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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Apr 1, 2026

Infant Auditory Processing and Event-related Brain Oscillations

Infant Auditory Processing and Event-related Brain Oscillations

Published on: July 1, 2015

Apples and Oranges: Developmental Discontinuities in Spoken-Language Processing?

Sarah C Creel¹, Carolyn Quam²

¹Department of Cognitive Science, UC San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0515, USA.

Trends in Cognitive Sciences

|October 13, 2015

Summary

Speech sound processing abilities continue to change throughout childhood, contrary to some infant-focused research. New methods are needed to understand this developmental plasticity in language acquisition.

Keywords:

developmental methodologies phonological development speech perception word learning

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Portable Intermodal Preferential Looking IPL: Investigating Language Comprehension in Typically Developing Toddlers and Young Children with Autism

Portable Intermodal Preferential Looking IPL: Investigating Language Comprehension in Typically Developing Toddlers and Young Children with Autism

Published on: December 14, 2012

Area of Science:

Psycholinguistics
Developmental Psychology
Speech Science

Background:

Infant speech perception research often suggests early language acquisition is complete.
However, evidence indicates significant neural plasticity in speech processing persists through mid-childhood.
Current research methods differ across age groups, hindering developmental comparisons.

Purpose of the Study:

To highlight the ongoing development of speech-sound categories beyond infancy.
To address the methodological discrepancies obscuring developmental changes in language processing.
To advocate for integrated research approaches spanning infancy to adulthood.

Main Methods:

Review of existing literature on infant, child, and adult speech perception.
Analysis of methodological differences in developmental speech processing studies.
Conceptual framework for a lifespan approach to language acquisition.

Main Results:

The impression of static speech-sound categories in infancy is challenged by later developmental evidence.
Methodological variations create a fragmented view of language processing development.
A unified developmental perspective is crucial for understanding plasticity.

Conclusions:

Speech-sound category development is a prolonged process extending through childhood.
Standardized, cross-developmental methods are essential for accurate understanding.
Further research should integrate findings across the entire developmental spectrum.