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Related Concept Videos

Language Development01:22

Language Development

292
Children master language quickly and with relative ease, supported by both biological predisposition and reinforcement. B. F. Skinner (1957) proposed that language is learned through reinforcement, while Noam Chomsky (1965) argued that language acquisition mechanisms are biologically determined.
The critical period for language acquisition suggests that the ability to acquire language is at its peak early in life. As people age, this proficiency decreases. Language development begins very...
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Language and Cognition01:27

Language and Cognition

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Language serves as a bridge between ideas and communication, influencing how individuals perceive and interact with the world. Psychologists have long debated whether language shapes thought or vice versa. This discussion gained grip with Edward Sapir and Benjamin Lee Whorf in the 1940s, who proposed that language determines thought, a concept known as linguistic determinism. They suggested that the vocabulary and structure of a language influence how its speakers think and perceive reality.
302
Piaget's Stage 2 of Cognitive Development01:14

Piaget's Stage 2 of Cognitive Development

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The preoperational stage, the second of Jean Piaget's four stages of cognitive development, spans approximately ages 2 to 7 and is characterized by the emergence of symbolic thinking. During this stage, children use language, images, and symbols to represent objects and concepts, enabling them to engage in imaginative and pretend play. This symbolic thinking supports children's ability to perform make-believe actions, such as imagining a broom as a horse or their hand as a phone,...
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Probability Distributions01:32

Probability Distributions

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 The probability of a random variable x  is the likelihood of its occurrence. A probability distribution represents the probabilities of a random variable using a formula, graph, or table. There are two types of probability distribution– discrete probability distribution and continuous probability distribution.
A discrete probability distribution is a probability distribution of discrete random variables. It can be categorized into binomial probability distribution and Poisson...
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Piaget's Stage 3 of Cognitive Development01:17

Piaget's Stage 3 of Cognitive Development

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During Piaget's concrete operational stage, from ages 7 to 11, children exhibit a marked increase in logical thinking skills, specifically in relation to tangible, real-world events. This stage is characterized by the development of several essential cognitive concepts, including conservation, reversibility, and classification, all of which support the child's evolving capacity for structured thought.
Conservation and Constancy of Quantity
A significant cognitive milestone in the...
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The Nativist Approach01:21

The Nativist Approach

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The nativist approach to infant cognitive development proposes that infants are born with inherent knowledge structures that allow them to interpret the world almost immediately. This perspective contrasts with earlier developmental theories, such as those proposed by Jean Piaget, which emphasized a more gradual acquisition of cognitive abilities through interaction with the environment. One key concept in this approach is object permanence — the understanding that objects continue to...
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Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 22, 2025

Experience is Instrumental in Tuning a Link Between Language and Cognition: Evidence from 6- to 7- Month-Old Infants' Object Categorization
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Experience is Instrumental in Tuning a Link Between Language and Cognition: Evidence from 6- to 7- Month-Old Infants' Object Categorization

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Reaching Meaning through Language: What can Children Tell Us about Distributivity?

Chiara Saponaro1, Desiré Carioti1, Martina Riva1

  • 1Department of Psychology, University of Milano-Bicocca, Piazza dell'Ateneo Nuovo 1, Milano, MI, 20126, Italy.

Journal of Child Language
|May 21, 2025
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Children’s understanding of sentence meanings, specifically distributive versus collective interpretations, was explored. Preschoolers showed less ability to use specific markers for distributive meanings compared to adults, indicating this linguistic skill is not fully developed by age five.

Keywords:
Italianambiguitydistributivitylanguage productionpreschoolers

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Area of Science:

  • Linguistics
  • Developmental Psychology
  • Cognitive Science

Background:

  • Sentences with plural subjects can have distributive (referring to individuals) or collective (referring to the group) meanings.
  • Previous research suggests adults favor collective readings, while children accept distributive readings more readily, challenging assumptions about their difficulty.
  • Existing semantic theories propose an additional operator for distributive representations.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the production of distributive and collective sentence interpretations in Italian adults and preschoolers.
  • To examine the developmental trajectory of understanding quantifiers and disambiguating markers in language acquisition.
  • To explore the interplay between semantic theories, psycholinguistic findings, and cognitive development in sentence comprehension.

Main Methods:

  • A production study was conducted with Italian adults and preschoolers.
  • Participants described pictures designed to elicit either distributive or collective interpretations.
  • Analysis focused on the types of expressions produced to convey meaning.

Main Results:

  • Adults produced more distributive expressions, aligning with semantic theories and prior psycholinguistic data.
  • Preschoolers demonstrated limited sensitivity to disambiguating markers for distributive meanings.
  • Findings suggest that knowledge of distributive quantifiers is not fully acquired by age five in the production domain.

Conclusions:

  • The study provides novel insights into the production of distributive versus collective meanings in language development.
  • Results indicate a developmental lag in mastering the production of disambiguating markers for distributive quantifiers.
  • The findings contribute to understanding language acquisition, semantic theories, and cognitive development.