Connecting the tots

Strong looking-pointing correlations in preschoolers' word learning and implications for continuity in language development

Datos Bibliográficos

ID7149347
AutoresSarah C Creel (0000-0002-1891-4228, Department of Cognitive Science , La Jolla, California, autor de correspondencia)
Año2025
Volumen96
Número1
Páginas87-103
Fecha de publicación2025-01-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaChild Development (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0009-3920 • E-ISSN: 1467-8624
EditorialOxford University Press (OUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1111/cdev.14157
PMID39169637
OpenAlexW4401783884
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas2
Referencias citadas68

How does one assess developmental change when the measures themselves change with development? Most developmental studies of word learning use either looking (infants) or pointing (preschoolers and older). With little empirical evidence of the relationship between the two measures, developmental change is difficult to assess. This paper analyzes 914 pointing, looking children (451 female, varied ethnicities, 2.5–6.5 years, dates: 2009–2019) in 36 word- or sound-learning experiments with two-alternative test trials. Looking proportions and pointing accuracy correlated strongly (r = .7). Counter to the “looks first” hypothesis, looks were not sensitive to incipient knowledge that pointing missed: when pointing is at chance, looking proportions are also. Results suggest one possible path forward for assessing continuous developmental change. Methodological best practices are discussed

Child development · Cognitive psychology · Developmental psychology · Empirical research · Language acquisition · Language development · Linguistics · Test (biology) · Vocabulary · Word (group theory) · Word learning · Child and Animal Learning Development · Language Development and Disorders · Language, Discourse, Communication Strategies · Psychology