounds

Question 2

What are the key findings in Kuhl’s perceptual narrowing in language development study?

Answer 2

• Perfomance of American and foreign infants on language sounds are comparable at 6-8 months
• American infants: performance on English sounds increase, performance on Mandarin sounds decrease over time
• Japanese infants: performance on English sounds decrease
• Taiwanese infants: performance on Mandarin sounds increase

Question 3

Does exposing infants to foreign language speakers help maintain their ability to discriminate foreign speech sounds?

Answer 3

Yes but must be in-person as pre-recorded media does not have the same effect

Question 4

What are Hart & Risley’s findings on vocabulary differences by SES?

Answer 4

• Number of words children hear (high to low): professional, working class, welfare families
• Child’s vocabulary at 36 months (high to low): professional, working class, welfare families

Question 5

What are Fernald’s findings on vocabulary differences by SES?

Answer 5

• Mean number of spoken words (high to low): higher SES, lower SES
• Gap increases over time

Question 6

Describe the case of “Genie” and what it suggests about a critical period for language development

Answer 6

• Genie was a girl who was isolated and abused for the first 13 years of her life
• Genie never fully acquired language capabilities despite intensive rehabilitation efforts
• Suggests there is a critical period for language development

Question 7

How does the timing of children’s exposure to a second-language affect their ability to learn that second-language?

Answer 7

Children exposed to a second-language early on develop greater second-language skills (exposure before 7 years old = native capabilities and uses less cognitive effort)