The Production Effect Improves Memory in 7- to 10-Year-Old Children

A Shift in the Direction of the Production Effect in Children Aged 2-6 Years

Research has found mixed evidence for the production effect in childhood. Some studies have found a positive effect of production on word recognition and recall, while others have found the reverse. This paper takes a developmental approach to investigate the production effect. Children aged 2-6 years (n = 150) from a predominantly white population in Ottawa, Canada were trained on familiar words which were either seen, heard or produced, followed by a recall task. Results showed a developmental shift: younger participants showed a reverse production effect, recalling more words that were heard during training, while older children showed the typical production effect, recalling more produced words. The effect of production on recall is not unidirectional and varies by age.

Perceptual Learning and Production Practice Differentially Affect How Children Produce Novel Words

Purpose Perceptual learning and production practice are basic mechanisms that children depend on to acquire adult levels of speech accuracy. In this study, we examined perceptual learning and production practice as they contributed to changes in speech accuracy in 3- and 4-year-old children. Our primary focus was manipulating the order of perceptual learning and production practice to better understand when and how these learning mechanisms interact. Method Sixty-five typically developing children between the ages of 3 and 4 years were included in the study. Children were asked to produce CVCCVC (C = consonant, V = vowel) nonwords like /bozjəm/ and /tʌvtʃəp/ that were described as the names of make-believe animals. All children completed two separate experimental blocks: a control block in which participants heard each nonword once and repeated it, and a test block in which the perceptual input frequency of each nonword varied between 1 and 10. Half of the participants completed a control-test order; half completed a test-control order. Results Greater accuracy was observed for nonwords produced in the second experimental block, reflecting a production practice effect. Perceptual learning resulted in greater accuracy during the test for nonwords that participants heard 3 times or more. However, perceptual learning did not carry over to control productions in the test-control design, suggesting that it reflects a kind of temporary priming. Finally, a post hoc analysis suggested that the size of the production practice effect depended on the age of acquisition of the consonants that comprised the nonwords. Conclusions The study provides new details about how perceptual learning and production practice interact with each other and with phonological aspects of the nonwords, resulting in complex effects on speech accuracy and learning of form-referent pairs. These findings may ultimately help speech-language pathologists maximize their clients' improvement in therapy. Supplemental Material https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.12971411.