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Bilingual versus monolingual infants' novel word-action mapping before and after first-word production: Influence of developing noun-dominance on perceptual narrowing
Published in Cambridge University Press
2020
Volume: 23
   
Issue: 1
Pages: 148 - 157
Abstract
This experimental study examined bilingual (English and another noun-dominant language) and monolingual (English) preverbal (10.5-month-old) and postverbal (12.5-month-old) infants' word-action mapping. Sixteen infants in each group were habituated to dynamic video-displays of novel word-action pairings during infant-controlled habituation. They received two words, /wem/ and /b{\ae}f/, spoken synchronously with an adult shaking or looming an object and were tested with switched versus same word-action pairings. Results revealed that for the preverbal bilingual infants, word-action mapping is intensified relative to postverbal bilingual infants. For the postverbal bilingual infants, word-action mapping is attenuated and inversely correlated with noun learning. No such differences were observed in the monolingual infants. These findings illustrate a perceptual protraction prior to word production and accelerated perceptual narrowing to nouns after word production in bilingual infants learning two noun-dominant languages.
About the journal
JournalData powered by TypesetBilingualism
PublisherData powered by TypesetCambridge University Press
ISSN14691841
Open AccessNo