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Goupil L, Dautriche I, Denman K, Henry Z, Marriott-Haresign I, Wass S. Leader-follower dynamics during early social interactions matter for infant word learning. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2024; 121:e2321008121. [PMID: 39254996 PMCID: PMC11420154 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2321008121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2023] [Accepted: 07/24/2024] [Indexed: 09/11/2024] Open
Abstract
We know little about the mechanisms through which leader-follower dynamics during dyadic play shape infants' language acquisition. We hypothesized that infants' decisions to visually explore a specific object signal focal increases in endogenous attention, and that when caregivers respond to these proactive behaviors by naming the object it boosts infants' word learning. To examine this, we invited caregivers and their 14-mo-old infants to play with novel objects, before testing infants' retention of the novel object-label mappings. Meanwhile, their electroencephalograms were recorded. Results showed that infants' proactive looks toward an object during play associated with greater neural signatures of endogenous attention. Furthermore, when caregivers named objects during these episodes, infants showed greater word learning, but only when caregivers also joined their focus of attention. Our findings support the idea that infants' proactive visual explorations guide their acquisition of a lexicon.
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Affiliation(s)
- Louise Goupil
- CNRS, Université Grenoble Alpes, Laboratoire de Psychologie et NeuroCognition, Grenoble 38400, France
| | - Isabelle Dautriche
- Centre de Recherche en Psychologie et Neurosciences, Aix-Marseille University, CNRS, Marseille 13331, France
| | - Katherine Denman
- Department of Psychology, University of East London, London E15 4LZ, United Kingdom
| | - Zion Henry
- Department of Psychology, University of East London, London E15 4LZ, United Kingdom
| | | | - Sam Wass
- Department of Psychology, University of East London, London E15 4LZ, United Kingdom
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Crespo K, Vlach H, Kaushanskaya M. The effects of speaker and exemplar variability in children's cross-situational word learning. Psychon Bull Rev 2024; 31:1650-1660. [PMID: 38228967 DOI: 10.3758/s13423-023-02444-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 12/18/2023] [Indexed: 01/18/2024]
Abstract
Cross-situational word learning (XSWL) - children's ability to learn words by tracking co-occurrence statistics of words and their referents over time - has been identified as a fundamental mechanism underlying lexical learning. However, it is unknown whether children can acquire new words when faced with variable input in XSWL paradigms, such as varying object exemplars and variable speakers. In the present study, we examine the separate and combined effects of exemplar and speaker variability on XSWL in typically developing English-speaking monolingual children. Results revealed that variability in speakers and exemplars did not facilitate or hinder XSWL performance. However, input that varied in both speakers and exemplars simultaneously did hinder children's word learning. Results from this work suggest that XSWL mechanisms may support categorization and generalization beyond word-object associations, but that accommodating multiple forms of variable input may incur costs. Overall, this research provides new theoretical insights into how fundamental mechanisms of word learning scale to more complex and naturalistic forms of input.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kimberly Crespo
- Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA.
| | - Haley Vlach
- Department of Educational Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
| | - Margarita Kaushanskaya
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
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Silkes JP. Repetition Priming Treatment for Anomia: Effects of Single- and Multiple-Exemplar Protocols. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF SPEECH-LANGUAGE PATHOLOGY 2023; 32:2528-2553. [PMID: 37824379 DOI: 10.1044/2023_ajslp-22-00310] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/14/2023]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Repetition priming can lead to improved naming ability in people with aphasia, but concerns have arisen from prior research about using only a single picture exemplar for each target. Specifically, it is unclear whether the observed improvements were due to learning simple correspondences between particular words and pictures rather than changes at a deeper level of lexical-semantic processing. In addition, implications for generalization after training with single exemplars were unclear. This study replicated and extended previous work to address these questions. METHOD Five participants with chronic aphasia participated in this repeated-measures design study, which repeatedly paired words and pictures with no feedback provided. Two participants engaged in a single-exemplar condition, with a single picture exemplar of each target used for every presentation of that target. The remaining three participants engaged in a multiple-exemplar condition, with several different pictures used for each target. Half of these targets used training pictures during naming probes, whereas half did not. RESULTS Primed items led to greater improvements in naming than items that were practiced but not primed. The data indicate that improvements may extend beyond stimulus-specific correspondences. Maintenance and generalization effects were mixed. CONCLUSIONS These data provide further support for the efficacy of repetition priming treatment for anomia. Implications and future directions are discussed.
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Knabe ML, Schonberg CC, Vlach HA. When Time Shifts the Boundaries: Isolating the Role of Forgetting in Children's Changing Category Representations. JOURNAL OF MEMORY AND LANGUAGE 2023; 132:104447. [PMID: 37545744 PMCID: PMC10399136 DOI: 10.1016/j.jml.2023.104447] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/08/2023]
Abstract
In studies of children's categorization, researchers have typically studied how encoding characteristics of exemplars contribute to children's generalization. However, it is unclear whether children's internal cognitive processes alone, independent of new information, may also influence their generalization. Thus, we examined the role that one cognitive process, forgetting, plays in shaping children's category representations by conducting three experiments. In the first two experiments, participants (NExp1=37, Mage=4.02 years; NExp2=32, Mage=4.48 years) saw a novel object labeled by the experimenter and then saw five new objects with between one and five features changed from the learned exemplar. The experimenter asked whether each object was a member of the same category as the exemplar; children saw the five new objects either immediately or after a five-minute delay. Children endorsed category membership at higher rates at immediate test than at delayed test, suggesting that children's category representations became narrower over time. In Experiment 3, we investigated forgetting as a key mechanism underlying the narrowing found in Experiments 1 and 2. We showed participants (NExp3=34, Mage=4.20 years) the same exemplars used in Experiments 1 and 2; then, either immediately or after a five-minute delay, we showed children seven individual object features and asked if each one had been part of the exemplar. Children's accuracy was lower after the delay, showing that they did indeed forget individual features. Taken together, these results show that forgetting plays an important role in changing children's newly-learned categories over time.
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Crespo K, Vlach H, Kaushanskaya M. The effects of bilingualism on children's cross-situational word learning under different variability conditions. J Exp Child Psychol 2023; 229:105621. [PMID: 36689904 PMCID: PMC10088528 DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2022.105621] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2022] [Revised: 12/20/2022] [Accepted: 12/22/2022] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
In the current study, we examined the separate and combined effects of exemplar and speaker variability on monolingual and bilingual children's cross-situational word learning performance. Results revealed that children's word learning performance did not differ when the input varied in a single dimension (i.e., exemplars or speakers) compared with a condition with no variability independent of their linguistic background. However, when performance in conditions that varied in a single dimension (i.e., exemplars or speakers) was compared with a condition that varied in multiple dimensions (i.e., exemplars and speakers), bilingual word learning advantages were observed; bilinguals were more likely to learn word-referent associations than monolinguals. Together, results suggest that children can learn and generalize word-referent associations from input that varies in exemplars and speakers and that bilingualism may bolster learning under conditions of increased input variability.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kimberly Crespo
- Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences, Boston University, Boston, MA 02215, USA.
| | - Haley Vlach
- Department of Educational Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706, USA
| | - Margarita Kaushanskaya
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706, USA
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Can children learn verbs from events separated in time? Examining how variability and memory contribute to verb learning. J Exp Child Psychol 2023; 227:105583. [PMID: 36410279 DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2022.105583] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2022] [Revised: 10/18/2022] [Accepted: 10/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Children in everyday environments experience verbs separated by minutes or hours and linked to events that vary in their similarity. Prior studies have shown that seeing similar events can be beneficial for verb learning (e.g., complex events), but there is also evidence that varied events or seeing both similar and varied events is useful; more studies are needed. In addition, few prior verb studies have tested verb learning from spaced practice. In Study 1, 3½- and 4½-year-olds (N = 72) saw either three similar events, three varied events, or a single live event (control) while hearing a new verb; events were separated by 1-min delays. Results showed better performance in multiple-event conditions than in the single-event condition and showed more extensions with age. Specifically, children benefitted more from seeing varied events with age. In Study 2, 2½-, 3½-, and 4½-year-olds (N = 163) either saw similar and then varied events or saw all varied video events separated by 1-min delays or no delays. The youngest children performed significantly better in the similar first condition than in the all varied condition, showing the first evidence of this benefit following spaced practice. In addition, as in Study 1, performance after seeing varied events increased with age. Together, these studies show that children can compare events separated in time and that their ability to learn verbs from varied examples develops with age.
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Lester N, Theakston A, Twomey KE. The role of the museum in promoting language word learning for young children. INFANT AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT 2023. [DOI: 10.1002/icd.2400] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Nicola Lester
- Division of Psychology, Communication and Human Neuroscience, Development and Hearing University of Manchester Manchester UK
| | - Anna Theakston
- Division of Psychology, Communication and Human Neuroscience, Development and Hearing University of Manchester Manchester UK
| | - Katherine E. Twomey
- Division of Psychology, Communication and Human Neuroscience, Development and Hearing University of Manchester Manchester UK
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Word learning in ASD: the sensorimotor, the perceptual and the symbolic. JOURNAL OF CULTURAL COGNITIVE SCIENCE 2023. [DOI: 10.1007/s41809-022-00117-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
AbstractWord learning requires successful pairing of form and meaning. A common hypothesis about the process of word learning is that initially, infants work on identifying the phonological segments corresponding to words (speech analysis), and subsequently map those segments onto meaning. A range of theories have been proposed to account for the underlying mechanisms and factors in this remarkable achievement. While some are mainly concerned with the sensorimotor affordances and perceptual properties of referents out in the world, other theories emphasize the importance of language as a system, and the relations among language units (other words or syntax). Recent approaches inspired by neuro-science suggest that the storage and processing of word meanings is supported by neural systems subserving both the representation of conceptual knowledge and its access and use (Lambon Ralph et al., Nature Reviews Neuroscience 18:42–55, 2017). Developmental disorders have been attested to impact on different aspects of word learning. While impaired word knowledge is not a hallmark of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), and remains largely understudied in this population, there is evidence that there are, sometimes subtle, problems in that domain, reflected in both how such knowledge is acquired and how words are used (Vulchanova et al., Word knowledge and word usage: A cross-disciplinary guide to the mental lexicon, Mouton De Gruyter, 2020). In addition, experimental evidence suggests that children with autism present with specific problems in categorizing the referents of linguistic labels leading to subsequent problems with using those labels (Hartley and Allen, Autism 19:570–579, 2015). Furthermore, deficits have been reported in some of the underlying mechanisms, biases and use of cues in word learning, such as e.g., object shape (Field et al., Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders 46:1210–1219, 2016; Tek et al., Autism Research 1:208–222, 2008). Finally, it is likely that symbol use might be impaired in ASD, however, the direction of the causal relationship between social and communication impairment in autism and symbolic skills is still an open question (Allen and Lewis, Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders 45:1–3, 2015; Allen and Butler, British Journal of Developmental Psychology 38:345–362, 2020; Wainwright et al., Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders 50:2941–2956, 2020). Further support for impaired symbol formation in autism comes from the well-attested problems with figurative, non-literal language use (e.g., metaphors, idioms, hyperbole, irony) (Vulchanova et al., Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 9:24, 2015). Here we propose that embodied theories of cognition which link perceptual experience with conceptual knowledge (see Eigsti, Frontiers in Psychology 4:224, 2013; Klin et al., Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B: Biological Sciences 358:345–360, 2003) might be useful in explaining the difficulty in symbolic understanding that individuals with autism face during the word learning process.
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Quique YM, Cavanaugh R, Lescht E, Evans WS. Applying adaptive distributed practice to self-managed computer-based anomia treatment: A single-case experimental design. JOURNAL OF COMMUNICATION DISORDERS 2022; 99:106249. [PMID: 35882077 DOI: 10.1016/j.jcomdis.2022.106249] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2021] [Revised: 07/09/2022] [Accepted: 07/10/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION There is a pressing need to improve computer-based treatments for aphasia to increase access to long-term effective evidence-based interventions. The current single case design incorporated two learning principles, adaptive distributed practice and stimuli variability, to promote acquisition, retention, and generalization of words in a self-managed computer-based anomia treatment. METHODS Two participants with post-stroke aphasia completed a 12-week adaptive distributed practice naming intervention in a single-case experimental design. Stimuli variability was manipulated in three experimental conditions: high exemplar variability, low exemplar variability, and verbal description prompt balanced across 120 trained words. Outcomes were assessed at 1-week, 1-month, and 3-months post-treatment. Statistical comparisons and effect sizes measured in the number of words acquired, generalized, and retained were estimated using Bayesian generalized mixed-effect models. RESULTS Participants showed large and robust acquisition, generalization, and retention effects. Out of 120 trained words, participant 1 acquired ∼77 words (trained picture exemplars) and ∼63 generalization words (untrained picture exemplars of treated words). Similarly, participant 2 acquired ∼57 trained words and ∼48 generalization words. There was no reliable change in untrained control words for either participant. Stimuli variability did not show practically meaningful effects. CONCLUSIONS These case studies suggest that adaptive distributed practice is an effective method for re-training more words than typically targeted in anomia treatment research (∼47 words on average per Snell et al., 2010). Generalization across experimental conditions provided evidence for improved lexical access beyond what could be attributed to simple stimulus-response mapping. These effects were obtained using free, open-source flashcard software in a clinically feasible, asynchronous format, thereby minimizing clinical implementation barriers. Larger-scale clinical trials are required to replicate and extend these effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yina M Quique
- Center for Education in Health Sciences, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States of America.
| | - Robert Cavanaugh
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, United States of America
| | - Erica Lescht
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, United States of America
| | - William S Evans
- Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, United States of America
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How variability shapes learning and generalization. Trends Cogn Sci 2022; 26:462-483. [DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2022.03.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/28/2020] [Revised: 03/18/2022] [Accepted: 03/21/2022] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
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Vong WK, Lake BM. Cross-Situational Word Learning With Multimodal Neural Networks. Cogn Sci 2022; 46:e13122. [PMID: 35377475 DOI: 10.1111/cogs.13122] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2021] [Revised: 12/02/2021] [Accepted: 01/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
In order to learn the mappings from words to referents, children must integrate co-occurrence information across individually ambiguous pairs of scenes and utterances, a challenge known as cross-situational word learning. In machine learning, recent multimodal neural networks have been shown to learn meaningful visual-linguistic mappings from cross-situational data, as needed to solve problems such as image captioning and visual question answering. These networks are potentially appealing as cognitive models because they can learn from raw visual and linguistic stimuli, something previous cognitive models have not addressed. In this paper, we examine whether recent machine learning approaches can help explain various behavioral phenomena from the psychological literature on cross-situational word learning. We consider two variants of a multimodal neural network architecture and look at seven different phenomena associated with cross-situational word learning and word learning more generally. Our results show that these networks can learn word-referent mappings from a single epoch of training, mimicking the amount of training commonly found in cross-situational word learning experiments. Additionally, these networks capture some, but not all of the phenomena we studied, with all of the failures related to reasoning via mutual exclusivity. These results provide insight into the kinds of phenomena that arise naturally from relatively generic neural network learning algorithms, and which word learning phenomena require additional inductive biases.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Brenden M Lake
- Center for Data Science, New York University.,Department of Psychology, New York University
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Zhou X, Zhou S, Han Y, Zhu S. Lévy flight-based inverse adaptive comprehensive learning particle swarm optimization. MATHEMATICAL BIOSCIENCES AND ENGINEERING : MBE 2022; 19:5241-5268. [PMID: 35430863 DOI: 10.3934/mbe.2022246] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
In the traditional particle swarm optimization algorithm, the particles always choose to learn from the well-behaved particles in the population during the population iteration. Nevertheless, according to the principles of particle swarm optimization, we know that the motion of each particle has an impact on other individuals, and even poorly behaved particles can provide valuable information. Based on this consideration, we propose Lévy flight-based inverse adaptive comprehensive learning particle swarm optimization, called LFIACL-PSO. In the LFIACL-PSO algorithm, First, when the particle is trapped in the local optimum and cannot jump out, inverse learning is used, and the learning step size is obtained through the Lévy flight. Second, to increase the diversity of the algorithm and prevent it from prematurely converging, a comprehensive learning strategy and Ring-type topology are used as part of the learning paradigm. In addition, use the adaptive update to update the acceleration coefficients for each learning paradigm. Finally, the comprehensive performance of LFIACL-PSO is measured using 16 benchmark functions and a real engineering application problem and compared with seven other classical particle swarm optimization algorithms. Experimental comparison results show that the comprehensive performance of the LFIACL-PSO outperforms comparative PSO variants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xin Zhou
- College of Computer Science, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400044, China
- Key Laboratory of Dependable Service Computing in Cyber Physical Society, Ministry of Education, Chongqing 400030, China
| | - Shangbo Zhou
- College of Computer Science, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400044, China
- Key Laboratory of Dependable Service Computing in Cyber Physical Society, Ministry of Education, Chongqing 400030, China
| | - Yuxiao Han
- College of Computer Science, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400044, China
- Key Laboratory of Dependable Service Computing in Cyber Physical Society, Ministry of Education, Chongqing 400030, China
| | - Shufang Zhu
- College of Computer Science, Chongqing University, Chongqing 400044, China
- Key Laboratory of Dependable Service Computing in Cyber Physical Society, Ministry of Education, Chongqing 400030, China
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Seyll L, Content A. Letter-Like Shape Recognition in Preschool Children: Does Graphomotor Knowledge Contribute? Front Psychol 2022; 12:726454. [PMID: 35250685 PMCID: PMC8888515 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.726454] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2021] [Accepted: 12/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Based on evidence that learning new characters through handwriting leads to better recognition than learning through typing, some authors proposed that the graphic motor plans acquired through handwriting contribute to recognition. More recently two alternative explanations have been put forward. First, the advantage of handwriting could be due to the perceptual variability that it provides during learning. Second, a recent study suggests that detailed visual analysis might be the source of the advantage of handwriting over typing. Indeed, in that study, handwriting and composition –a method requiring a detailed visual analysis but no specific graphomotor activity– led to equivalent recognition accuracy, both higher than typing. The aim of the present study was to assess whether the contribution of detailed visual analysis is observed in preschool children and to test the variability hypothesis. To that purpose, three groups of preschool children learned new symbols either by handwriting, typing, or composition. After learning, children performed first a four-alternative recognition task and then a categorization task. The same pattern of results as the one observed in adults emerged in the four-alternative recognition task, confirming the importance of the detailed visual analysis in letter-like shape learning. In addition, results failed to reveal any difference across learning methods in the categorization task. The latter results provide no evidence for the variability hypothesis which would predict better categorization after handwriting than after typing or composition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lola Seyll
- Laboratoire Cognition Langage et Développement, Centre de Recherche Cognition et Neurosciences, Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), Brussels, Belgium
| | - Alain Content
- Laboratoire Cognition Langage et Développement, Centre de Recherche Cognition et Neurosciences, Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB), Brussels, Belgium
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Calabrich SL, Oppenheim GM, Jones MW. Audiovisual Learning in Dyslexic and Typical Adults: Modulating Influences of Location and Context Consistency. Front Psychol 2021; 12:754610. [PMID: 34777156 PMCID: PMC8581559 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.754610] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2021] [Accepted: 10/07/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Learning to read involves efficient binding of visual to auditory information. Aberrant cross-modal binding skill has been observed in both children and adults with developmental dyslexia. Here, we examine the contribution of episodic memory to acquisition of novel cross-modal bindings in typical and dyslexic adult readers. Participants gradually learned arbitrary associations between unfamiliar Mandarin Chinese characters and English-like pseudowords over multiple exposures, simulating the early stages of letter-to-letter sound mapping. The novel cross-modal bindings were presented in consistent or varied locations (i.e., screen positions), and within consistent or varied contexts (i.e., co-occurring distractor items). Our goal was to examine the contribution, if any, of these episodic memory cues (i.e., the contextual and spatial properties of the stimuli) to binding acquisition, and investigate the extent to which readers with and without dyslexia would differ in their reliance on episodic memory during the learning process. Participants were tested on their ability to recognize and recall the bindings both during training and then in post-training tasks. We tracked participants' eye movements remotely with their personal webcams to assess whether they would re-fixate relevant empty screen locations upon hearing an auditory cue-indicative of episodic memory retrieval-and the extent to which the so-called "looking-at-nothing behavior" would modulate recognition of the novel bindings. Readers with dyslexia both recognized and recalled significantly fewer bindings than typical readers, providing further evidence of their persistent difficulties with cross-modal binding. Looking-at-nothing behavior was generally associated with higher recognition error rates for both groups, a pattern that was particularly more evident in later blocks for bindings encoded in the inconsistent location condition. Our findings also show that whilst readers with and without dyslexia are capable of using stimulus consistencies in the input-both location and context-to assist in audiovisual learning, readers with dyslexia appear particularly reliant on consistent contextual information. Taken together, our results suggest that whilst readers with dyslexia fail to efficiently learn audiovisual binding as a function of stimulus frequency, they are able to use stimulus consistency-aided by episodic recall-to assist in the learning process.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Manon W. Jones
- School of Psychology, Bangor University, Bangor, United Kingdom
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Frizelle P, Tolonen AK, Tulip J, Murphy CA, Saldana D, McKean C. The Impact of Intervention Dose Form on Oral Language Outcomes for Children With Developmental Language Disorder. JOURNAL OF SPEECH, LANGUAGE, AND HEARING RESEARCH : JSLHR 2021; 64:3253-3288. [PMID: 34213951 DOI: 10.1044/2021_jslhr-20-00734] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Purpose The aim of this study was to extract key learning from intervention studies in which qualitative aspects of dosage, dose form, have been examined for children with developmental language disorder (DLD)-in vocabulary, morphosyntax, and phonology domains. This research paper emerged from a pair of systematic reviews, aiming to synthesize available evidence regarding qualitative and quantitative aspects of dosage. While quantitative aspects had been experimentally manipulated, the available evidence for dose form (tasks or activities within which teaching episodes are delivered) was less definitive. Despite this, the review uncovered insights of value to DLD research. Method A preregistered systematic review (PROSPERO ID: CRD42017076663) adhering to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines was completed. Included papers were quasi-experimental, randomized controlled trial, or cohort analytic studies, published in any language between January 2006 and May 2019; oral language interventions with vocabulary, morphosyntax, or phonology outcomes; and participants with DLD (M = 3-18 years). The intention was to include papers in which dose form was experimentally manipulated or statistically analyzed, while quantitative dosage aspects were controlled, such that definitive conclusions about optimal dose form could be drawn and gaps in the evidence identified. Results Two hundred and twenty-four papers met the above inclusion criteria; 27 focused on dose form. No study controlled for all quantitative aspects of dosage such that we could effectively address our original research questions. Despite this, key points of learning emerged with implications for future research. Conclusions There is tentative evidence of advantages for explicit over implicit instruction and of the benefits of variability in input, elicited production, and gestural and other visual supports. With careful design of dose form, there is potential to design more efficient interventions. Speech-language pathology research would benefit from an agreed taxonomy of dose form components and standardized reporting of intervention studies, to enable cross-study comparisons and a systematic accrual of knowledge to identify optimal dose form for clinical application.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pauline Frizelle
- Department of Speech and Hearing Sciences, University College Cork, Ireland
| | - Anna-Kaisa Tolonen
- Research Unit of Logopedics, Faculty of Humanities, University of Oulu, Finland
| | - Josie Tulip
- Department of Speech and Language Sciences, School of Education, Communication & Language Sciences, Newcastle University, United Kingdom
| | - Carol-Anne Murphy
- Faculty of Education and Health Sciences, School of Allied Health, University of Limerick, Ireland
| | - David Saldana
- Departamento de Psicología Evolutiva y de la Educación, University of Seville, Spain
| | - Cristina McKean
- Department of Speech and Language Sciences, School of Education, Communication & Language Sciences, Newcastle University, United Kingdom
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One versus many: Multiple examples in word learning. J Exp Child Psychol 2021; 209:105173. [PMID: 34000590 DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2021.105173] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2020] [Revised: 03/19/2021] [Accepted: 03/24/2021] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
A large body of research indicates that children can map words to categories and generalize the label to new instances of the category after hearing a single instance of the category labeled. Additional research demonstrates that word learning is enhanced when children are presented with multiple instances of a category through comparison or contrast. In this study, 3-year-old children participated in a novel noun generalization task in which a label was given for either (a) a single instance of a category, (b) multiple instances of a category, or (c) contrasting a category instance with non-category members. Children were asked to extend the label to a new category at test either immediately (Study 1) or after a 10-s delay (Study 2). The results indicate that when tested immediately, children who heard a single instance labeled outperformed children who were presented with multiple instances. However, when tested after a brief delay, there was no difference among the conditions.
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Kucker SC. Processes and pathways in development via digital media: Examples from word learning. Infant Behav Dev 2021; 63:101559. [PMID: 33831800 DOI: 10.1016/j.infbeh.2021.101559] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2020] [Revised: 03/20/2021] [Accepted: 03/23/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Word learning unfolds over multiple, cascading pathways which support in-the-moment processing and learning. The process is refined with each exposure to a word, and exposures to new words occur across a variety of forms and contexts. However, as children are exposed to more and more digital media, the ways in which children encounter, learn, and build on their vocabulary is also shifting. These shifts represent changes in context, content, and at the level of the child that can lead to negative outcomes. Less work, however, has discussed what these differences mean for how things change in the underlying developmental cascade and learning processes. Here, we suggest that the increasing presence of digital media may shift the developmental pathways for learning (the chain of events that support future learning) but not necessarily the developmental processes (the mechanisms underlying learning). Moreover, the interaction of the two may lead to different behavior and outcomes for learning in a digital era. We argue it is imperative for researchers to not only study how digital media differs from everyday learning, but directly measure if the well-worn pathways, processes, and variables found with decades of research with real items translate to a digital media era.
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Xia X, Gui L, Yu F, Wu H, Wei B, Zhang YL, Zhan ZH. Triple Archives Particle Swarm Optimization. IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON CYBERNETICS 2020; 50:4862-4875. [PMID: 31613789 DOI: 10.1109/tcyb.2019.2943928] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
There are two common challenges in particle swarm optimization (PSO) research, that is, selecting proper exemplars and designing an efficient learning model for a particle. In this article, we propose a triple archives PSO (TAPSO), in which particles in three archives are used to deal with the above two challenges. First, particles who have better fitness (i.e., elites) are recorded in one archive while other particles who offer faster progress, called profiteers in this article, are saved in another archive. Second, when breeding each dimension of a potential exemplar for a particle, we choose a pair of elite and profiteer from corresponding archives as two parents to generate the dimension value by ordinary genetic operators. Third, each particle carries out a specific learning model according to the fitness of its potential exemplars. Furthermore, there is no acceleration coefficient in TAPSO aiming to simplify the learning models. Finally, if an exemplar has excellent performance, it will be regarded as an outstanding exemplar and saved in the third archive, which can be reused by inferior particles aiming to enhance the exploitation and to save computing resources. The experimental results and comparisons between TAPSO and other eight PSOs on 30 benchmark functions and four real applications suggest that TAPSO attains very promising performance in different types of functions, contributing to both higher solution accuracy and faster convergence speed. Furthermore, the effectiveness and efficiency of these new proposed strategies are discussed based on extensive experiments.
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Vinci-Booher S, James KH. Visual experiences during letter production contribute to the development of the neural systems supporting letter perception. Dev Sci 2020; 23:e12965. [PMID: 32176426 PMCID: PMC7901804 DOI: 10.1111/desc.12965] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2018] [Revised: 09/12/2019] [Accepted: 10/29/2019] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Letter production through handwriting creates visual experiences that may be important for the development of visual letter perception. We sought to better understand the neural responses to different visual percepts created during handwriting at different levels of experience. Three groups of participants, younger children, older children, and adults, ranging in age from 4.5 to 22 years old, were presented with dynamic and static presentations of their own handwritten letters, static presentations of an age-matched control's handwritten letters, and typeface letters during fMRI. First, data from each group were analyzed through a series of contrasts designed to highlight neural systems that were most sensitive to each visual experience in each age group. We found that younger children recruited ventral-temporal cortex during perception and this response was associated with the variability present in handwritten forms. Older children and adults also recruited ventral-temporal cortex; this response, however, was significant for typed letter forms but not variability. The adult response to typed letters was more distributed than in the children, including ventral-temporal, parietal, and frontal motor cortices. The adult response was also significant for one's own handwritten letters in left parietal cortex. Second, we compared responses among age groups. Compared to older children, younger children demonstrated a greater fusiform response associated with handwritten form variability. When compared to adults, younger children demonstrated a greater response to this variability in left parietal cortex. Our results suggest that the visual perception of the variability present in handwritten forms that occurs during handwriting may contribute to developmental changes in the neural systems that support letter perception.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sophia Vinci-Booher
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA
| | - Karin H James
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA
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Horst JS, Twomey KE, Morse AF, Nurse R, Cangelosi A. When Object Color Is a Red Herring: Extraneous Perceptual Information Hinders Word Learning via Referent Selection. IEEE Trans Cogn Dev Syst 2020. [DOI: 10.1109/tcds.2019.2894507] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
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21
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Xia X, Gui L, He G, Wei B, Zhang Y, Yu F, Wu H, Zhan ZH. An expanded particle swarm optimization based on multi-exemplar and forgetting ability. Inf Sci (N Y) 2020. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ins.2019.08.065] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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22
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Taxitari L, Twomey KE, Westermann G, Mani N. The Limits of Infants' Early Word Learning. LANGUAGE LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT : THE OFFICIAL JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY FOR LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT 2019; 16:1-21. [PMID: 32256251 PMCID: PMC7077354 DOI: 10.1080/15475441.2019.1670184] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/23/2023]
Abstract
In this series of experiments, we tested the limits of young infants' word learning and generalization abilities in light of recent findings reporting sophisticated word learning abilities in the first year of life. Ten-month-old infants were trained with two word-object pairs and tested with either the same or different members of the corresponding categories. In Experiment 1, infants showed successful learning of the word-object associations, when trained and tested with a single exemplar from each category. In Experiment 2, infants were presented with multiple within-category items during training but failed to learn the word-object associations. In Experiment 3, infants were presented with a single exemplar from each category during training, and failed to generalize words to a new category exemplar. However, when infants were trained with items from perceptually and conceptually distinct categories in Experiment 4, they showed weak evidence for generalization of words to novel members of the corresponding categories. It is suggested that word learning in the first year begins as the formation of simple associations between words and objects that become enriched as experience with objects, words and categories accumulates across development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Loukia Taxitari
- Department of Secondary General Education, Ministry of Education and Culture, Nicosia, Cyprus
| | - Katherine E. Twomey
- Division of Human Communication, Development and Hearing, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
| | - Gert Westermann
- Department of Psychology, Lancaster University, Lancaster, UK
| | - Nivedita Mani
- Georg-Elias-Müller Institute for Psychology, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, Germany
- Leibniz ScienceCampus Primate Cognition, Göttingen, Germany
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Eiteljoerge SFV, Adam M, Elsner B, Mani N. Consistency of co-occurring actions influences young children's word learning. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2019; 6:190097. [PMID: 31598229 PMCID: PMC6731739 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.190097] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2019] [Accepted: 07/02/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Communication with young children is often multimodal in nature, involving, for example, language and actions. The simultaneous presentation of information from both domains may boost language learning by highlighting the connection between an object and a word, owing to temporal overlap in the presentation of multimodal input. However, the overlap is not merely temporal but can also covary in the extent to which particular actions co-occur with particular words and objects, e.g. carers typically produce a hopping action when talking about rabbits and a snapping action for crocodiles. The frequency with which actions and words co-occurs in the presence of the referents of these words may also impact young children's word learning. We, therefore, examined the extent to which consistency in the co-occurrence of particular actions and words impacted children's learning of novel word-object associations. Children (18 months, 30 months and 36-48 months) and adults were presented with two novel objects and heard their novel labels while different actions were performed on these objects, such that the particular actions and word-object pairings always co-occurred (Consistent group) or varied across trials (Inconsistent group). At test, participants saw both objects and heard one of the labels to examine whether participants recognized the target object upon hearing its label. Growth curve models revealed that 18-month-olds did not learn words for objects in either condition, and 30-month-old and 36- to 48-month-old children learned words for objects only in the Consistent condition, in contrast to adults who learned words for objects independent of the actions presented. Thus, consistency in the multimodal input influenced word learning in early childhood but not in adulthood. In terms of a dynamic systems account of word learning, our study shows how multimodal learning settings interact with the child's perceptual abilities to shape the learning experience.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah F. V. Eiteljoerge
- Department for Psychology of Language, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany
- Leibniz ScienceCampus ‘Primate Cognition’, Goettingen, Germany
| | - Maurits Adam
- Developmental Psychology, Department of Psychology, University of Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany
| | - Birgit Elsner
- Developmental Psychology, Department of Psychology, University of Potsdam, Potsdam, Germany
| | - Nivedita Mani
- Department for Psychology of Language, University of Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany
- Leibniz ScienceCampus ‘Primate Cognition’, Goettingen, Germany
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24
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What makes a shape “baba”? The shape features prioritized in sound–shape correspondence change with development. J Exp Child Psychol 2019; 179:73-89. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2018.10.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2018] [Revised: 10/15/2018] [Accepted: 10/15/2018] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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25
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Brito NH, Fifer WP, Amso D, Barr R, Bell MA, Calkins S, Flynn A, Montgomery-Downs HE, Oakes LM, Richards JE, Samuelson LM, Colombo J. Beyond the Bayley: Neurocognitive Assessments of Development During Infancy and Toddlerhood. Dev Neuropsychol 2019; 44:220-247. [PMID: 30616391 PMCID: PMC6399032 DOI: 10.1080/87565641.2018.1564310] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2018] [Revised: 12/15/2018] [Accepted: 12/17/2018] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
The use of global, standardized instruments is conventional among clinicians and researchers interested in assessing neurocognitive development. Exclusively relying on these tests for evaluating effects may underestimate or miss specific effects on early cognition. The goal of this review is to identify alternative measures for possible inclusion in future clinical trials and interventions evaluating early neurocognitive development. The domains included for consideration are attention, memory, executive function, language, and socioemotional development. Although domain-based tests are limited, as psychometric properties have not yet been well-established, this review includes tasks and paradigms that have been reliably used across various developmental psychology laboratories.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natalie H Brito
- a Department of Applied Psychology , New York University , New York , NY , USA
| | - William P Fifer
- b Division of Developmental Neuroscience , New York State Psychiatric Institute , New York , NY , USA
| | - Dima Amso
- c Department of Cognitive, Linguistic, and Psychological Sciences , Brown University , Providence , RI , USA
| | - Rachel Barr
- d Department of Psychology , Georgetown University , Washington , DC , USA
| | - Martha Ann Bell
- e Department of Psychology , Virginia Tech , Blacksburg , VA , USA
| | - Susan Calkins
- f Department of Human Development and Family Studies , University of North Carolina at Greensboro , Greensboro , NC , USA
| | - Albert Flynn
- g School of Food and Nutritional Sciences , University College Cork , Cork , Ireland
| | | | - Lisa M Oakes
- i Department of Psychology , University of California , Davis , CA , USA
| | - John E Richards
- j Department of Psychology , University of South Carolina , Columbia , SC , USA
| | | | - John Colombo
- l Department of Psychology , University of Kansas , Lawrence , KS , USA
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26
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Plante E, Gómez RL. Learning Without Trying: The Clinical Relevance of Statistical Learning. Lang Speech Hear Serv Sch 2018; 49:710-722. [PMID: 30120448 PMCID: PMC6198914 DOI: 10.1044/2018_lshss-stlt1-17-0131] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2017] [Revised: 01/18/2018] [Accepted: 02/07/2018] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Purpose Statistical learning research seeks to identify the means by which learners, with little perceived effort, acquire the complexities of language. In the past 50 years, numerous studies have uncovered powerful learning mechanisms that allow for learning within minutes of exposure to novel language input. Method We consider the value of information from statistical learning studies that show potential for making treatment of language disorders faster and more effective. Results Available studies include experimental research that demonstrates the conditions under which rapid learning is possible, research showing that these findings apply to individuals with disorders, and translational work that has applied learning principles in treatment and educational contexts. In addition, recent research on memory formation has implications for treatment of language deficits. Conclusion The statistical learning literature offers principles for learning that can improve clinical outcomes for children with language impairment. There is potential for further applications of this basic research that is yet unexplored.
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Twomey KE, Westermann G. Curiosity-based learning in infants: a neurocomputational approach. Dev Sci 2018; 21:e12629. [PMID: 29071759 PMCID: PMC6032944 DOI: 10.1111/desc.12629] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2016] [Accepted: 09/05/2017] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
Abstract
Infants are curious learners who drive their own cognitive development by imposing structure on their learning environment as they explore. Understanding the mechanisms by which infants structure their own learning is therefore critical to our understanding of development. Here we propose an explicit mechanism for intrinsically motivated information selection that maximizes learning. We first present a neurocomputational model of infant visual category learning, capturing existing empirical data on the role of environmental complexity on learning. Next we "set the model free", allowing it to select its own stimuli based on a formalization of curiosity and three alternative selection mechanisms. We demonstrate that maximal learning emerges when the model is able to maximize stimulus novelty relative to its internal states, depending on the interaction across learning between the structure of the environment and the plasticity in the learner itself. We discuss the implications of this new curiosity mechanism for both existing computational models of reinforcement learning and for our understanding of this fundamental mechanism in early development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katherine E. Twomey
- Division of Human CommunicationDevelopment and HearingSchool of Health SciencesUniversity of ManchesterManchesterUK
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Twomey KE, Ma L, Westermann G. All the Right Noises: Background Variability Helps Early Word Learning. Cogn Sci 2018; 42 Suppl 2:413-438. [PMID: 28940612 PMCID: PMC6001535 DOI: 10.1111/cogs.12539] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2016] [Revised: 08/09/2017] [Accepted: 08/10/2017] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Variability is prevalent in early language acquisition, but, whether it supports or hinders learning is unclear; while target variability has been shown to facilitate word learning, variability in competitor items has been shown to make the task harder. Here, we tested whether background variability could boost learning in a referent selection task. Two groups of 2-year-old children saw arrays of one novel and two known objects on a screen, and they heard a novel or known label. Stimuli were identical across conditions, with the exception that in the constant color condition objects appeared on a uniform white background, and in the variable color condition backgrounds were different, uniform colors. At test, only children in the variable condition showed evidence of retaining label-object associations. These data support findings from the adult memory literature, which suggest that variability supports learning by decontextualizing representations. We argue that these data are consistent with dynamic systems accounts of learning in which low-level entropy adds sufficient noise to the developmental system to precipitate a change in behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Lizhi Ma
- Department of PsychologyLancaster University
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29
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Gladfelter A, Goffman L. Semantic richness and word learning in children with autism spectrum disorder. Dev Sci 2018; 21:10.1111/desc.12543. [PMID: 28470820 PMCID: PMC5671375 DOI: 10.1111/desc.12543] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2015] [Accepted: 11/28/2016] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Semantically rich learning contexts facilitate semantic, phonological, and articulatory aspects of word learning in children with typical development (TD). However, because children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) show differences at each of these processing levels, it is unclear whether they will benefit from semantic cues in the same manner as their typical peers. The goal of this study was to track how the inclusion of rich, sparse, or no semantic cues influences semantic, phonological, and articulatory aspects of word learning in children with ASD and TD over time. Twenty-four school-aged children (12 in each group), matched on expressive vocabulary, participated in an extended word learning paradigm. Performance on five measures of learning (referent identification, confrontation naming, defining, phonetic accuracy, and speech motor stability) were tracked across three sessions approximately one week apart to assess the influence of semantic richness on extended learning. Results indicate that children with ASD benefit from semantically rich learning contexts similarly to their peers with TD; however, one key difference between the two groups emerged - the children with ASD showed heightened shifts in speech motor stability. These findings offer insights into common learning mechanisms in children with ASD and TD, as well as pointing to a potentially distinct speech motor learning trajectory in children with ASD, providing a window into the emergence of stereotypic vocalizations in these children.
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Affiliation(s)
- Allison Gladfelter
- Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA
| | - Lisa Goffman
- Department of Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN, USA
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Aguilar JM, Plante E, Sandoval M. Exemplar Variability Facilitates Retention of Word Learning by Children With Specific Language Impairment. Lang Speech Hear Serv Sch 2018; 49:72-84. [PMID: 29131888 PMCID: PMC6105085 DOI: 10.1044/2017_lshss-17-0031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2017] [Revised: 06/25/2017] [Accepted: 08/25/2017] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Purpose Variability in the input plays an important role in language learning. The current study examined the role of object variability for new word learning by preschoolers with specific language impairment (SLI). Method Eighteen 4- and 5-year-old children with SLI were taught 8 new words in 3 short activities over the course of 3 sessions. Half of the children saw 3 identical objects corresponding to each new word during training (No Variability group); the other half of the children saw 3 different objects corresponding to each new word during training (High Variability group). Children completed vocabulary learning tests for objects seen during training and for new within-category objects that were never seen during training as a test of category generalization. Learning was assessed the day after each training activity, and retention was assessed 3 weeks after the last training session. Results There were no group differences on trained or generalization items immediately following training sessions. However, children in the High Variability group demonstrated significantly better retention 3 weeks after experimental training. Conclusion These findings demonstrate that object variability facilitates retention of new word learning by children with SLI. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.5583979.
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31
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Hilton M, Westermann G. The effect of shyness on children's formation and retention of novel word-object mappings. JOURNAL OF CHILD LANGUAGE 2017; 44:1394-1412. [PMID: 27916017 DOI: 10.1017/s030500091600057x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
This study set out to examine whether shyness, an aversion to novelty and unfamiliar social situations, can affect the processes that underlie early word learning. Twenty-four-month-old children (n =32) were presented with sets of one novel and two familiar objects, and it was found that shyer children were less likely to select a novel object as the referent of a novel label. Furthermore, not-shy children then showed evidence of retaining these novel mappings, but shy children did not. These findings suggest that shy children's aversion to novelty and to the unfamiliar context can impact on their word learning.
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32
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Flack ZM, Horst JS. Two sides to every story: Children learn words better from one storybook page at a time. INFANT AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT 2017. [DOI: 10.1002/icd.2047] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
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Sandoval M, Leclerc JA, Gómez RL. Words to Sleep On: Naps Facilitate Verb Generalization in Habitually and Nonhabitually Napping Preschoolers. Child Dev 2017; 88:1615-1628. [PMID: 28128457 DOI: 10.1111/cdev.12723] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
A nap soon after encoding leads to better learning in infancy. However, whether napping plays the same role in preschoolers' learning is unclear. In Experiment 1 (N = 39), 3-year-old habitual and nonhabitual nappers learned novel verbs before a nap or a period of wakefulness and received a generalization test examining word extension to novel actors after 24 hr. Only habitual and nonhabitual nappers who napped after learning generalized 24 hr later. In Experiment 2 (N = 40), children learned the same verbs but were tested within 2-3 min of training. Here, habitual and nonhabitual nappers retained the mappings but did not generalize. The results suggest that naps consolidate weak learning that habitual and nonhabitual nappers would otherwise forget over periods of wakefulness.
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Gordon KR, McGregor KK, Waldier B, Curran MK, Gomez RL, Samuelson LK. Preschool Children's Memory for Word Forms Remains Stable Over Several Days, but Gradually Decreases after 6 Months. Front Psychol 2016; 7:1439. [PMID: 27729880 PMCID: PMC5037137 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01439] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2016] [Accepted: 09/08/2016] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Research on word learning has focused on children's ability to identify a target object when given the word form after a minimal number of exposures to novel word-object pairings. However, relatively little research has focused on children's ability to retrieve the word form when given the target object. The exceptions involve asking children to recall and produce forms, and children typically perform near floor on these measures. In the current study, 3- to 5-year-old children were administered a novel test of word form that allowed for recognition memory and manual responses. Specifically, when asked to label a previously trained object, children were given three forms to choose from: the target, a minimally different form, and a maximally different form. Children demonstrated memory for word forms at three post-training delays: 10 mins (short-term), 2-3 days (long-term), and 6 months to 1 year (very long-term). However, children performed worse at the very long-term delay than the other time points, and the length of the very long-term delay was negatively related to performance. When in error, children were no more likely to select the minimally different form than the maximally different form at all time points. Overall, these results suggest that children remember word forms that are linked to objects over extended post-training intervals, but that their memory for the forms gradually decreases over time without further exposures. Furthermore, memory traces for word forms do not become less phonologically specific over time; rather children either identify the correct form, or they perform at chance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katherine R. Gordon
- DeLTA Center and Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Iowa, Iowa CityIA, USA
| | - Karla K. McGregor
- DeLTA Center and Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Iowa, Iowa CityIA, USA
| | - Brigitte Waldier
- DeLTA Center and Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Iowa, Iowa CityIA, USA
| | - Maura K. Curran
- DeLTA Center and Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders, University of Iowa, Iowa CityIA, USA
| | - Rebecca L. Gomez
- Department of Psychology, The University of Arizona, TucsonAZ, USA
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Axelsson EL, Williams SE, Horst JS. The Effect of Sleep on Children's Word Retention and Generalization. Front Psychol 2016; 7:1192. [PMID: 27588007 PMCID: PMC4989030 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2016.01192] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2016] [Accepted: 07/27/2016] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
In the first few years of life children spend a good proportion of time sleeping as well as acquiring the meanings of hundreds of words. There is now ample evidence of the effects of sleep on memory in adults and the number of studies demonstrating the effects of napping and nocturnal sleep in children is also mounting. In particular, sleep appears to benefit children's memory for recently-encountered novel words. The effect of sleep on children's generalization of novel words across multiple items, however, is less clear. Given that sleep is polyphasic in the early years, made up of multiple episodes, and children's word learning is gradual and strengthened slowly over time, it is highly plausible that sleep is a strong candidate in supporting children's memory for novel words. Importantly, it appears that when children sleep shortly after exposure to novel word-object pairs retention is better than if sleep is delayed, suggesting that napping plays a vital role in long-term word retention for young children. Word learning is a complex, challenging, and important part of development, thus the role that sleep plays in children's retention of novel words is worthy of attention. As such, ensuring children get sufficient good quality sleep and regular opportunities to nap may be critical for language acquisition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emma L Axelsson
- Research School of Psychology, The Australian National University Canberra, ACT, Australia
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Thill S, Twomey KE. What's on the Inside Counts: A Grounded Account of Concept Acquisition and Development. Front Psychol 2016; 7:402. [PMID: 27047427 PMCID: PMC4804724 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00402] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2016] [Accepted: 03/07/2016] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Understanding the factors which affect the age of acquisition (AoA) of words and concepts is fundamental to understanding cognitive development more broadly. Traditionally, studies of AoA have taken two approaches, either exploring the effect of linguistic variables such as input frequency (e.g., Naigles and Hoff-Ginsberg, 1998) or the semantics of the underlying concept, such as concreteness or imageability (e.g., Bird et al., 2001). Embodied theories of cognition, meanwhile, assume that concepts, even relatively abstract ones, can be grounded in the embodied experience. While the focus of such discussions has been mainly on grounding in external modalities, more recently some have argued for the importance of interoceptive features, or grounding in complex modalities such as social interaction. In this paper, we argue for the integration and extension of these two strands of research. We demonstrate that the psycholinguistic factors traditionally considered to determine AoA are far from sufficient to account for the variability observed in AoA data. Given this gap, we propose groundability as a new conceptual tool that can measure the degree to which concepts are grounded both in external and, critically, internal modalities. We then present a mechanistic theory of conceptual representation that can account for groundability in addition to the existing variables argued to influence concept acquisition in both the developmental and embodied cognition literatures, and discuss its implications for future work in concept and cognitive development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Serge Thill
- Interaction Lab, School of Informatics, University of SkövdeSkövde, Sweden
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37
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The Novel Object and Unusual Name (NOUN) Database: A collection of novel images for use in experimental research. Behav Res Methods 2015; 48:1393-1409. [DOI: 10.3758/s13428-015-0647-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 126] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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38
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Vukatana E, Graham SA, Curtin S, Zepeda MS. One is Not Enough: Multiple Exemplars Facilitate Infants' Generalizations of Novel Properties. INFANCY 2015. [DOI: 10.1111/infa.12092] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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39
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Horst JS, Simmering VR. Category learning in a dynamic world. Front Psychol 2015; 6:46. [PMID: 25688224 PMCID: PMC4311603 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2015.00046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2014] [Accepted: 01/09/2015] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Jessica S. Horst
- Word Lab, School of Psychology, University of SussexBrighton, UK
| | - Vanessa R. Simmering
- Space Lab, Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin—MadisonMadison, WI, USA
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40
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Contextual repetition facilitates word learning via fast mapping. Acta Psychol (Amst) 2014; 152:95-9. [PMID: 25195163 DOI: 10.1016/j.actpsy.2014.08.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2014] [Revised: 08/01/2014] [Accepted: 08/07/2014] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
The current study explores whether contextual repetition during fast mapping facilitates word learning. Three-year-old children completed fast mapping and test trials using a touchscreen computer. For half of the children, the non-targets (competitors) repeated across learning trials and for other children there was no repetition. All children received the same test trials. Children who experienced contextual repetition, that is, children for whom the competitors repeated during the initial fast mapping task, demonstrated word learning. These data demonstrate that children's word learning is facilitated by the presence of extraneous yet predictable information in the initial fast mapping task.
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Twomey KE, Lush L, Pearce R, Horst JS. Visual variability affects early verb learning. BRITISH JOURNAL OF DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY 2014; 32:359-66. [DOI: 10.1111/bjdp.12042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2013] [Revised: 03/10/2014] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Lauren Lush
- School of Psychology; University of Sussex; UK
| | - Ruth Pearce
- School of Psychology; University of Sussex; UK
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