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Related Experiment Videos

Learning proper and common names in inferential versus ostensive contexts.

V K Jaswal1, E M Markman

  • 1Department of Psychology, Stanford University, CA 94305-2130, USA. jaswal@psych.stanford.edu

Child Development
|June 19, 2001
PubMed
Summary

Preschoolers can learn new words through indirect exposure, similar to direct instruction. This fast mapping of novel words, including proper and common names, is effective even for two-year-olds.

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Area of Science:

  • Developmental Psychology
  • Linguistics
  • Cognitive Science

Background:

  • Children's ability to learn new words rapidly (fast mapping) is crucial for language acquisition.
  • The effectiveness of indirect word exposure, requiring inference, compared to direct exposure (ostension) is not fully understood.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To compare preschoolers' fast mapping of new proper and common names after indirect exposure versus ostension.
  • To investigate how initial word mappings specify word function.

Main Methods:

  • Four studies involved 64 preschoolers (ages 2-3 years).
  • Children were exposed to novel words indirectly (requiring inference) or directly (ostension).
  • Participants mapped new proper and common names to objects and performed actions based on these mappings.

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Main Results:

  • Children mapped novel proper names to specific objects and common names to categories.
  • Indirect exposure led to mappings as robust as ostension.
  • Even 2-year-olds learned word functions effectively through indirect exposure.

Conclusions:

  • Indirect word exposure is a viable method for children to learn new word referents and functions.
  • Fast mapping of novel words, whether proper or common, is efficient through inference.