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Breitfeld E, Compton AM, Saffran JR. Toddlers' prior social experience with speakers influences their word learning. INFANCY 2024. [PMID: 38809566 DOI: 10.1111/infa.12608] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/01/2023] [Revised: 03/19/2024] [Accepted: 05/17/2024] [Indexed: 05/30/2024]
Abstract
Toddlers prefer to learn from familiar adults, particularly their caregivers, and perform better on word learning tasks when taught by caregivers than by strangers. However, it remains unclear why toddlers learn better from caregivers than from strangers. One possibility is that toddlers are more receptive to learning from individuals whom they have found to be engaging in previous interactions. The current study tested whether toddlers learn more from an unfamiliar adult who was previously engaging than from an unfamiliar adult who was previously unengaging. Toddlers (27-29 months, N = 40) were taught labels for novel objects by two different experimenters. Prior to word learning, toddlers watched pre-recorded videos of one experimenter utilizing engaging behaviors (i.e., using infant-directed speech, gestures, eye contact, and positive affect) and one experimenter utilizing unengaging behaviors (i.e., using adult-directed speech, no gestures, no eye contact, and neutral affect). Both experimenters were equally engaging during labeling. Word learning was then tested using a looking-while-listening paradigm. The results of linear mixed-effects model, cluster-based permutation, and growth curve analyses suggest heightened performance for words that were taught by the experimenter who was previously engaging. These results begin to reveal the kinds of social experiences that promote success in early word learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elise Breitfeld
- Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
| | - Anna M Compton
- Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
| | - Jenny R Saffran
- Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
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Lampis V, Mascheretti S, Cantiani C, Riva V, Lorusso ML, Lecce S, Molteni M, Antonietti A, Giorgetti M. Long-Lasting Effects of Changes in Daily Routine during the Pandemic-Related Lockdown on Preschoolers’ Language and Emotional–Behavioral Development: A Moderation Analysis. CHILDREN 2023; 10:children10040656. [PMID: 37189908 DOI: 10.3390/children10040656] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2023] [Revised: 03/23/2023] [Accepted: 03/27/2023] [Indexed: 04/03/2023]
Abstract
The quantity and quality of environmental stimuli and contexts are crucial for children’s development. Following the outbreak of SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19), restrictive measures have been implemented, constraining children’s social lives and changing their daily routines. To date, there is a lack of research assessing the long-lasting impacts that these changes have had on children’s language and emotional–behavioral development. In a large sample of preschoolers (N = 677), we investigated (a) the long-lasting effects of changes in family and social life and in daily activities over the first Italian nationwide COVID-19-pandemic-related lockdown upon children’s linguistic and emotional–behavioral profiles and (b) how children’s demographic variables and lifelong family characteristics moderated these associations within a multiple-moderator framework. Our findings showed a relationship between the time spent watching TV/playing video games and affective problems that was moderated by the number of siblings. Our findings showed that children who could be at high risk in more normal circumstances, such as only children, have been particularly harmed. Therefore, assessing the long-term effects of lockdown-related measures and how these could have been moderated by potential risk/protective factors added significant information to the existing literature.
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Affiliation(s)
- Valentina Lampis
- Department of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, University of Pavia, 27100 Pavia, PV, Italy
- Child Psychopathology Unit, Scientific Institute, IRCCS Eugenio Medea, 23842 Bosisio Parini, LC, Italy
| | - Sara Mascheretti
- Department of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, University of Pavia, 27100 Pavia, PV, Italy
- Child Psychopathology Unit, Scientific Institute, IRCCS Eugenio Medea, 23842 Bosisio Parini, LC, Italy
| | - Chiara Cantiani
- Child Psychopathology Unit, Scientific Institute, IRCCS Eugenio Medea, 23842 Bosisio Parini, LC, Italy
| | - Valentina Riva
- Child Psychopathology Unit, Scientific Institute, IRCCS Eugenio Medea, 23842 Bosisio Parini, LC, Italy
| | - Maria Luisa Lorusso
- Child Psychopathology Unit, Scientific Institute, IRCCS Eugenio Medea, 23842 Bosisio Parini, LC, Italy
| | - Serena Lecce
- Department of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, University of Pavia, 27100 Pavia, PV, Italy
| | - Massimo Molteni
- Child Psychopathology Unit, Scientific Institute, IRCCS Eugenio Medea, 23842 Bosisio Parini, LC, Italy
| | - Alessandro Antonietti
- Department of Psychology, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, 20123 Milan, MI, Italy
| | - Marisa Giorgetti
- Department of Psychology, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, 20123 Milan, MI, Italy
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Mustonen R, Torppa R, Stolt S. Screen Time of Preschool-Aged Children and Their Mothers, and Children's Language Development. CHILDREN (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2022; 9:children9101577. [PMID: 36291513 PMCID: PMC9601267 DOI: 10.3390/children9101577] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2022] [Revised: 10/13/2022] [Accepted: 10/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
Although children’s increased screen time has been found to associate with poorer language development, it is open to question which part of language ability screen time specifically associates with. Our aim was to examine the association between children’s screen time (alone and together with a parent), mothers’ screen time, and the different domains of children’s language skills. Mothers reported their children’s (N = 164, aged 2.5 to 4.1 years) screen time and their own on a weekday and a day off. Children’s lexical, phonological, morphological, receptive, and general language abilities were measured using validated tests. The connections between children’s and mothers’ screen time and children’s language skills were analyzed using correlation analyses and linear regression models. The more the children used screen time alone, or the greater the amount of the mothers’ screen time, the weaker the children’s lexical and general language abilities when the children’s age, maternal education level, and birth order were controlled for. We also found cumulative, negative links to the children’s lexical and general language abilities when the amount of their screen time alone and the amount of the mothers’ screen time were simultaneously included in the regression model. The results suggest that it is important to restrict both children’s screen time spent alone and mothers’ screen time.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lauren J Myers
- Department of Psychology, Lafayette College, Easton PA, USA
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