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Madhavan R, Malem B, Ackermann L, Mundry R, Mani N. An examination of measures of young children's interest in natural object categories. Cortex 2024; 175:124-148. [PMID: 38553356 DOI: 10.1016/j.cortex.2024.02.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2022] [Revised: 01/31/2024] [Accepted: 02/08/2024] [Indexed: 05/29/2024]
Abstract
Developmental research utilizes various different methodologies and measures to study the cognitive development of young children; however, the reliability and validity of such measures have been a critical issue in all areas of research practices. To address this problem, particularly in the area of research on infants' interests, we examined the convergent validity of previously reported measures of children's interests in natural object categories, as indexed by (1) parents' estimation of their child's interest in the categories, (2) extrinsic (overt choices in a task), (3) intrinsic (looking time toward objects), and (4) physiological (pupil dilation) responses to objects of different categories. Additionally, we also examined the discriminant validity of all the aforementioned measures against the well-established and validated measure of parents' estimations of children's vocabulary knowledge. Children completed two tasks: (a) an eye-tracking task, where they were presented with images from a range of defined categories, which collected indices of looking time and pupillary activity; (b) a sticker-choice task, where they were asked to choose between two sticker-images from two different categories belonging to the range of categories assessed in the previous task. Parents completed two questionnaires to estimate (i) their child's interests and (ii) vocabulary knowledge in the categories presented. We first analyzed the discriminant validity between the two parent measures, and found a significant positive association between them. Our successive analyses showed no strong or significant associations between any of our measures, apart from a significant positive association between children's looking time and parents' estimations of children's vocabulary knowledge. From our findings, we conclude that measures of infants' interests thus far may not have sufficient reliability to adequately capture any potential relationship between these measures, or index different components of interest in young children. We suggest next steps for further validation studies in infant research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rajalakshmi Madhavan
- Psychology of Language Department, University of Göttingen, Goßlerstraße 14, 37073, Göttingen, Germany; Leibniz ScienceCampus Primate Cognition, Kellnerweg 4, 37077, Göttingen, Germany; University of Göttingen, Wilhelmsplatz 1, 37073, Göttingen, Germany.
| | - Ben Malem
- Psychology of Language Department, University of Göttingen, Goßlerstraße 14, 37073, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Lena Ackermann
- German Primate Center, Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, Kellnerweg 4, 37077, Göttingen, Germany; University of Göttingen, Wilhelmsplatz 1, 37073, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Roger Mundry
- Leibniz ScienceCampus Primate Cognition, Kellnerweg 4, 37077, Göttingen, Germany; Cognitive Ethology Laboratory, German Primate Center, Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, Kellnerweg 4, 37077 Göttingen; Department for Primate Cognition, Georg-August-University Göttingen, Germany
| | - Nivedita Mani
- Psychology of Language Department, University of Göttingen, Goßlerstraße 14, 37073, Göttingen, Germany; Leibniz ScienceCampus Primate Cognition, Kellnerweg 4, 37077, Göttingen, Germany; University of Göttingen, Wilhelmsplatz 1, 37073, Göttingen, Germany
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de Eccher M, Mundry R, Mani N. Children's subjective uncertainty-driven sampling behaviour. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2024; 11:231283. [PMID: 38660597 PMCID: PMC11040239 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.231283] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2023] [Revised: 01/26/2024] [Accepted: 03/22/2024] [Indexed: 04/26/2024]
Abstract
Are children and adults sensitive to gaps in their knowledge, and do they actively elicit information to resolve such knowledge gaps? In a cross-situational word learning task, we asked 5-year-olds, 6- to 9-year-olds and adults to estimate their knowledge of newly learned word-object associations. We then examined whether participants preferentially sampled objects they reported not knowing the label in order to hear their labels again. We also examined whether such uncertainty-driven sampling behaviour led to improved learning. We found that all age groups were sensitive to gaps in their knowledge of the word-object associations, i.e. were more likely to say they had correctly indicated the label of an object when they were correct, relative to when they were incorrect. Furthermore, 6- to 9-year-olds and adults-but not 5-year-olds-were more likely to sample objects whose labels they reported not knowing. In other words, older children and adults displayed sampling behaviour directed at reducing knowledge gaps and uncertainty, while younger children did not. However, participants who displayed more uncertainty-driven sampling behaviour were not more accurate at test. Our findings underscore the role of uncertainty in driving 6- to 9-year-olds' and adults' sampling behaviour and speak to the mechanisms underlying previously reported performance boosts in active learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martina de Eccher
- Psychology of Language Department, University of Göttingen, Göttingen37073, Germany
- Leibniz Science Campus “Primate Cognition”, Göttingen37077, Germany
| | - Roger Mundry
- Leibniz Science Campus “Primate Cognition”, Göttingen37077, Germany
- Cognitive Ethology Laboratory,German Primate Center, Leibniz Institute for Primate Research, Göttingen37077, Germany
- Department for Primate Cognition, Johann-Friedrich-Blumenbach Institute, Georg-August-University Göttingen, Göttingen37077, Germany
| | - Nivedita Mani
- Psychology of Language Department, University of Göttingen, Göttingen37073, Germany
- Leibniz Science Campus “Primate Cognition”, Göttingen37077, Germany
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Madhavan R, Mani N. The quality of caregiver-child interaction is predicted by (caregivers' perception of) their child's interests. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2024; 11:231677. [PMID: 38660594 PMCID: PMC11040257 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.231677] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/03/2023] [Revised: 02/15/2024] [Accepted: 03/07/2024] [Indexed: 04/26/2024]
Abstract
This current study examines the extent to which children's interests and caregivers' sensitivity to their children's interests are associated with the quality of caregiver-child interaction, and subsequent learning. Eighty-one caregiver-child dyads (24-30-month old children) completed an online shared book-reading task where caregivers and children read two e-books with pictures and descriptions of objects from different categories-one previously determined to be of low and one of high interest to the child (with one novel word-object mapping introduced in each book). We also obtained separate behavioural indices of children's interests and children's later recognition of newly introduced word-object mappings. Our findings highlight that the quality of caregiver-child interaction is predicted by children's interests and caregivers' perception of children's interests, although we find only limited overlap between our behavioural indices of children's interests and caregiver perception of children's interests. Neither of these factors predicted later novel word recognition. Thus, while the dynamics between higher quality of caregiver-child interaction, children's interests and learning remain inconclusive, caregivers and children appear to be more attentive, enthusiastic and engaged in reading about topics that (caregivers believe) interest the child. Furthermore, learning in itself seems to be successful, regardless of factors involved, through the mere task of shared book reading.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rajalakshmi Madhavan
- Psychology of Language Department, University of Göttingen, Göttingen37073, Germany
- Leibniz ScienceCampus Primate Cognition, Göttingen37077, Germany
| | - Nivedita Mani
- Psychology of Language Department, University of Göttingen, Göttingen37073, Germany
- Leibniz ScienceCampus Primate Cognition, Göttingen37077, Germany
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Tsui RKY, Kosie JE, Fibla L, Lew-Williams C, Byers-Heinlein K. Patterns of language switching and bilingual children's word learning: An experiment across two communities. TRANSLATIONAL ISSUES IN PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE 2023; 9:323-337. [PMID: 38405269 PMCID: PMC10883668 DOI: 10.1037/tps0000353] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/27/2024]
Abstract
Language switching is common in bilingual environments, including those of many bilingual children. Some bilingual children hear rapid switching that involves immediate translation of words (an 'immediate-translation' pattern), while others hear their languages most often in long blocks of a single language (a 'one-language-at-a-time' pattern). Our two-site experimental study compared two groups of developing bilinguals from different communities, and investigated whether differences in the timing of language switching impose different demands on bilingual children's learning of novel nouns in their two languages: do children learn differently if they hear a translation immediately vs. if they hear translations more separated in time? Using an at-home online tablet word learning task, data were collected asynchronously from 3- to 5-year-old bilinguals from French-English bilingual families in Montreal, Canada (N = 31) and Spanish-English bilingual families in New Jersey, USA (N = 22). Results showed that bilingual children in both communities readily learned new words, and their performance was similar across the immediate-translation and one-language-at-a-time conditions. Our findings highlight that different types of bilingual interactions can provide equal learning opportunities for bilingual children's vocabulary development.
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Lo CH, Hermes J, Kartushina N, Mayor J, Mani N. e-Babylab: An open-source browser-based tool for unmoderated online developmental studies. Behav Res Methods 2023:10.3758/s13428-023-02200-7. [PMID: 37620744 DOI: 10.3758/s13428-023-02200-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/12/2023] [Indexed: 08/26/2023]
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic massively changed the context and feasibility of developmental research. This new reality, as well as considerations about sample diversity and naturalistic settings for developmental research, highlights the need for solutions for online studies. In this article, we present e-Babylab, an open-source browser-based tool for unmoderated online studies targeted for young children and babies. e-Babylab offers an intuitive graphical user interface for study creation and management of studies, users, participant data, and stimulus material, with no programming skills required. Various kinds of audiovisual media can be presented as stimuli, and possible measures include webcam recordings, audio recordings, key presses, mouse-click/touch coordinates, and reaction times. An additional feature of e-Babylab is the possibility to administer short adaptive versions of MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventories (Chai et al. Journal of Speech, Language, and Hearing Research, 63, 3488-3500, 2020). Information pages, consent forms, and participant forms are customizable. e-Babylab has been used with a variety of measures and paradigms in over 12 studies with children aged 12 months to 8 years (n = 1516). We briefly summarize some results of these studies to demonstrate that data quality, participant engagement, and overall results are comparable between laboratory and online settings. Finally, we discuss helpful tips for using e-Babylab and present plans for upgrades.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chang Huan Lo
- School of Psychology, University of Nottingham Malaysia, Semenyih, Malaysia
| | - Jonas Hermes
- Department of Developmental Psychology, Institute of Psychology, University of Göttingen, Waldweg 26, D-37073, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Natalia Kartushina
- Center for Multilingualism in Society across the Lifespan (Multiling), University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
- Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Julien Mayor
- Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Nivedita Mani
- Leibniz ScienceCampus Primate Cognition, Kellnerweg 4, D-37077, Göttingen, Germany.
- Department of Psychology of Language, Institute of Psychology, University of Göttingen, Goßlerstr. 14, D-37073, Göttingen, Germany.
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Outters V, Hepach R, Behne T, Mani N. Children's affective involvement in early word learning. Sci Rep 2023; 13:7351. [PMID: 37147313 PMCID: PMC10162962 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-34049-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2022] [Accepted: 04/23/2023] [Indexed: 05/07/2023] Open
Abstract
The current study set out to examine the underlying physiological mechanisms of and the emotional response associated with word learning success in young 3-year-old predominantly white children. In particular, we examined whether children's physiological arousal following a word learning task predicts their word learning success and whether successful learning in turn predicts children's subsequent positive emotions. We presented children (n = 50) with a cross-situational word learning task and measured their pupillary arousal following completion of the task, as well as changes to their upper body posture following completion of the task, as indices of children's emotions following task completion. Children who showed greater physiological arousal following the novel word recognition task (n = 40) showed improved subsequent word recognition performance. We found that children showed more elevated posture after completing a familiar word learning task compared to completing a novel word learning task (n = 33) but results on children's individual learning success and postural elevation were mixed. We discuss the findings with regards to children's affective involvement in word learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vivien Outters
- Department for Psychology of Language, University of Goettingen, Göttingen, Germany
- Leibniz Science Campus "Primate Cognition", Göttingen, Germany
| | - Robert Hepach
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Tanya Behne
- Leibniz Science Campus "Primate Cognition", Göttingen, Germany
- Department of Developmental Psychology, University of Goettingen, Göttingen, Germany
| | - Nivedita Mani
- Department for Psychology of Language, University of Goettingen, Göttingen, Germany.
- Leibniz Science Campus "Primate Cognition", Göttingen, Germany.
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Gaining access to the unknown: Preschoolers privilege unknown information as the target of their questions about verbs. J Exp Child Psychol 2022; 217:105358. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2021.105358] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2021] [Revised: 12/20/2021] [Accepted: 12/22/2021] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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Kartushina N, Rosslund A, Mayor J. Toddlers raised in multi-dialectal families learn words better in accented speech than those raised in monodialectal families. JOURNAL OF CHILD LANGUAGE 2021; 49:1-26. [PMID: 34253274 DOI: 10.1017/s0305000921000520] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Multi-accent environments offer rich but inconsistent language input, as words are produced differently across accents. The current study examined, in two experiments, whether multi-accent variability affects infants' ability to learn words and whether toddlers' prior experience with accents modulates learning. In Experiment 1, two-and-a-half-year-old Norwegian toddlers were exposed, in their kindergarten, twice per day for one week, to a child-friendly audiovisual tablet-based e-book containing four novel pseudowords. Half of the toddlers heard the story in three Norwegian accents, whereas the other half heard it in one Norwegian accent. The results revealed no differences between conditions, suggesting that multi-accent variability did not hinder toddlers' word learning. In experiment 2, two-and-a-half-year-old Norwegian toddlers were exposed, in their homes, for one week, to the e-book featuring three Norwegian accents. The results revealed overall better learning in toddlers raised in bi-dialectal households, as compared to mono-dialectal peers - suggesting that accent exposure benefits learning in multi-accent environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natalia Kartushina
- Department of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Oslo Forskningsveien 3A, Harald Schjelderups hus, 0373Oslo, Norway
- Center for Multilingualism in Society across the Lifespan, Faculty of Humanities, University of Oslo, Niels Henrik Abels vei 36, 0313Oslo, , ,
| | - Audun Rosslund
- Center for Multilingualism in Society across the Lifespan, Faculty of Humanities, University of Oslo, Niels Henrik Abels vei 36, 0313Oslo, , ,
| | - Julien Mayor
- Department of Psychology, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Oslo Forskningsveien 3A, Harald Schjelderups hus, 0373Oslo, Norway
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Papadakis S. The Impact of Coding Apps to Support Young Children in Computational Thinking and Computational Fluency. A Literature Review. FRONTIERS IN EDUCATION 2021. [DOI: 10.3389/feduc.2021.657895] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
Data that shows that young children can learn and acquire Computational Thinking (CT) skills has led governments and policymakers internationally to integrate CT into the curriculum, starting in the earliest grades. Researchers support the idea that this introduction must not solely focus on a problem-solving process skill (CT) but instead provide children with new ways to express themselves, supporting their cognitive, language, and socio-emotional development (Computational Fluency-CF). Coupled with the media and government’s rhetoric and an increasing number of apps offering various programming lessons, puzzles, and challenges, educators have been responsible for introducing young children to CT and CF using touchscreen technology. This paper presents a literature review (N = 21) of empirical studies on applying four coding apps to support young children’s learning of CT and CF. The main conclusion is that all apps positively affect the development of children’s CT skills. None of the apps can ultimately support the development of CF, although ScratchJr, with a “sandbox” approach, can better help students express themselves.
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Lo CH, Rosslund A, Chai JH, Mayor J, Kartushina N. Tablet assessment of word comprehension reveals coarse word representations in 18–20‐month‐old toddlers. INFANCY 2021; 26:596-616. [DOI: 10.1111/infa.12401] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2020] [Revised: 01/29/2021] [Accepted: 01/31/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Chang Huan Lo
- School of Psychology University of Nottingham Malaysia Semenyih Malaysia
| | - Audun Rosslund
- Department of Psychology & Center for Multilingualism in Society across the Lifespan (MultiLing) University of Oslo Oslo Norway
| | - Jun Ho Chai
- School of Psychology University of Nottingham Malaysia Semenyih Malaysia
| | - Julien Mayor
- Department of Psychology University of Oslo Oslo Norway
| | - Natalia Kartushina
- Department of Psychology & Center for Multilingualism in Society across the Lifespan (MultiLing) University of Oslo Oslo Norway
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