Directive interactions and early vocabulary development: the role of joint attentional focus

Author: Akhtar, N.; Dunham, F.; Dunham, P.J.

Description: Maternal directiveness, assessed by the mother’s use of prescriptives, is correlated with slow vocabulary development. As prescriptives are most often used to redirect a child’s attention to a different object or activity, it is hypothesized that attentional regulation underlies this negative relationship. In the present study, twelve mothers were videotaped interacting with their children aged 1;1, and 100 maternal utterances were coded for pragmatic intent. Prescriptives were coded as either changing (LEADING) or FOLLOWING the child’s focus of attention. Only the frequency of mothers’ FOLLOW-prescriptives correlated significantly with a productive vocabulary measure taken at 1;10. This correlation was high and positive, indicating that, given joint focus, directing a 13-month-old’s behaviour can have beneficial effects on subsequent vocabulary development.

Subject headings: Directiveness; Prescriptives; Vocabulary development

Publication year: 1991

Journal or book title: Journal of Child Language

Volume: 18

Issue: 01

Pages: 41

Find the full text : https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-child-language/article/directive-interactions-and-early-vocabulary-development-the-role-of-joint-attentional-focus/C25524B80E94DFE15D5322AB2034322E

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Type: Journal Article

Serial number: 1965