Attention-sensitive signalling by 7- to 20-month-old infants in a comparative perspective.

ABSTRACT: Attention-sensitive signalling is the pragmatic skill of signallers who adjust the modality of their communicative signals to their recipient's attention state. This study provides the first comprehensive evidence for its onset and development in 7-to 20-month-olds human infants, and underlines its significance for language acquisition and evolutionary history. Mother-infant dyads (N = 30) were studied in naturalistic settings, sampled according to three developmental periods (in months); [7-10], [11-14], and [15-20]. Infant's signals were classified by dominant perceptible sensory modality and proportions compared according to their mother's visual attention, infant-directed speech and tactile contact. Maternal visual attention and infant-directed speech

SUBMITTER: Dafreville M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10982422 | biostudies-literature | 2024

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature