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Names in frames: infants interpret words in sentence frames faster than words in isolation
Anne Fernald1, Nereyda Hurtado
1Department of Psychology, Stanford University, CA 94305, USA. afernald@stanford.edu
Developmental Science
|May 4, 2006
Summary
Child-directed speech (CDS) with sentence frames helps infants recognize words faster than isolated words. Familiar phrases aid young children
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Linguistics
- Cognitive Science
Background:
- Child-directed speech (CDS) often features short utterances and isolated words.
- The impact of these features on infant word recognition is debated.
- Some theories suggest isolated words aid segmentation, while others predict no benefit.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate whether sentence frames in CDS enhance infant word recognition.
- To directly test the perceptual advantages of specific CDS structures.
Main Methods:
- Utilized a looking-while-listening procedure with 18-month-old infants.
- Presented familiar object names in isolation and within a sentence frame.
- Measured online speech processing using reaction times.
Main Results:
- Infants were 120 ms slower to interpret words presented in isolation.
- Word recognition was facilitated when words were preceded by a familiar carrier phrase.
- Sentence frames appear to aid infants in processing target words.
Conclusions:
- Familiar sentence frames in CDS enhance word recognition in infants.
- This facilitation may stem from enabling infants to 'listen ahead' for expected words.
- CDS structures like sentence frames offer perceptual advantages for early language acquisition.
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