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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jan 17, 2026

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

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

Published on: April 19, 2017

Infants' attraction to infant vocalizations - A catalyst for infant development.

Linda Polka¹, M Fernanda Alonso-Arteche¹, Nicola K Phillips¹

¹School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, McGill University, Canada; Centre for Research on Brain, Language and Music, Canada.

Infant Behavior & Development

|September 24, 2025

Summary

Infants prefer speech from infant-like vocal tracts, a bias supporting speech recognition and production. This infant talker preference is also found in adults, highlighting its importance in development and caregiving.

Keywords:

Infant schema Kindchenschema Listening preference Vocal learning Vowel perception

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Last Updated: Jan 17, 2026

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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Published on: April 19, 2017

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Area of Science:

Developmental Psychology
Speech Perception
Acoustic Phonetics

Background:

Infant vocalizations are crucial for development, but perception of infant speech signals is understudied.
Technical advancements in speech synthesis enable new research into infant speech perception.

Purpose of the Study:

To summarize recent findings on infant perception of speech with infant vocal properties.
To explore the 'infant talker bias' and its implications for speech development and caregiving.

Main Methods:

Review of recent developmental studies utilizing advanced speech synthesis techniques.
Analysis of infant preferences for speech signals mimicking infant vocal tract resonances.

Main Results:

Infants show a robust preference for speech with resonances specifying a small, infant-sized vocal tract.
This preference, termed the 'infant talker bias,' is distinct from attraction to infant-directed speech.
Adults also exhibit a strong attraction to infant vowel sounds.

Conclusions:

The infant talker bias supports speech recognition and emerging vocal production abilities in infants.
Findings validate theories like the articulatory filter and analysis-by-synthesis hypotheses.
The bias is significant for infant development, caregiving, and research into infant speech perception.